By Nicholas Dekker

I have fond memories as a kid of neighborhood block parties, the ones where they would close down the whole street and someone would line up a dozen banquet tables in a row and everyone would bring a dish to share. There would be games and – if it was a holiday – the fire department would roll in a truck and the kids would climb all over it.

That was the same feeling I got at Picnic With the Partnership last year. It took a road we all know – High Street – and transformed it into this great community party. It was a chance for us to gather at the central hub of the neighborhood to, well, just be neighbors.

If you’ve never been, just imagine a big neighborhood picnic. Except instead of all bringing casseroles, we’re being fed by local restaurants. If you’re coming to the Picnic, make sure you order a ticket ahead of time. You can simply reserve a seat at the table and bring you own food, or pre-order a meal from Whitney House, Worthington Inn, Harold’s, or Taste of Vietnam. Kid’s meals are also available!

Last year we ordered dinner from The Whitney House, and it was top-notch.

The new item this year is the D.O.R.A. (Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area) that will be in effect by the time of the Picnic. D.O.R.A. allows guests to purchase adult beverages at establishments around Old Worthington and walk around the district. A little sip and stroll, if you will. Previously, guests had to stay within the confines of the event, but this year Picnic With the Partnership can flex a little bit to involve the whole neighborhood!

The added bonus of this is… dessert! Because guests can stroll the district, that means they visit the shops up and down High Street. If you purchase dessert taste tickets ahead of time, you can wander around to designated shops to sample different sweet treats.

Get your tickets for Picnic With the Partnership (sooner than later!) here. Learn more about this fundraiser that benefits The Old Worthington Partnership here.

See you at the picnic!

Spring has arrived and the weather is inviting us to participate in outdoor activities.   Visiting the outdoor Worthington Farmers Market on Saturdays or enjoying one of the outdoor cafes in Old Worthington is first on everyone's list this time of year, but there are even more activities to choose from when out and about.

Exhibits are available for viewing at three locations in Worthington.  The McConnell Arts Center and High Road Gallery offer interesting art exhibits and the Worthington Historical Society Doll Museum is offering a unique exhibit.

McConnell Arts Center
777 Evening Street
mcconnellarts.org
 
Printer’s Proofs: Artist John Lennon
May 9 – May 28, 2017
Schott Lobby
The McConnell Arts Center will be exhibiting printer’s proofs of John Lennon’s drawings, printed by master printmaker Namik Kulenovic of Novak Graphics in Toronto. The serigraphs were given to Jaredene Brown, by her partner Namik,  during the publication process of postcards from the This is my story, both humble and true collection in the late 1980s. Her brother, Greg Brown, inherited the collection of the 35 prints that show different colorizations and notes throughout the printing process.

Ed Phillips & Juliette Montague

Ed Phillips
May 25 - August 13, 2017
Main Gallery
Local artist Ed Philips creates unique and captivating textures in his abstract paintings through the use of sand, tissue and modeling paste. Rediscovering his artistic side after his retirement a few years ago, Ed started painting seascapes and landscapes, but found limited success. He then decided to venture into the world of contemporary art and stumbled upon an artist who used paper and other materials to create texture. Ed attempted to replicate this effect, but he formed his own distinct abstract style through the use of modeling paste. The black and white pieces on display at the MAC are some of his first creations where he discovered the “magic” in textured abstraction, and he’s never turned back.

Juliette Montague
May 25 - August 13, 2017
Corridor Galleries
A MAC faculty member specializing in bookmaking, encaustic collage and linocut printmaking, Juliette Montague showcases her own unique encaustic pieces in this exhibition. She incorporates everything from leather to wire, fabric, old tins, jewelry and images, creating a unique blend of textures, patterns and colors. Humor plays a large part in Juliette’s work, both through the imagery and the play on words she finds inspiration in. Her pieces evolved from an interest in exploring and interpreting the “metaphysical and the physical world, the secular, the spiritual, the sacred and the profane,” often capturing imagined moments in time. The collage of materials and images serve to create striking narratives on history, pop culture and the “beauty of the flotsam manufactured by our society.”

