Quick Answer: The Merchant Building, a 32-story mixed-use tower rising above North Market on the former parking lot, is on track to complete construction in late 2026 with a $292 million budget, 700,000 square feet, and 174 apartments over a hotel, private club, restaurants, and a 15,000 SF market expansion. Gilbane Building Company is the GC. For Columbus commercial building owners and property managers, this project sets the new spec benchmark for downtown Class-A finishes: Level 5 drywall in amenity spaces, low-VOC durable acrylics in units, high-abrasion coatings on back-of-house, and long-cycle repaint programs from day one.
Table of Contents
- The Merchant Building at a Glance
- The Paint Spec Stack in a High-Rise Like This
- Why the Multifamily Piece Matters Most
- What This Signals for the Rest of Downtown Columbus
- What Property Managers and Owners Should Do
- FAQ
The Merchant Building at a Glance
The Merchant Building broke ground in 2023 on the former North Market parking lot at 59 Spruce Street. Construction Dive reports the 32-story tower is a $292 million, 700,000 square foot mixed-use project (source). The vertical stack from bottom to top:
- 15,000 SF North Market expansion with new vendor stalls and event space
- 65,000 SF of Class-A office
- 206-room hotel (branded as The Merchant Hotel)
- 174 residential apartments
- Restaurant, bar, and private club amenities
- Structured parking garage
Gilbane Building Company is the GC. Lithko Contracting handled the concrete package (source). Construction is on schedule for completion in Q4 2026, with hotel operations expected to start spring 2027 (NBC4).
The Paint Spec Stack in a High-Rise Like This
A 32-story mixed-use tower has five distinct paint scopes stacked on top of each other, each with its own product tier and prep standard.
1. Hotel and Amenity Spaces (Public-Facing, Class-A)
Lobby, restaurant, private club, and hotel corridors are almost always spec’d as Level 5 drywall finish with a low-sheen acrylic in matte or eggshell. Product tier is Sherwin-Williams Emerald or Duration Interior, sometimes Benjamin Moore Aura on architect-driven jobs. Sheens stay flat or matte on walls, satin on trim, semigloss on doors. Ceilings run flat white with a ceiling-specific product (SW Eminence or BM Muresco Ultra) to eliminate roller-lap flashing under downlight.
2. Residential Units (174 Apartments)
Multifamily units at this price point almost always run Level 4 drywall with a mid-tier acrylic like Sherwin ProMar 200 Zero VOC or Duration Home Interior. Colors trend to warm white with light gray accents. Turnover-friendly means eggshell on walls (so it can be wiped and scuffs blend), semigloss trim, flat ceilings. The spec has to survive a 12 to 18 month turnover cycle with just a touch-up rather than a full repaint.
3. Office Floors (65,000 SF)
Class-A office in downtown Columbus is usually spec’d for tenant flexibility. Base building finish is a neutral off-white in matte or flat on walls and ceilings. Tenants pick the accent colors when they lease. That means the base coating has to be easy to top-coat over with darker colors without ghost lines showing through, which pushes the spec toward higher-quality primers and 100 percent acrylic finish coats.
4. Back of House (Kitchens, Service Corridors, Mechanicals)
Restaurant kitchens, service corridors, and mechanical rooms need high-abrasion, easy-clean coatings. This is where epoxy or acrylic-epoxy hybrid systems show up. Sherwin Pro Industrial Water Based Catalyzed Epoxy is common in kitchens for washability and heat tolerance. Mechanical rooms get a CMU block filler plus block filler plus two coats direct-to-block epoxy on walls and a floor coating that stands up to leaks.
5. Exterior Envelope
The Merchant Building’s envelope is glass and precast, so field-applied paint is limited to accent metal, canopy soffits, garage entrances, and sign structures. This scope trends to Tnemec, Carboline, or Sherwin Pro Industrial urethane systems that hold color for 10 to 15 years in Ohio’s freeze-thaw cycle.
Why the Multifamily Piece Matters Most
The 174 residential units are the most repeatable paint scope in the building. Multifamily painting is a completely different discipline from single-project commercial work. It is production-line painting, unit after unit, with a spec that has to be identical between crews and identical over a 12 to 18 month turnover cycle.
