HAPPY GREEK NOT ALL SMILES

Two more storefronts may be opening soon along High.

Restaurant owner accused of mortgage scam
Monday, February 18, 2008 12:23 PM

The Columbus Dispatch
DELAWARE, Ohio -- The co-owner of the Happy Greek restaurants was arrested Friday as part of a lengthy investigation into a multimillion-dollar mortgage fraud ring that authoriies say operated in Franklin and Delaware counties.

Authorities on Friday arrested Gihan “Gigi” Zalat, 40, of Columbus, and charged her with engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity. She is scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon in Delaware Municipal Court.

The Dispatch reported last year that law-enforcement officials suspected that Zalat and her husband, Mohamed Hassan, ran a fraud ring that involved foreigners buying houses in elite central Ohio neighborhoods.

Police have said real-estate deals were hatched at meetings in the basement office of the Short North restaurant location.

Real estate agents and mortgage brokers became suspicious when buyers began to offer sellers thousands more than the asking price for some homes.

POUND PUPPIES NEED YOU

My partner and I have been checking out dogs for the past few weeks and I can't tell you how great the volunteers are at the Franklin County Dog Shelter. Each day wonderful individuals help walk the dogs, clean their cages and show them to prospective adoptive parents.

So, first I encourage you to consider opening your home to a dog if your lease allows it and you have the time and patience for one.

Second, consider volunteering. You decide what you are willing to do and when.

Third, donate money or needed items. Money is always the most helpful but think about contributing the following items on the shelter's wish list:

soft or chewy dog treats
extra towels or blankets
pet carriers
shampoo
canned or soft dog food
plain or vanilla yogurt
kongs and other toys

Find out more about the shelter at http://www.franklincountyohio.gov/commissioners/ancl/

STILL FOR SALE- 1120 N High St

Although the location is great, they are definitely asking too much for the site especially since the New Victorians purchased the beautiful Mason Building up the street a few years ago for only $500,000. I think this site will require a lot of work and a lot of money to meet the expectations of the SN clientele.

Info is as follows:
$750,000. 8 apartments, 2 commercial spaces in rapidly developing Short North. Recent improvements including roof, gutters, landscaping, tuck point, etc. Opportunity to add value. Condo-conversion potential. Off-street parking pad for 5 cars. Large-scale development directly across the street.

FIBRES HITS A SNAG

Got $53K? If so, you can buy a cute little boutique business. Fibres at 791 N. High Street in the Short North is up for sale.

http://www.ohioequities.com/csauerzopf/791nhighstreet/index.htm

ECO-FRIENDLY STREET VENDORS

I really enjoy street vendors. Admittedly I like their tasty morsels they hawk but they also add a unique vibrancy to city streets. Without street vendors I would sadly be without a Hebrew National and the latest issue of Hello! more often than I would like.

A group of investors in DC just launched a unique twist on the street vendor concept that would be great to duplicate in Columbus whether it be targeted to the business day downtown, post bar crowd or both.

On the Fly is an eco-friendly sidewalk vendor that promotes sustainability by offering locally produced food and drinks and serves it in biodegradable packaging... and of course, the carts are electric. Even better is that the food options are a little more upscale than traditional street fare and prepared by chefs from Zagat rated restaurants.

On a related note, for those of you interested in keeping street vendors part of the urban landscape, you can provide financial assistance to the Street Vendor Project. The nonprofit organization's focus is helping street vendors to continue operating as legitimate businesses in NYC and opposing "quality of life" efforts to remove them.

http://streetvendor.org/public_html/

TAX HELP AVAILABLE

It's that time of the year again- tax season. However, I am glad to see that the City/County is attempting to help out low-income residents by offering free tax assistance. I am unsure how these entities are advertising the service but I hope they are attempting to publicize this opportunity heavily in social service agencies and non-profit groups. Unfortunately I have seen similiar services offered in the past that end up underused because they fail to get the word out. If you work or volunteer for a social service agency that administers services to low-income individuals, I encourage you to make this information readily available to your clients.

Coalition is offering free tax help
Monday, February 4, 2008 3:04 AM

Thousands of Franklin County residents may be giving too much of their hard-earned income to the IRS.

A coalition of county and city government offices, banks, universities and nonprofit organizations have joined to offer free tax-preparation services to households earning less than $40,000 a year.

Officials fear that low- and middle-income workers are unaware of the federal Earned Income Tax Credit, which makes qualified residents eligible for a credit of as much as $4,716. Or, worse yet, residents are paying for tax services that they can get for free.

