Downtown Columbus, Georgia

Downtown Columbus
—  Neighbourhood  —
Fireworks in Downtown on July 4, 2009.
Country	United States
State	Georgia
County	Muscogee
City	Columbus
Subdistricts of Downtown	List Avondale Baker Village City Village Willett
Population (2007[1])
- Total	8,080
ZIP codes[2]	31900, 31901, 31902, 31903, 31906, 31908, 31993, 31994, 31995, 31997, 31998, 31999

Downtown Columbus, Georgia, also called "Uptown" (see here), is the central business district of the city of Columbus, Georgia. The commercial and governmental heart of the city has traditionally been toward the eastern end of Downtown Columbus, between 10th Street and 1st Avenue. Recent developments, particularly between Broadway and 2nd Avenue, have expanded the boundaries of the "central" part of the neighborhood. The term "Downtown Columbus" can also mean this smaller, more commercial area, particularly when used in the context of the city's nightlife and restaurants. South of Broadway is a much more residential area, characterized by historic homes, new infill construction, and some public housing. This part of Downtown Columbus has the highest concentration of hotels, particularly along Front Avenue, and the Broadway commercial corridor is the center of business.

Overview

Buildings

The area of downtown contains among the tallest buildings in Columbus. The tallest building in Columbus is the Aflac Tower, situated between Midtown and Downtown Columbus.

Downtown Columbus is the heart of the city of Columbus. This area contains striking architecture dating as far back as the late 1800s. Some of the most famous and/or tallest buildings in Downtown include:

• Aflac Tower
• Columbus Consolidated Government Center
• Ledger Enquirer Tower
• Synovus Centre
• SunTrust Plaza
• Carmike Cinemas Headquarters
• Corporate Center
• Ralston Tower
• Marriott Hotel
• Total System Headquarters

Homes

Downtown Columbus is home to many Antebellum homes, most listed in the NRHP, including the Dinglewood House, the Garrett-Bullock House, and the Mott House.

Historic Places

"Downtown" is not a Historic District, but many Historic Districts are located in the main district of Downtown. They are as follows: the Columbus Historic Riverfront Industrial District, the Columbus Historic District, Dinglewood Historic District. Other historic places listed in the National Register of Historic Places include Columbus Ironworks, the Ledger-Enquirer Tower, and the YMCA.^[3] The Columbus Battlefield spans across the Chattahoochee River in the location of Mott's Green.

Places of interest

Downtown Columbus is full of places that may interest tourists. These places include government buildings, sporting venues and other miscellaneous places, such as parks and convention centers.

Governmental Facilities

• The Columbus Consolidated Government Center is the seat of the government for the City of Columbus. This building is where the Muscogee County Board of Commissioners meet as well as many of the county departments. The Government Center is located in the area that is bounded by 9th Street to the south, 2nd Avenue to the east, 10 Street to the north, and 1st Avenue to the west.
• The Muscogee County U.S. Post Office and Courthouse is located just two blocks from the Government Center at 120 12th Street.

Sporting Venues

• The largest indoor sporting arena in the city of Columbus is the Columbus Civic Center, which has a total capacity of 10,000 and is also home to the Columbus Lions, the city's PIFL football team, and also home to the Columbus Cottonmouths, the city's Southern Professional Hockey League team.
• Just south of J. R. Allen Parkway from the Downtown area is Golden Park, a total 5,000 seat baseball-only stadium, the former home to the Columbus Catfish and current home to the Columbus Wood Bats. It was also the site of the softball events of the 1996 Summer Olympics that were held in the city of Columbus. The park is located at 100 4th Street.
• In the same area as Golden Park, you will find the A. J. McClung Memorial Stadium, the site of football games between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Auburn Tigers from 1916 until 1958 (the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry). The stadium now now hosts the Fort Valley State-Albany State and the Tuskegee-Morehouse rivalry games, as well local youth football and soccer and high school football games.
• The Chattahoochee Riverwalk offers 15 miles of some of the best cycling pathway and riverside vistas in the state of Georgia.

