Franklin Park, Ohio

History

Development in Franklin Park began in the 1850s and continued through the 1880s. The neighborhood was home to the Franklin County Fairgrounds for 30 years before it became the recreational park that it is today.

The first known residential area of Columbus lies within the present day neighborhood. The small addition, consisting of three to six blocks, was referred to as "Franklin Park Place". The borders were Franklin Park South (known as Fair Ave) to the north, Bryden Road to the south, the train tracks to the east, and Fairwood Avenue to the west. As one can see from the source, the Franklin Park area consisted of many different subdivisions and additions whose names eventually merged as "Franklin Park."

The development of Franklin Park brought in both the working class and the wealthy. The neighborhood is a mix of both larger mansions and smaller, modest homes. The 1930s were a transitional zone between the fast-paced city life of downtown and the countryside beyond Alum Creek. Up to the 1940s, the streetcar became more common followed by people typically owning their own automobiles. As this became a popular commodity, people would take their Sunday drives on the 1.2 mile loop that circles Franklin park. Not only was Franklin Park a community neighborhood, but people would also come to Franklin Park to drive for leisure, race their automobiles, and picnic with their families.

Geography

This neighborhood is bounded by East Broad Street to the north, East Main Street to the south, and Wilson Avenue to the west.

The Alum Creek tributary separates the Franklin Park neighborhood from the City of Bexley and the area originally known as the "Wolfe Addition to Franklin Park," which is known in modern times as the Wolfe Park neighborhood.

Franklin Park is surrounded on the north by the other Near East neighborhoods of Eastgate, Nelson Park, Woodland Park, Eastwood Heights, and Bronzeville/King-Lincoln. To the south are Hanford Village, Driving Park, and Old Oaks, which are both considered to be Columbus' Near South. Olde Towne East is another Near East Side neighborhood that is situated between the Discovery and Market Districts of downtown Columbus and the Franklin Park neighborhood. A Google Map shows the general location of the Neighborhoods of Columbus' Near East and Near South neighborhoods (without boundaries depicted).

The contemporary boundaries of Franklin Park have been disputed since the early 2000s and vary depending on the source. The general consensus would include the boundaries of Broad Street to the north, Main Street to the south, and Alum Creek to the east. The neighborhood's boundary to the west tends to be disputed with Olde Towne East. While some sources claim the boundary between the two neighborhoods to be Wilson Ave, other sources claim Olde Towne East follows a staggered boundary past Wilson Ave.

The Bryden Road Historic District bisects both Franklin Park and Olde Towne East. Franklin Park is primarily zoned residential. Franklin Park includes many single family homes, with duplexes, row-houses, and apartment buildings. There are small pockets of the neighborhood zoned for institutional and commercial uses. These occur primarily along E Main St and Kelton Ave. In addition, the far southeast corner of the neighborhood, known as the Holtzman-Main business corridor situated along the Alum Creek tributary, is completely zoned for industrial and commercial zones.

Demographics

According to Onboard Informatics, the median age in Franklin Park is 34 years old and the median household income is $22,820. The largest portion of demographics in Franklin Park are single parents.

A good amount of Franklin Park's population are long term residents, residing in Franklin Park for at least 5 years.

Education and Schools

A+ Arts Academy is a private charter school which opened at 1395 Fair Avenue in the historic building previously known as Fair Avenue Alternative Elementary School and in the late 19th and early 20th Century as Fair Avenue Public School.

Bridgescape Academy

Columbus City Preparatory School for Girls, formerly known as Franklin Alternative Junior High School as well as Franklin Junior High School, is located on a parcel sitting between Bryden Road and Oak Street with a present-day address of 1390 Bryden Road. Another Building known previously as the Theresa Dowd School, as well as Franklin Junior High School, is also situated on the modern day address however, that building fronts Oak Street on the north. That building is currently used only as storage.