Volunteers will be available at 18 sites in Franklin County throughout the tax-filing season to help prepare returns. To get more information, determine eligibility and find locations, call the 211 information line.

As an incentive to call, officials said that in 2005, the Internal Revenue Service returned more than $161 million to 85,000 Franklin County households because of the tax credit.

PARK SATISFACTION SURVEY

A student in the City and Regional Planning Program is conducting a survey to measure student satisfaction with parks, open space and green space. If you are so inclined to participate in the 10 minute survey, visit:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=2cEklg3DtMiIoRty8W7UVA_3d_3d

LOW COST GRAFFITI CLEANUP OPTION

There has been a string of new graffiti popping up in the Italian Village lately and I thought it would be a good idea to remind people that the City offers free paint and tools from its mobile tool library to combat graffiti. Other home maintenance equipment is also available. Additionally, if you or a group wants to volunteer to help clean up graffiti, you can volunteer with Keep Columbus Beautiful.

Here are the contact numbers:

Mobile Tool Library: 614-645-8542
http://td.ci.columbus.oh.us/NeighborhoodsandResidents/housing/homeowner/mobile_tools.asp

Keep Col. Beautiful: 614-645-8027
http://refuse.ci.columbus.oh.us/kcb/

BRUTUS SAYS LIVE HERE

The Dispatch reported today that OSU is considering requiring sophomore students begin living on campus in the coming years. As of right now this is all talk. No buildings have been proposed and no financing lined up- so we are told. Currently there are 6,000 sophomores enrolled at OSU, 2,900 of which live on campus. What surprised me about the article is that there is no discussion of the potential effect this may have on the Columbus housing and apartment rental market especially in the University District. Another threat would be to local merchants who serve the student population. It is true that many second year students live at home and most do not live alone but this decision can have some pretty bad effects. I am definitely interested to see what comes out of the Trustee meeting and if any realty managers or landlords come out in opposition to this plan.

OSU may require sophomores to live on campus
Thursday, January 31, 2008 12:20 PM
By Kathy Lynn Gray
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Ohio State University sophomores, about 6,000 strong, would have to live on campus under a proposal the trustees are considering today.

President Gordon Gee is pushing for the change, fueled by studies that show on-campus students graduate quicker, have higher grades and are happier at school, Provost Joseph Alutto said this morning.

“This is all being driven by a concern for academic priorities,” Alutto said. “We have all the resources on campus for students to excel. They take full advantage of those things when they live on campus.”

OSU now requires freshmen to live on campus, although those whose families are in the area can live at home.

OSU houses 9,800 students on campus now. About 5,600 are freshmen and about 2,900 are students living in campus housing for a second year, said Rich Hollingsworth, vice president for student affairs.

Requiring sophomores to live on campus would mean adding enough housing for at least 3,500 students, Hollingsworth said.

How that would be done hasn't been decided, Alutto said. He and other OSU officials will discuss possibilities at a trustee committee meeting today.

Alutto couldn't say how quickly the housing could be added or what it would cost but said “we want to get it done as quickly as possible.”

Gee also wants to speed up $196.9 million in planned renovations to current dormitories, which include adding air conditioning and more private bathrooms as well as eliminating rooms housing more than two students. Those improvements would be completed by the fall of 2012. Under the prior plan, they wouldn't have been completed until 2014 or 2015.

Vanderbilt University in Nashville, where Gee was president before returning to OSU in the fall, required all students to live on campus.

Many Ohio public universities require sophomores to live on campus, Alutto said. At Miami University in Oxford, the requirement goes into effect this fall.

WHOLE FOODS SACKS PLASTIC BAGS

A small little blurb showed up in the Dispatch this morning about Whole Foods phasing out plastic bags at all of its 220+ stores by Earth Day on April 22, 2008. There is only one WF in Columbus (Dublin-Granville) so while the impact in the region may not be dramatic it is a start. WF is a trend setter and hopefully other supermarket chains will voluntarily phase out plastic bags to keep pace with this juggernaut of a grocery store. However, since plastic bags are typically 3 cents cheaper than paper and the grocery market produces very thin profit margins it is doubtful that they will find goodwill in their hearts on their own. Some states including California have begun to require stores recycle plastic bags and San Francisco has gone one stEp further by banning plastic bags with some exceptions. My home town, San Luis Obispo, CA is also considering a city-wide ban.

Mayor Coleman continually talks up his Get Green initiative but I have seen no mention of a similar program. Once again Columbus is a follower instead of a leader. Maybe his campaign should just be renamed Get Green When Convenient.