High Road Gallery & Studios
12 E. Stafford Avenue
highroadgallery.com

Drumming and Dancing in Watercolor
Until May 27
Thirty masterful watercolor paintings by Suzanne Accetta remain on view at High Road Gallery and Studios until May 27. Entitled INSPIRATIONS FROM THE STAGE the show features energetic paintings of local Columbus drummers and dancers. Suzanne’s award-winning works have been shown locally as well as worldwide.

Worthington Historical Society
50 W. New England Avenue
worthingtonhistory.org

Parade of Doll Homes at the Doll Museum
Until late June
A special exhibit featuring many of the Society's dollhouses is now on exhibit.  From a "Converse House" which is a 1920's house made of lithograph on wood to a Tootsietoy House, a Bliss House, a Rich Colonial, a Strombecker House, a Petite Princess and a Keystone Tudor, visitors will enjoy these miniature homes with all of their accompanying furnishings.  The homes on display are examples of dollhouses spanning the 20th century, fromthe lithograph and wood Bliss House made in the teens to the cardboard Petite Princess House from the mid 60s and 70s.

Get out in Worthington and enjoy some of these exhibits.  Please visit the indivudual venues' websites listed above for hours of operation.   

Dewey's Pizza

By Nicholas Dekker

Anywhere you look in Worthington you’ll find pizza shops slinging both classic and creative pies. Pizza is the perfect backdrop to enjoy some family time, sip on a pint of craft beer, catch some live music, or cheer on your favorite teams. Here are some Worthington pizza highlights just looking up and down High Street.

Pies & Pints
Pies & Pints offers the ideal pairing of pizza and craft beer. The specialty pies feature creative combinations like grape and gorgonzola, Sriracha shrimp, and steak and mushroom. They all pair nicely with a rotating selection of over 100 craft beers on draft and in bottles.

Villa Nova
You’ll know you’re close to Villa Nova when you can smell the warm pizza in the air. It’s a classic smell that has drawn multiple generations to dine on the menu of Italian favorites, including pizzas like the classic 7 Topping Deluxe or the taco pizza loaded with beef, refried beans, and taco sauce.

Villa Nova

Dewey's
It’s hard to tell who’s having more fun at Dewey’s: the adults enjoying the selection of beer and wine, or the kids watching the pizza-makers fling dough into the air. Dewey’s appeals to the whole family with pizzas like the Edgar Allan Poe (mozzarella, fontina, mushrooms, garlic, olives, and goat cheese), the Bronx Bomber (mozzarella, pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, and veggies), or the Ryan’s Inferno (buffalo chicken, gorgonzola, onion, celery, and ranch dressing).

Pizza Primo
Pizza Primo is a locally owned shop with two locations – one in Clintonville and one in Worthington – serving up classic pies. You can build your own pizzas, order combos like the Meat Lovers and the BBQ Chicken, or go for signatures like the Primo Classic or the Buffalo Chicken.

Jet's
Jet’s in Old Worthington is known for their square pies with deep dish crusts. Choose from classics with meats and veggies, to the creative Philly Cheese Steak, Hawaiian, and BLT. You can even order customized crusts with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, romano, or Cajun seasonings. Watch for their lunch specials for two slices and a drink for $5. (Hint: ask for the pizza “well done” and they’ll leave it in the oven longer to brown the cheese a little more.)

Blaze
*COMING SOON* (old Cosi location on Wilson Bridge Road) Blaze is one of many fast casual pizza concepts popping up around the city. Everyone prefers their pizza a little differently, right? Some like to pile on the veggies, some can’t get enough of the meats. Some love more cheese, some like to go heavy on the sauce. At Blaze, you line up and custom-make your own 11-inch pizza, which is quickly baked in quick 180 seconds.

Natalie's Coal Fired Pizza

Natalie's Coal Fired Pizza
Natalie’s is central Ohio’s only coal-fired pizza shop. They use clean-burning anthracite coal to heat the oven up to 1000 degrees, producing pizzas with a thin and crispy crust. The menu features a dozen pizzas plus a seasonal flavor, like the Venetian Jail with Italian sausage, mushrooms, ricotta, and goat cheese, or the Aurora Borealis with smoked bacon, asparagus, cheddar, and mozzarella. Natalie’s also hosts a stellar line-up of live music, so you can catch the latest jazz, blues, folk, rock, and Americana. They have a top notch selection of cocktails and beer, and just opened a not-so-secret speakeasy call The Light of 7 Matchsticks in the basement.

