The building which previously hosted Long’s Bookstore is set to be demolished next week. Credit: Nick Roll | Campus Editor
The ever-changing North High Street is set to lose two buildings next week.
The building which used to house Long’s Bookstore, sitting at 1836 N. High St., and the adjacent building that used to house Hennicks, a banquet hall, are set to be demolished, with the demolition to start Aug. 25. Both buildings, whose demolitions are part of a Campus Partners’ 15th and High plan, have been abandoned for several years.
The space is immediately going to be used as “laydown area,” said Amanda Hoffsis, president of Campus Partners, Ohio State’s nonprofit development arm, at Wednesday night’s University Area Commission meeting.
The laydown area, Hoffsis explained, would be an area used for parking, materials delivery and trailers during construction along North High Street. Real estate developer Edwards Communities will use some of the space for its building spanning North High Street’s block between East 16th and East 17th avenues, Hoffsis said. Campus Partners will use it for its planned infrastructure construction — which is to include a new storm sewer and burying utility lines — set to start in February.
At the meeting, Hoffsis asked for approval for early demolition for the Hennicks building, which was granted. The demolition for Long’s had been secured, but Campus Partners was worried that the laydown area wouldn’t be big enough.
“Originally we were just thinking Long’s, but we realized that we needed the space for Hennicks as well,” Hoffsis said.
She also said that since the two buildings are connected underground, just demolishing Long’s would have created structural and practical problems when using the immediate area as laydown space.
There have not yet been specific designs or architects hired to come up with a plan for the lots, Hoffsis said.
