So the juggling continues. HighBall is rockin’… some major stuff to talk about later on that front. We’re down to 5 weeks and counting. So what should I talk about? The Short North Gala of course! I haven’t brought that one to the front blog-burner as yet… and it’s just 2 weeks away!

Last year we introduced the Short North Gala to celebrate the lighting of the High Street arches. Remember when the arches were just architectural background? Okay, that’s a different story. So the gala was an instant sell out and we immediately decided it HAD to be an annual event. But, as with any launch, we learned some things that will make year 2 an even greater experience. Less time between courses. More time for after party. Recognize award recipients all through the evening. Order more wine!

So here we are in round two. Where to start? Well, it’s a culinary thing. It’s a spirit thing. It’s a Short North thing. And the whole thing takes place at the Greek Orthodox Cathedral, Sunday, October 12. Start with cocktails in the courtyard at 5:30, dinner at 7:00, after party at 9:00. In between? One heck of an incredible foodie experience. Rosendales. Rigsby’s. Hyde Park Steakhouse. Athletic Club of Columbus. Union Cafe. Marcella’s. Martini. basi italia. Haiku. Jeni’s Ice Creams. Yep. A phenomenal course from each and every one of them.

The spirit part… We’re dedicating the evening to our two luminary award recipients, Maria Galloway (owner and founder of pm gallery - 28 years in the making) and John Allen (owner and found of the Short North Tavern - 27 years in the making). We’re also recognizing the behind-the-scenes contributions of four great “Unsung Heroes”: Tray Hunker, Greg Maynard, Christie Nohle and Katie Reider.

The theme is the “Glow of Success.” Corny but true. It’s a nod to the arches, and a nod the amazing accolades the district has received over the last year, including: Gallery Hop—Best Art Event in the State per Ohio Magazine and the Expy Award from Experience Columbus for contributions to the visitor experience in our fair city.

Our event chairs (Joe Spinelli, Xenia Palus and Jeni Bauer) have been working their little tushes off getting the details together. Add to that Joe Baer’s creative team from ZenGenius and you have the makings for one unforgettable evening. By the way, ZG is working with the constraint that all color in the room’s decor has to be chemical or electric. That’s all I’m sayin’ ’bout that.

If you would like to get your ticket before the event is sold out, drop me a line and I’ll send you an invitation. That sounds so used-car-salesman, but I know you’ll have a fabulous time.

Ciao for now.

ja

It’s becoming obvious to me that blogging about the Short North is going to be more challenging than I had expected. Turns out that with all the projects and tasks at hand, taking a break long enough to write about them isn’t so easy. There’s always the option to go do one more something and write about it a bit later. Unfortunately, “a bit later” becomes considerably later, becomes oops I forgot. This past week is a perfect example. HighBall has been barreling along full-steam. Meeting after meeting. Lining up bands. Getting permits for street closures, sound variances, alcohol sales, bagging meters, and half a dozen other required officiallities. Then there’s event insurance. Staging. Lighting. Recruiting fashion designers. Creating flyers, table tents and advertisements. Talking one-on-one with area businesses about the logistics. And, of course, courting sponsors. Thank goodness for committees and great volunteers who help lighten the load.

But at the end of the day, HighBall is one of half-a-dozen such projects underway in the Business Association of Columbus’ most hyper-active destination. The Short North Gala arrives October 12. The next issue of the Short North Visitors Guide is due out in December. We’re working on our plans for the holidays… which, of course, includes Holiday Hop. We’ve partnered with the city to address aggressive panhandling. We’re working with the downtown community to add way-finding signage to the area. You know, it’s really amazing how much great stuff bubbles up to the active list here in the Short North… and before you know it, another 80-hour week sneaks up on you.

So finding a few minutes to talk about it, isn’t as easy as I expected. That’s cool. There are little spics and specs here and there. There are moments waiting for meetings or the occasional solo lunch. There’s enough time to reflect. I know I have to work on the discipline factor, and take advantage of the snippets. It is doable.

Sitting on my patio watching the Sunday sun rise over the Short North Kroger happens to be a great little moment. Puck is squirrel hunting. The traffic is picking up. Laptop on lap. Battery only partially charged. Ah, that’s good; forces time limits. Looks like the district was hit with more Skully’s and Obama flyers. Mental note, take those down when we head out for our morning constitution.