Historically, two notable Columbus Schools had original locations within what in the present day is known as the Franklin Park neighborhood. East High School was originally located on the site known in the present as 1390 Bryden Road. The original school was razed to build an earlier incarnation of Franklin Junior High School at 1390 Franklin Avenue. That building was razed to build the present day modernist structure (circa 1970) now ridiculed by many as out of character with the historic structures of the surrounding community.

The other notable school with early beginnings in the present day Franklin Park neighborhood is Columbus Academy. The school sat along the Alum Creek tributary at Franklin Park South and Nelson Road. The building was destroyed by fire in the early 1980s after opening at its new location in Gahanna, Ohio.

Franklin Park

The namesake park is a landmark for both the neighborhood and the Near East Side. The park encompasses 88 acres filled with several ponds, an amphitheater, terraced waterfalls, a community garden, an Asian-themed garden, a picnic shelter, and playgrounds. The Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens also lies within the park, a landmark of the neighborhood and the City of Columbus. Franklin Park is home to twenty one cherry trees gifted from Japan to represent Japanese community of Columbus, Ohio. Twenty of the trees are being kept inside the conservatory's greenhouse before being transplanted outside. The remaining older tree was planted along one of the lakes in Franklin Park on April 27, 2012. The occasion marked the 100 year anniversary of the original Japanese gift, thousands of cherry blossom trees sent from Tokyo to Washington, D.C. “Honda is one of the most-important employers in central Ohio, so there’s a strong connection with Japan,” said Bruce Harkey, a former Honda employee and the Franklin Park Conservatory’s executive director.

Playgrounds

Franklin Park

Kwanzaa Playground at English Park

Religion

Franklin Park is home to a variety of churches, temples, and mosques. The following is a list of a few of the neighborhood's places of worship:

Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens

The Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens is a landmark structure on the National Register of Historic Places. It is situated on the 88-acre Franklin Park just two miles east of downtown Columbus. Built in 1895, the original conservatory stills stands after many expansions to the site. It is now called the John F. Wolfe Palm House, and houses 43 species of palms from around the world. The Fiddle-leaf Fig in the palm house is one of the oldest remaining plants in the conservatory. Architect J.M. Freese, from a local firm called MSI Design (now MKSK), was inspired to build the Victorian greenhouse after the success of the Chicago World's Columbian Exposition of 1893. He drew inspiration from the City Beautiful movement and also from London's Crystal Palace, taking after its ornate, Victorian style.

In the 1930s, the Wolfe Family, better known as the owners of The Columbus Dispatch, bought exotic animals for the Columbus Zoo. The original site of the zoo was located in Clintonville, within the old Olentangy Park along the Olentangy River. Structures to hold these animals were not quite ready when the Wolfe Family had purchased the exotic animals, so they were temporarily held at the conservatory. To this day, on some of the windows of the Palm House, one can still see the remains of bars on the windows where the animals were once held.

Franklin Park and the Conservatory became the host site for AmeriFlora '92, a six-month international horticulture exposition. Renovation of the historic Palm House and a $14-million expansion began in 1989. The additions totaled 58,000 square feet and included expanded plant collections, classrooms, a library, gift shop, café, and administrative offices. After Ameriflora Ohio Legislature created the Franklin Park Conservatory Joint Recreation District to uphold management of the conservatory and surrounding acres by a new 10-member board of trustees and an executive director.

Franklin Park Trolley Barn Complex

The Old Trolley Barn, although abandoned, still stands in Franklin Park as a landmark. Taking up 3 acres of land, the six brick buildings at the trolley-barn site were built between 1880 and 1920. The tracks from one of the Trolley Barns to Oak Street still remains. These city's trolley systems were used for decades. The landmark was recently bought by a developer with plans for a mixed use facility in the future preserving the historic structures of the complex).

Royal York Apartments

The 1920s Art Deco style Apartments were built in 1937 by architect Howard Dwight Smith who is well known for his designs of the Ohio Stadium. This eight story Modernism apartment building is the tallest building in the neighborhood.

