COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — A proposal would add more apartments to Downtown.

The Artem on Gay would stand seven stories and add 78 housing units to the Discovery District — near the city’s main library, the Columbus College of Art and Design, and Columbus State Community College, according to a project application submitted to the Columbus Downtown Commission. 

If the project moves forward, it would take over the surface lot at the corner of Grant and Gay streets. 

The Finance Fund proposed the mixed-use building. The partly affordable housing nonprofit real estate developer has also financed projects in Franklinton, according to its website. The Columbus Design Co. is listed as the architect on the project and the contractor has yet to be determined, according to the application. 

Of the 78 units, 30 would have one bedroom and bathroom and 48 would have two bedrooms and bathrooms. The first floor would feature a lobby and fitness center, according to the application, as well as limited parking. 

The Columbus Downtown Commission is scheduled for a conceptual review of the project application Tuesday morning. An application for a two-story medical office building with five stories of garage parking also appears on the agenda for the August meeting, among other action items. 

Earlier in 2023, commissioners greenlit mixed-used and residential buildings ranging from five to 19 stories. Some require demolitions, with others taking over surface lots. 

The rush of proposals in recent months also comes as city leaders push for policies that favor a higher-density downtown district. 

Both the central Ohio region and the city itself are on track for substantial population growth — by a million or more residents in the next three decades, according to projections.

That growth has, thus far, moved quicker than the housing needed to sustain it. A housing needs assessment survey by the Building Industry Association of Central Ohio, released in late 2022, concluded the city would need to nearly double its average number of housing permits to meet projected needs.