Fresh, free, and flourishing.

All People's Fresh Market

945 Parsons Ave, Columbus, OH 43206

Project Completion: July 25, 2025

The 2025 CoLab Studio, in partnership with Directions for Youth and Families and Church and Community Development for All People (CD4AP), undertook the challenge of revitalizing the All People's Fresh Market on the corner of Parsons and Whittier.

Welcome to the South Side.

One of Columbus' most historic areas, the South Side is home to dozens of neighborhoods, community organizations, and opportunity for youth engagement.

Visit the site.

The CoLab Studio project is located at the All People's Fresh Market on Parsons & Whittier on the Community Development for All People campus. It is accessible via COTA line 4, 5 or 8.

Take me there

Meet the 10 kids using design to make a difference.

Our journey.

CoLab Studio 25 took place over 7 weeks in the summer of 2025. This included weeks of learning about design concepts, designing, and implementing on-site.

WEEK 1

"Collaboratory"

10 new interns join the team. In this first week, NDC coordinators are introducing design concepts, history, and engaging our new team with the built environment of the South Side.

We first meet our client, Community Development for All People, and establish our site: the All People's Fresh Market.

CoLab interns gathered around a table

CoLab interns sitting on a bench sketching

CoLab interns visiting the All People's Fresh Market

CoLab interns gathered around a table

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Sticky notes being placed on a map to show observations

CoLab Studio posed in front of mural at Lafayette Alley

CoLab interns walking through downtown on 3rd St.

Sticky notes being placed on a map to show observations

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WEEK 2

"Sewing Seeds"

With our site introduced, we break up our studio into 3 design teams, each aiming to propose a unique design for CD4AP. We continue to challenge our interns with much more complex design concepts while emphasizing research.

We visit architecture firm Meyers+Associates and art studio Blockfort to gain professional insight into the design process.

WEEK 3

"Design-a-thon"

Iteration. Critique. Repeat. Our interns are fully engulfed in the design process and exhausting their ideas for the project site. As our teams narrow down their final ideas, we visit Moody Nolan, the largest Black-owned architecture firm in the US, and the Linden Fresh Market to gain more professional insights and conduct field studies.

CoLab interns showing their designs to Carmine Russo, NDC board member

Hands pointing to a design on the table

CoLab intern in front of mural at Linden Fresh Market

CoLab interns showing their designs to Carmine Russo, NDC board member

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A room full of spectators watching a final review

Jurors at the CoLab Studio final review taking notes

CoLab Studio at the Hopewell Earthworks

A room full of spectators watching a final review

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WEEK 4

"All Together Now"

Our design teams put finishing touches on their proposals in preparation for the final review, where they present to a panel of design professionals, stakeholders, and the client for a final critique.

After a final design has been chosen, we regroup to create a final design.

We then visited the Hopewell Earthworks in Newark to learn about indigenous planning practices.

WEEK 5

"Realizing Change"

Implementation of our final design has begun! Interns begin priming surfaces, digging dirt, and laying down the first layers of paint to activate the site.

We then visited Designing Local, a public art, planning, and landscape architecture firm, where they gave us a tour of Franklinton and shared some background into their careers.

CoLab intern painting on the pavement

CoLab intern doing landscape work

CoLab studio posing with Designing Local office on a rooftop

CoLab intern painting on the pavement

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CoLab interns bent over painting on pavement

CoLab interns painting on mural

CoLab interns posing in front of Franklinton Floodwall.

CoLab interns bent over painting on pavement

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WEEK 6

"Final Stretch"

Interns are working fast to complete murals, landscaping, and any additional artwork to complete the site.

Hopping on the COTA bus, we were invited to tour the McKinley COTA bus garage and given a professional background on equitable transportation planning.

WEEK 7

"Fresh. Free. Flourishing."

After final touches, the All People's Fresh Market is complete! After 7 weeks, our 10 interns worked tirelessly to activate a community hub into a vibrant space that is fresh, free, and flourishing.

While celebrating their efforts, we invited the community for our interns to share the transformative experience that was the CoLab Studio.

CoLab intern putting up a shade sail

CoLab intern bent over putting sealant on pavement

CoLab Studio posing in front of a mural they created at the All People's Fresh Market

CoLab intern putting up a shade sail

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I learned it's good to step off of your comfort zone. It's good to get messy. It's good to start over, and sometimes you just got to look more closely at things."

- Aniya (CoLab Studio 25 Intern)

I view the Southside differently now...

There's genuinely good people who you can make really good connections with."

- Ryan, CoLab Studio 25 Intern

I’ve learned so much... I learned how to communicate, work together, build communities, interact with others, present in front of others. I'm going to take away a lot"

- Riahna, CoLab Studio 25 Intern

Render of the All People's Fresh Market with implementation

View the Fresh Market.

See the final product of 7 weeks of effort of the CoLab Studio 25 at the All People's Fresh Market. The Fresh Market is open 6 days a week, providing fresh produce to all.

Thank you to the generous supporters of the Youth CoLab.

The Youth CoLab is entirely funded through the generous financial and in-kind donations made by committed community members and civic organizations. Interested in supporting the Youth CoLab and its initiatives? Contact glennon@columbusndc.org.

Support the Youth CoLab