And those are just the highlights along High Street! Throughout the greater Worthington area and you’ll find hot spots like the old school Pizza House and new kids on the block Leone’s Pizza, to Amano’s Sports Bar (pizza buffet!), JT’s Pizza & Pub on West Dublin-Granville Road, Borgata Pizza Cafe coming soon to Linworth Crossing, and chains like Marco’s in Worthington Centre.

What's your favorite pizza in Worthington?

Nicholas Dekker is food/travel writer and culinary tour guide for Columbus Food Adventures. He writes about breakfast, beer, coffee, and more at breakfastwithnick.com.

These guys were out early preparing to fix the sewers on Evening Street!

The City of Worthington provides many basic utilities to home and business owners.  But perhaps the most critical is one that many folks never think about...until things back up in the basement or a bathroom overflows.  Underneath our feet, under the ground is a vast system of pipes called the “Sanitary Sewer”.  This system carries away the waste we flush, the water we drain from dishwashers, showers and laundry, and the garbage that goes down the disposal to a waste treatment plant south of Columbus.  These systems do age and need regular maintenance and upgrades to keep it all “flowing downhill” so to speak.  Currently, the City of Worthington is performing a variety of projects to not only keep it all flowing, but to ensure back‐ups do not occur due to root intrusion, pipe failure, or flood due to way too much water trying to flow away at one time.

Amongst the projects currently in progress, crews from Miller Pipeline were contracted to perform “Cured In Place Piping” to accomplish all this.  The crew uses equipment to infuse a length of sewer pipe with an epoxy type resin which then clings to the walls of the older clay pipe, and quickly hardens in place.  The result is essentially a new plastic, water tight sewer line inside of the older clay line which may be showing its age.  It’s an inexpensive and unobtrusive way to install what can be considered new sewer pipe without ever digging up the street, the sidewalk, or front yards to get the job done.  Once finished, the line has increased capacity and efficiency allowing water and waste to flow, tree roots cannot grow through cracks and block the lines, and structural integrity of the pipe is restored to prevent collapse and costly flooding.  

In addition, engineers are currently designing brand new replacement sewers to be built at North and Morning Streets, as well a larger sewer known as the Northbrook Sewer to better handle sewage in the southern parts of Worthington. City Service and Engineering crews routinely inspect the lines via a robotic camera, clean and degrease the lines by flushing and vacuuming out debris, and cutting out and treating tree roots that may intrude into some pipes.

So next time you flush, wash your hands or dump your coffee cup, rest assured the City of Worthington is active and vigilant, working hard and making sure when it goes down the drain, it goes away for good.  For more questions or information call the Worthington Department of Service and Engineering at 614‐431‐2425. Rob Chandler works for Worthington's City Service and Engineering Department.

Worthington to host first "Know Your Neighborhoods" event

Worthington will be featured for the first “Know Your Neighborhoods” event March 23, a unique networking opportunity initiated by Experience Columbus.

"Experience Columbus is thrilled to launch our new event series in Worthington.  As one of the Midwest’s first planned neighborhoods, we wanted to highlight this charming walkable area and all of its unique restaurants and shops," said Experience Columbus Membership Director Melissa DeGraw.

“Know Your Neighborhoods” was created by Experience Columbus to spotlight central Ohio neighborhoods and add value add to its 1,000-plus central Ohio membership.

The Convention and Visitors Bureau of Worthington and Old Worthington Partnership,  which are joining Experience Columbus to host the event, look forward to showing off Worthington's unique character and businesses. 

The event begins at The Worthington Inn, where guests can network with peers and enjoy complimentary hors d'oeuvres and a cash bar.

Attendees will receive a  “passport” listing businesses participating in Know Your Neighborhoods and their offers of product samples, discounts, giveaways and interactive experiences.  The group will then head out to explore Old Worthington.    

The event runs from 5-7 p.m. and is free for members of Experience Columbus and also free for non-members who may participate as a Columbus Explorer.
For more information or to register, visit experiencecolumbus.com/know-your-neighborhood.