Two weeks before the Ohio primary, OSU head football coach Urban Meyer was having none of that endorsement stuff. He said he was not going to run that play.

Coach Meyer had been burned in 2013 when he apparently was pressured by Columbus' big money dilberts to endorse the Columbus school levy. The tax measure went down in the flames.

Bad play. Don't run it again, coach.

Meyer may have stuck to that playbook until Donald Trump said at a rally in early March that Meyer had “said good things about him (Trump).” Trump did not claim an endorsement but the implication that Ohio's most popular public figure was in Trump's corner was inescapable.

After increasing pressure from North Campus residents, the high-end apartment developer behind The View on Pavey Square has drawn up another redesign. The developers said while previous designs were a mismatch, this new design complements Pavey Square, which is arguably one of the city’s most historically organic and visually distinct areas. Some of the North Campus activists, or the group Protect Old North, say this is another victory considering the developer, JSDI Celmark, has come back with several redesigns in response to their push back.

Some with Protect Old North have told The Columbus Free Press their position has always been that all development plans follow the University Area Plan, which calls for a maximum height of 45-feet for this area of High Street.

But does their position truly protect North Campus?

In a functioning democracy, all residents of a community should have an equal say in decisions that affect the entire community. But this hasn’t been happening in the Near East Side, Short North, Weinland Park, University District, and other Columbus neighborhoods.

With the blessing of a city government that is friendly to gentrification, developers and wealthy property owners have been on a frenzy of redevelopment in these areas — tearing down family homes and historic buildings to make room for luxury housing. Soaring housing costs in these neighborhoods have forced thousands of low- and middle income residents out of their homes.

Rally for Climate Action at the Ohio Statehouse

Privatization is becoming the policy de joure at Ohio State University, but students and university employees are left out of the discussions.

As OSU’s leadership has shifted, many community members have become concerned about drastic changes in student life and operations, like the new sophomore on-campus housing requirement and the recent parking privatization deal. The OSU administration has touted great success with the parking privatization, but how much is propaganda and talking points?

Now OSU has turned to privatizing campus energy services. Few details were shared with the public about the parking deal, like how savings were spent or how the university’s mission has been better served. Similar concerns are echoed in the current energy privatization deal.    

Columbus is neither Steel City nor Motor City – places where one industry dominates the economic landscape. Ohio State University has dominated Central Ohio’s economic landscape. Stakeholders and residents here have benefitted from a growing university and more income streams.