Dining

Considering Franklin Park is historically a neighborhood consisting of mostly residential, there are only a few restaurants or fast food chains located in the area. The local fast food restaurants are Beverage Warehouse, Church’s Chicken and KFC. Located in the Conservatory is the Garden Café.

Business

Asian Festival

Despite the low concentration of Asian residents, the Franklin Park area hosts several attractions tied to the culture of Asian countries and history of Asian-Americans. The neighborhood and park have been home to the annual 'Asian Festival' since 1995. The festival attracts over 100,000 people from around Columbus, the state of Ohio, and beyond.

Jingle Mingle

The Jingle Mingle is the annual holiday celebration of the Franklin Park Civic Association. Held in the John F. Wolfe Palm House of the Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, the 2012-2014 events were co-hosted with the Olde Town East Neighborhood Association (OTENA) This event occurs in early December and has traditionally been a neighborhood holiday potluck. Although FPCA began using "The Jingle Mingle" term in 2012, the civic association has hosted an early December neighborhood gathering at the Franklin Park Conservatory for many years. During the renovations of the Conservatory to host Ameriflora '92, the holiday event was held at East High School.

Since 2011, and now concurrent to the Jingle Mingle, the Franklin Park Civic Association conducts an annual Holiday Raffle and Silent Auction, which are fundraising events for the organization. The December 13, 2015 Jingle Mingle hosted a diverse group of approximately 160 guests from across all of the neighborhoods of Columbus' Near East Side. In addition to gathering to celebrate community and the holidays, drives for the needy are included. The 2015 drive encouraged attendees to donate personal care items and toiletries, with a special focus to bring new packages of socks as the item most quickly worn out by the homeless. In addition to the potluck dinner, the Franklin Park Civic Association provides a main course and items that are not placed on the buffet are donated to benefit the Near East Side Food Pantry at First English Lutheran Church which is located on Main Street in nearby Olde Towne East.

Historic Home Tours

Although homes in the Franklin Park neighborhood had been included in the Olde Towne East Neighborhood Association (OTENA) Tour of Historic Homes before, in 2013, OTENA invited the Franklin Park Civic Association to endorse a showcase of their neighborhood by presenting the first Summer Tour of Historic Homes to feature homes exclusively located outside of their neighborhood. The entire tour was devoted to the homes fronting 88 acre Franklin Park and the Conservatory. The tour began on the grounds of the Franklin Park Conservatory in the_Scotts_Miracle-Gro Community Garden Campus, with the first stop being the recently restored "Caretaker's Cottage". In addition to serving as a neighborhood resource center and meeting space, the Caretaker's Cottage is home to the American Community Gardening Association. As followup to the Tour, it was revealed that the 2013 Tour of Historic Homes had been the most highly attended tour to date.

All proceeds of the 2013 OTENA Tour of Historic Homes went to the benefit of the Olde Towne East Neighborhood Association (OTENA).

Transportation

Franklin Park was home of the Columbus Railway, Power and Light Co. in 1904. From 1888 to 1948, an experimental electric streetcar ran from Chittenden Avenue to the Fairgrounds that were once located in Franklin Park. This was the beginning of public transportation. In 2009, there was a proposed plan to bring a modern version of the Columbus Streetcar back.

Today, COTA (Central Ohio Transit Authority) operates three local bus services in the Franklin Park area. The number two runs along E Main St, the number ten runs along E Broad St, and the number 11 runs along E Oak St and Bryden Rd. COTA also provides an express service along E Broad St connecting Downtown to Gahanna. This number 43 lines runs along E Broad St from the Ohio Statehouse to N Hamilton Rd, then north on Hamilton to the Hunter Ridge Mall in Gahanna.

The Alum Creek Multi-use Trail or The Ohio to Erie Trail is an important trail that runs through Franklin Park. This trail travels along one of the city's river corridors.