Other Venues

• Located in downtown, the Springer Opera House (the official State Theatre of Georgia) opened February 21, 1871. Today, the Springer Opera House hosts performances year-round on two stages. Emily Woodruff Hall, the 700-seat main theatre, hosts the popular Mainstage Series which features some of the nation's newest plays and musicals as well as timeless Broadway-style productions. Foley Hall, the Springer's more intimate space, hosts its Studio II Series as well as its Children's Theatre Series, featuring many of the area's talented student actors.
• Located one block from the Columbus Consolidated Government Center, the RiverCenter for the Performing Arts opened in 2002 and has held host to famous musicians, dancers, actors, comedians, and entertainers from around the world. Notable performances include Bill Cosby, Stomp, Miss Saigon, A Streetcar Named Desire, Blast!, Yo-Yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman, The Moscow Boys Choir, David Copperfield, Jessye Norman, Chick Corea and Bela Fleck.
• Located in downtown, the National Civil War Naval Museum at Port Columbus is a 40,000-square-foot (3,700 m2) facility that opened in 1962 and features two original American Civil War military vessels, uniforms, equipment and weapons used by the Union and Confederate navies. It is the only museum in the nation that tells the story of the two navies during the Civil War.
• Located one block from Broadway, the Coca-Cola Challenger Space Science Center opened in 1996 for the purpose of public education in science, physics, and astronomy. It includes seven flight simulators and a planetarium.
• Located just minutes from downtown is Peachtree Mall, the city's only indoor shopping mall with major department stores including Dillard's, Macy's, and J.C. Penny. The total retail floor area is 821,000 square feet (76,300 m2).
• The National Infantry Museum, located minutes from downtown, is an Army museum. The U.S. Army, which owns the artifacts and memorabilia that is part of the galleries, also pays $2.3 million per year to lease the museum space. The museum itself is be free to the public, with Army regulations prohibiting an admission fee at the officially sanctioned property.

Places of worship

Downtown in 1880, showing the Church of the Holy Family (image by Theodore R. Davis)

Downtown provides many places to worship, for people of all religions. These include eight churches, one synagogue, and one mosque. The list is as follows:^[4]

Churches

Anglican

Saint George's Anglican Church

Baptist

First African Baptist Church

First Baptist Church

Fourth Street Baptist Church

Catholic

Holy Family Catholic Church

Episcopal

Trinity Episcopal Church

Lutheran

Bethlehem Lutheran Church

Methodist

St Luke United Methodist Church

Presbyterian

First Presbyterian Church

Synagogues

Shearith Israel Synagogue

Mosques

Muhammad Mosque

Transportation

There are many modes of transportation in Downtown Columbus that can be used by tourists and residents. METRA operates bus service in Downtown, which connects riders to other places in the city, such as Midtown, Hilton Heights, and other residential communities within the City of Columbus.

The primary way of getting around Downtown for many people is by car. Downtown Columbus is served by J. R. Allen Parkway, which creates the northern border of the Downtown area. Downtown is also served by Veterans Parkway and Victory Drive.

Finally, Downtown has many surface streets as alternatives to J. R. Allen Parkway. However, many of these surface streets are one way streets that complicates travel for drivers.

Neighborhoods

The following are neighborhoods included in the district of Downtown:^[5]

• Avondale
• Baker Village
• Bibb City
• City Village
• Dinglewood
• East Highlands
• Willett

"Downtown"/"Uptown"

There is confusion brought about by the use of the terms "Downtown" and "Uptown" for Columbus' central business district. However, these terms do not reference different areas of the city and are thus interchangeable.

Tornado

On April 20, 2009, at approximately 12:40 AM Eastern Daylight Time, a category EF2 tornado hit downtown with winds up to 135 miles per hour (217 km/h). This tornado caused damage to the Columbus State University Campus, the Springer Opera House, and the RiverCenter for the Performing Arts. This is the first time a tornado touched ground in downtown Columbus since weather records keeping began in the 1890s. While there were dozens of injuries, there were no fatalities.^[6]

Gallery

• 

  CB&T headquarters

• 

  Ledger Enquirer Tower

• 

  SunTrust Plaza

• 

  Corporate Center

• 

  Shops on Broadway

• 

  A fountain in Downtown

• 

  The Synovus Centre, as seen from Phenix City

• 

  RiverCenter for the Performing Arts

• 

  The Columbus Consolidated Government Center from Broadway

• 

  Total System Headquarters

• 

  Columbus Consolidated Government Center

• 

  The Aflac Tower, as seen from Downtown

• 

  Downtown in the 1950s

• 

  U.S. Post Office and Courthouse

• 

  Carmike Cinemas headquarters

• 

  Ralston Tower

References

1. ^ This is done by adding the populations of Avondale, Baker Village, City Village, Dinglewood, and Willett (as found on city-data.com).
2. ^ Zip Codes in Columbus, Georgia
3. ^ National Register of Historic Places listings in Muscogee County, Georgia
4. ^ List of places of worship
5. ^ All neighborhood info taken from Google Maps.
6. ^ Tornado tears through Downtown

External links

• Official Website for the City of Columbus
• Website for visitors info