Central Ohio’s multifamily pipeline is still strong. Columbus delivered 9,668 market-rate units in 2025 with 9,738 more units breaking ground the same year, per Q1 2026 pipeline reporting (MMG Real Estate Advisors). The under-construction share sits at 4,182 units. That means multifamily paint labor is a persistent buy for the next 24 to 36 months across the metro. Owners planning turnover programs, capex repaints, or amenity refreshes in existing multifamily are competing with these new deliveries for the same crews.
What This Signals for the Rest of Downtown Columbus
Merchant Building is one of several major downtown projects reshaping the finish spec baseline. The $600 million Capitol Square redevelopment, Ohio State’s 1.9 million SF hospital, and the $29 million AspireColumbus affordable housing project are all delivering in 2026 (NBC4). What buildings from that generation share is a spec bar that has moved up.
Three shifts to expect in downtown Columbus specs over the next 24 months:
- Level 5 drywall is the new default for amenity spaces. The old Level 4 skim-coat and go standard is disappearing from any project where finish shows under raking light.
- Low-VOC is not optional. Even outside LEED-certified projects, tenants are asking about VOC content. Zero-VOC and low-VOC coatings are now the base spec in most commercial interior scopes.
- Long-cycle warranty language. Building owners are pushing for 7- to 10-year warranty coverage on exterior repaints instead of 3- to 5-year. That is achievable, but only with the right primer and topcoat combo.
What Property Managers and Owners Should Do
- Reset your capex repaint cycles. If your building was on a 7-year exterior cycle with a mid-tier product, look at moving to a 10-year cycle with a premium system. The math almost always works out better on total cost.
- Standardize your turnover paint spec across your portfolio. Multifamily owners with more than 100 units get real leverage on labor rates by standardizing color and product across every unit in the portfolio.
- Ask your painter about Level 5 drywall in high-visibility spaces. Lobbies, common area corridors, and elevator waiting areas benefit the most. It is not a lot more money at bid time and it holds up better under LED downlight.
- Get on the schedule early. Q3 and Q4 2026 are booking up fast. Any planned repaint should already have a walkthrough on the books.
Frequently Asked Questions
What paint do luxury Columbus apartment buildings use?
The most common product tiers in luxury multifamily are Sherwin-Williams Emerald and Duration Interior for common areas, and Duration Home or ProMar 200 Zero VOC for individual units. Some architect-led projects spec Benjamin Moore Aura. Product choice is driven by scrub rating, VOC content, and how well the color holds under LED downlight.
What is Level 5 drywall finish and do I need it?
Level 5 is a full skim coat over the entire wall surface after Level 4 taping and finishing is complete. It hides joint compound flashing and delivers a uniform substrate that eliminates roller-lap visibility under critical light. You want it in lobbies, amenity corridors, elevator lobbies, and any space with LED downlight, low-angle sunlight, or dark accent walls.
How long does a high-rise repaint cycle actually last?
Common area walls in a well-maintained high-rise last 5 to 8 years before showing real wear. Unit interiors turn over on the lease cycle (roughly every 12 to 18 months for touch-up, every 4 to 6 years for full repaint). Exterior accent metal and canopy soffits should be on a 10 to 15 year cycle with a proper industrial urethane system.
Who paints new high-rise construction in Columbus?
The bigger downtown towers go to a handful of union commercial coating firms that have the crew count to run multiple floors in parallel. For smaller commercial buildings, mid-tier repaints, and TI scopes, a broader pool of Central Ohio painters handles the work. Ask any bidder for their references on projects over 100,000 SF before you sign.
Does the Merchant Building affect nearby property values?
Downtown Columbus north end property values have moved up since Merchant broke ground in 2023, and that trend is expected to continue through the tower’s 2026 completion. Nearby commercial buildings on Spruce, High, and Long Street are seeing more TI activity and stronger repaint demand as landlords position for the surrounding density.
High-Rise and Multifamily Commercial Coating in Columbus
PaintWerks runs multifamily turnover programs, common area repaints, and Class-A interior work across Central Ohio. If your downtown property is due for a repaint or you are planning a portfolio-wide turnover program in 2026 or 2027, we can walk your building and put a real number on the scope. See our commercial painting scope or request a walkthrough.
