Easton Town Center

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Easton Town Center^[1] (commonly referred to as "Easton") is a large mixed-use, office, retail, dining and entertainment center in Columbus, Ohio, near the northeastern suburbs of New Albany and Gahanna. It is designed to look like a classic American main street, with public spaces, fountains, a street grid, and metered storefront parking.

A real estate project of Les Wexner, the founder, chairman and CEO of Limited Brands, Easton Town Center comprises 1.5 million square feet of retail space built upon approximately 90 acres within a larger 1,300 acre development simply called Easton.

The 90-acre retail development was co-developed by The Georgetown Company and Steiner + Associates, while the overall 1,300-acre Easton area is a partnership between Limited Brands and The Georgetown Company. Arnold Schwarzenegger is also one of the original investors in Easton Town Center.

1 Construction
2 Philanthropy
3 Awards
4 Trivia
5 External links

[edit] Construction

[edit] Timeline

1990–1998: Planning and infrastructure development
1997: Chase Manhattan Residential Mortgage HQ; Easton Chiller
1998: Easton Oval; Sports Barn; Soccer Fields open 55 acres
1999: Easton Town Center Phase I; Easton Hilton
2000: Easton Commons Apartments; Marriott Residence Inn
2001: Expansion (Phase II) Fashion District; acquisition of 100 acres for development
2003: Easton Commons Phase II; Marriott Courtyard
2004: Easton exceeds 30,000 jobs created; $80 million in taxes annually
2005: Lane Bryant Headquarters open at Easton bringing total office development over 3,000,000 sf
2006: Germain Luxury Auto Center to open December '06

[edit] Phase I

Easton Town Center Phase I (the South District) opened in the summer of 1999.

It now includes tenants such as Crate and Barrel, Cheesecake Factory, Restoration Hardware, IMO - Independent Mobile, Barnes and Noble, Brio Tuscan Grille, PF Chang's, J.Crew, and Pottery Barn. (It once contained a Virgin Megastore, which closed in May 2004.) The South District hosts outdoor concerts, holiday events and a random pattern pop-up fountain.

[edit] Phase II

Easton Town Center Phase II (the North District or "Fashion District") opened in the fall of 2001.

It includes tenants such as McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurant, Nordstrom, Macy's, Apple Computer, Express, Bon Vie Bistro & Bar, Abuelos Mexican Food Embassy, Ruehl No. 925, C.O. Bigelow, Henri Bendel, bebe, Coach, Smith & Wollensky, the Discovery Channel store, Club Libby Lu, and McDonald's. The North District is also home to the Children's Park, which is a brick fountain area with a large outdoor train set, The Easton Express, and various carved limestone statues dubbed Easton's Creatures of Imagination. There is also a large circular fountain further north. Visit the Easton Town Center Webite

[edit] Philanthropy

The proceeds of the meters are donated to charity via The Easton Community Foundation. Programs include:

Easton Community Foundation Scholarships: scholarships are awarded annually in the spring to two graduating students at Northland, Mifflin, Brookhaven, and Gahanna Lincoln high schools. Each of the eight students selected annually receives a $2,500 renewable two-year scholarship.

Easton Cornerstone Event Partnerships: events include Sera Bella to benefit Children’s Hospital, Celebration for Life to benefit The James Cancer Hospital, An Evening of Hope to benefit the Center for Child & Family Advocacy, Heart of the Next Generation benefiting the Ohio State University Heart Center, and the New Albany Classic to benefit the Columbus Coalition Against Family Violence.

Change for Charity Meter Program: designates a new organization every two months to receive a portion of the parking meter proceeds and ticket revenues generated at Easton Town Center. In 2006, each of the six partner organizations received $15,000.

Easton Community Room and Booth: Organizations classified as 501(C)(3) may utilize a community booth inside the station building and/or the community room.

[edit] Awards

In 2000, Easton Town Center received the ICSC award for Innovative Design of a New Project. It has, at various points, been ranked by Columbus Monthly magazine as "Best of Columbus" for shopping.

[edit] Trivia

AMC Theaters operates a movie theater at Easton with 30 screens.

Lifetime Fitness operates a 24-hour exercise facility, one of the largest in Columbus, although a new one has opened in Dublin, Ohio that may be even larger.

With 30+ food venues, some of the highest gross revenue restaurants in the central Ohio market can be found at Easton.