Okay, here’s the real blog posting. Let’s call it “The Short North Spark”

I started the Short North blog with a bent toward the behind-the-scenes work we do at the Business Association. Now I’m realizing it’s also a great place to share the behind-the-scenes work the various district personalities do to make the Short North so special.

Friday night I received a call from Christie Nohle, owner of Urban Gardener. Christie was teaming with Larry Totzke, president of the Italian Villlage Society for a movie night fundraiser in Christie’s parking lot. The feature: Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck in Roman Holiday. Larry had borrowed the SNBA’s information tent earlier in the day for the gig, but it hadn’t quite registered with me what he was planning.

Around 7:30 (yes, a bit later than I was expecting to be at the office on a Friday), Christie called to “reserve” my projector as a backup in case hers wasn’t strong enough. “No problem,” I agreed. About half an hour later, a second call from Christie: They had started the pre-movie cartoons. All was fine. “What are you and Frank doing? Come join us!” If you know Christie, you know how her voice can carry excitement and a sense of expectation and wonder. “It’s going to be so much fun!” So okay, Frank and I opted to cruise on over to Urban Gardener’s parking lot for a Friday night movie. Why not?

When we arrived, Larry and his wife Sylvia were serving up samples of Italian Village Society wine they had made at Camelot Cellars. The SNBA information tent was their distribution hut. Christie had brought out every chair she stocked in her business. Tall ones. Low ones. Metal ones. Cloth ones. The seating was as eclectic as the 30 or so neighborhood supporters who had shown up for the evening.

Frank and I tossed our $5 suggested contributions into the collection pot and grabbed our bags of popcorn, beverages, bags of candy AND Medco gifts (travel office supplies and sorta fun band-aid dispenser). Good lord. When did $5 ever get so much value? We perched atop a couple of patio bar stools and settled in. As the night progressed it got cooler. We considered sneaking out to warm up. Christie got wind of the issue and ran inside to snag a bright red jacket for me to cut the chill. Crisis averted. The movie was quite enjoyable (the black and white images playing off the textures of the brick wall added a ghostly, surreal sense to the storyline), but I was more caught up in WHAT was going on.

My neighbors were investing their time to create community. It wasn’t just happening, as so many would like to believe is the way of the world… things just magically happen. It was being created. And it took commitment, effort and time. And it touched my heart.

Larry. Sylvia. Christie. Running around picking up tents. Setting out chairs. Spreading the word. Making wine. So many little details. So much time. They probably raised a few hundred dollars on Friday for the Italian Village Park. But far more than that, they created a wonderfully experiential Short North moment. It was after work hours for everyone. But Christie was still setting out chairs for her neighbors. Larry was still pouring samples of wine and welcoming new comers. And Frank and I were absorbing the wonderful fruits of their extra labor, following what was probably an 80-hour work week for each of them. 10:00PM Big rounds of hugs. Helping hands to load equipment into cars. And we were off to the next Short North stop. Completely re-energized and inspired to do our parts the next time.

And as I finish this entry, the sun has fully risen and the entire area is buzzing with energy. Sunday mornings aren’t really as sleepy as everyone would have you believe.

Realization. It’s been another special moment for me in the Short North.

Now it’s time to take Puck on that morning constitution and do a little district clean up. Taking time for community isn’t always on the clock. Sometimes it’s not really work at all. Sometimes it’s an investment in the quality of life we each desire… and well worth the time to reflect upon.

Ciao.

John

So HighBall is launched and now we set about making the vision reality. As a longtime event producer, I firmly believe every event should have key features that make it truly experiential. These features combine to become the signature, and differentiate it from all other events. They keep people buzzing for weeks or months after the event fades. For HighBall, there are many features, but the overarching (Short North pun intended) signature has to be its artistic creativity. HighBall will be an immersion in absolute fabulousness. It will be a celebration of Columbus’ creative class. It’s not the stereotypical witches, goblins and ghouls. It’s wow-factor, alter-egos, Priscilla Queen of the Desert and trick-or-treat “eye candy.” It’s simply fabulous.

