COLUMBUS, Ohio (COLUMBUS BUSINESS FIRST) — Nationwide remains committed to downtown Columbus now that it’s settled into a hybrid home-and-office workplace model, said CEO Kirt Walker.

Central Ohio’s largest private company has no plans to divest office space, he said, and recently refilled a building that had largely emptied out with new nonprofit tenants.

By renovating offices to make them more attractive places to work, Nationwide participates in the recovery of activity in a downtown that rapidly emptied at the onset of the pandemic.

“I would offer, downtown is back,” Walker said. “I live downtown. You can feel it – it’s taking place.”

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