Sometimes fabulousness isn’t easy. In fact, it can be downright arduous. But I so admire the people who decide to invest the effort because they live for the fabulous moments. They invest their art and soul into a project because they want to create an experience for themselves and for all those around them. That artistic drive is at the heart of HighBall. And it is what will make HighBall different than anything out there.

Today, here’s the story behind the couture costume fashion showdown… this is a competition for professional fashion designers and design students. Each contestant will present 3-4 items from his/her collection and add a HighBall couture costume to the set. Then they will hit a 40 foot runway staged in the middle of High Street. Thumping music, struttin’ models, a wild audience, and 4 decision-making judges. The incomparable Nina West, drag queen extraordinaire and 2008 National Entertainer of the Year, will be our celebrity emcee for this fierce fashion showdown. Someone will be crowned HighBall couture costume designer of the year and receive a $1,000 prize package… and, of course, ultimate bragging rights. More so, perhaps, all the designers will have an awesome platform to share their creativity, both in their signature collections and in their couture costumes, with an audience of influential and inspired fashion fanatics… Columbus’ creative class.

Our first two enthusiastic partners are Kelli Martin (a recent participant on Project Runway and founder of AntiLabel), and Esther Chung. Both have design businesses in Columbus, and both have a passion for the expressiveness of Halloween. If you are interested in being a spotlighted designer in the heart of the couture costume fashion showdown, drop me an email at johnangelo@shortnorth.org or give me a call at 614.299.8050 x13… and help spread the word.

Next time, details on the costume contest (for the general public) and on the dogtober halloween procession.

Ciao for now.

It’s a little early in the morning, oh ’bout 2:30AM, and I’m sorting thru the images for tonight’s HighBall Halloween event launch. It was a great day with all the pieces coming together in grand style. I have to say this is one of the most creative, talented and just downright fun teams I’ve had the privilege to work with. This is not going to be your basic slasher, frightmare Halloween. HighBall is going to absolutely pulse with creativity, self-experession and energy. Plan to be talking about this one for months.

Today (hmmm… technically yesterday now), we had our final committee meeting before the launch. The ideas were flying. It was as if hundreds of seeds had been planted over the last month and now all of a sudden they had really taken root and all these definitive concepts were ready to be harvested. The whole story will come out tonight, but here are a few details that are just downright fun…

Mark Moorehead and his team at Moorehead Design nailed the image for the event with a slammin’ logo and absolutely hot array of images. When you see the pics, you’ll get the idea.

We’ve decided to close High Street from Buttles to Hubbard. Thanks to Paul Liu’s amazing zeal for experiential happenings, we’re tapping into Haiku’s parking lot at the north end to stage live bands throughout the evening. At the south end of the strip, we’ll be offering up a fun-as-hell dance scene with a couple of Columbus’ hottest DJ’s… starting with DJ Moxy.

The costume scene is getting a real kickstart. We’ve already signed on two rockin’ fashion designers to begin creating original works of art for a runway scene. Welcome aboard Kelli and Esther. Our goal is to have a dozen Columbus designers really show their stuff.

More details tonight, including the Dogtober Howloween Procession, announcements about the costume contest and new of a certain national Entertainer of the Year lending a hand. See ya at Skully’s. 5:30P.

Now that Art al Fresco has made a successful debut, the Short North is turning its focus to the next big thing… HighBall Halloween: A Masquerade Party on High Street. On Wednesday, Sept. 10 we’ll unveil the full details during the event launch at Skully’s Music Diner, but right now the development committee is debating some of the key aspects. Charly Bauer (Jeni’s Ice Creams) wants to see “fabulous” costumes at every turn and an outrageous diva-emcee like Nina West. Dawn Friedman agrees that the “wow factor” should be off the chart if it’s going to be worthy of Short North status, but thinks there has to be a twist to the event. Ryan Morgan thinks inviting Columbus’ couture fashion designers to create original costumes for a Project Runway-style fashion showdown would get juices flowing. Walker Evans wants to see high-profile prizes for the best, most creative, and most outrageous costumes. The next meeting, tomorrow afternoon, will iron out the details.

There are also many logistics questions to answer by Wednesday. What part of High Street will we close for the masquerade? Should we have bands or DJs? Dancing or parades? Beer or wine!? Who gets to be the Joker!?

More to come…