Foursquare homes along East Livingston Avenue in Driving Park, Columbus — Roadside Towing & Recovery Inc
Columbus · Driving Park

Towing in Driving Park, Columbus

Livingston Avenue, Kelton Avenue and the streets laid over the old racetrack, covered day and night.

Call (740) 812-9489

Driving Park sits just south of I-70 on the Near East Side; its area commission draws it from the freeway down to East Whittier Street, and from Studer Avenue east to the old N&W rail line. The name comes from the racetrack that staged the world's first 24-hour automobile race on July 3, 1905. After the track was sold in 1926, its land filled with American Foursquares and modest 1940s houses, and Eddie Rickenbacker's boyhood home still stands on East Livingston Avenue. Our calls here are mostly driveway no-starts, lockouts and tows to a shop. Trucks from our Harrisburg Pike yard reach Driving Park in 20–40 minutes.

Local Guide: Towing Around Driving Park

Landmarks

  • Captain Edward V. Rickenbacker House — Eddie Rickenbacker's boyhood home at 1334 E. Livingston Ave. became a National Historic Landmark on May 11, 1976.
  • Columbus Driving Park racetrack site — The track between Ellsworth and Seymour avenues held the first 24-hour automobile race on July 3, 1905.
  • Driving Park Community Recreation Center — Columbus Recreation and Parks center beside the rail line, offering basketball, cooking and fitness programs.
  • Old Oaks Historic District — Streetcar-era district between Mooberry Street and East Livingston Avenue, designated September 23, 1986.
  • Driving Park Branch, Columbus Metropolitan Library — Neighborhood library branch on Livingston Avenue near Alum Creek Drive.
  • Driving Park Circle — A one-acre neighborhood open space at 1455 East Columbus Street.
  • Roosevelt Park — Acquired in 1986, this 3-acre park at 1046 Studer Avenue has a playground and a short paved loop.
  • Old Oaks Park — This one-acre green inside the Old Oaks district at 650 Wilson Avenue is centered on a gazebo.
  • Hanford Village Park — Acquired in 1939, the 2-acre park at 765 Alum Creek Drive sits next to the Alum Creek Trail and the Alum Creek Livingston Parkland.
  • Fairwood Park — Established in 1957, this 26.6-acre park has a skate park, a rentable shelter and a greenway trailhead.
  • Deshler Park — A 9.9-acre neighborhood park with a playground, paved paths and parking, just south of Driving Park.
  • Hanford Village George Washington Carver Addition Historic District — Cape Cod homes on Kent and Lyman streets, Clay Court and Bowman Avenue, built for Black World War II veterans, were listed on the National Register on December 24, 2013.
  • Hanford Park — The park is one of the contributing sites in the Hanford Village Carver Addition historic district, home to many Tuskegee Airmen.

Schools

  • Fairwood Alternative Elementary School — The Columbus City Schools building at Fairwood Avenue and Mooberry Street dates to 1924 and was designed by Howard Dwight Smith.

Colleges

  • Capital University — Its 53-acre campus at College and Main in Bexley lies a short drive east of Driving Park.

Main Routes

  • Interstate 70 — Forms the northern boundary, with exit 102 at Miller and Kelton avenues and exit 103B at Livingston Avenue and Alum Creek Drive.
  • East Livingston Avenue — The neighborhood's historic streetcar corridor, once lined with a theater and shops.
  • East Whittier Street — Marks the southern boundary recognized by the Driving Park Area Commission.
  • Alum Creek Drive — Commonly cited as the eastern border of Driving Park and signed at I-70 exit 103B.
  • Fairwood Avenue — After the old racetrack was subdivided in 1926, new homes went up west of Fairwood Avenue for shop owners and professionals.
  • Linwood Avenue — A 19th-century mansion at Linwood and East Livingston avenues served as a stop on the Underground Railroad.
  • Frebis Avenue — Older middle-class blocks on the south side of East Livingston Avenue run down to Frebis Avenue.
  • Branger Street — Branger Street is one of four streets named in the Old Oaks district's Columbus Register listing, with Will, Mooberry and Kimball.

Major Employers & Projects

  • Nationwide Children's Hospital — The pediatric hospital's expansion along Livingston Avenue to the west has been watched by Driving Park residents hoping to draw hospital employees.
  • Rickenbacker Woods Foundation — Nonprofit that took over stewardship of the Rickenbacker House after 2009 and plans a museum on his life and the neighborhood.

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Frequently asked questions

What route does the truck take from Harrisburg Pike to Driving Park?

The driver takes I-71 north to where it joins I-70, then follows I-70 east past downtown. For the western blocks, exit 102 at Miller Avenue and Kelton Avenue drops the truck right at the neighborhood's northern edge. For homes near the eastern side, exit 103B lets out at Livingston Avenue and Alum Creek Drive, the same interchange that serves US-33. Tell dispatch the nearest cross street, such as Kelton, Fairwood or Seymour, so the driver can choose the exit that lands closest to your car.

Where exactly was the old Driving Park racetrack?

The Columbus Ohio Driving Realty Company bought the land in 1892, and the track lay between Ellsworth Avenue and Seymour Avenue. Besides the 1905 endurance race, it hosted 200-mile championship races in 1912 and 1913, the Franklin County Fair in 1910 and 1917, and even a test flight by a Wright Model B airplane. Racing ended by the 1930s and houses took over. Today the only racing we see is a driver hurrying to a dead battery, and a jump start usually settles it on the spot.

Can you meet me by the Rickenbacker House on East Livingston Avenue?

Yes, and it makes a handy reference point. The house at 1334 East Livingston Avenue, where the World War I flying ace grew up, was named a National Historic Landmark on May 11, 1976, and the city bought it in 1998. If your car stalls along that stretch of Livingston, tell dispatch you are near the Rickenbacker House and which side of the street you are on. Livingston carries steady traffic, so stay in the car with flashers on until the truck pulls in behind you.

What should I do if I break down on I-70 beside Driving Park?

Between the Kelton Avenue exit and the Alum Creek Drive exit, I-70 runs along the neighborhood's northern edge with ramps coming and going in quick succession. Steer to the right shoulder if the car will still coast, turn on the hazard lights and keep your belt on. A car stranded in a travel lane is a 911 call first. After that, tell our dispatcher your direction and whether you passed the Kelton or the Livingston and Alum Creek sign, and the truck will meet you on the correct side.

Someone left a car blocking my Driving Park driveway. Can you remove it?

If it is parked on a public street, no private tow company can take it at your request; the Columbus Division of Police has to order it, so call their non-emergency line and report the blocked driveway. Private property is a separate matter. Owners of church lots, business lots and apartment parking that carry the signs required by Ohio law can have unauthorized vehicles taken away, and we offer that as private-property towing, keeping a written record of each car.

Where will you take my car from Driving Park, and how much will it be?

Wherever makes sense for you: your mechanic, a dealership, a partner repair shop or back home once repairs are done. Some drivers from this side of town prefer a shop near Bexley just to the east, which is an easy run. If you need time to choose, the car can wait at our Harrisburg Pike lot for a daily fee. The dispatcher quotes the whole job from our rate card before hooking up, and we take card or cash when the car is delivered.

Nearby in Columbus

Services in Driving Park

Roadside Towing & Recovery Inc (dba Columbus Roadside Towing).
Corporate office (private, no walk-ins): 3879 Regatta Ct, Lewis Center, OH 43035
Tow yard & impound lot: 1620 Harrisburg Pike, Columbus, OH 43223
(740) 812-9489 · chris@columbusroadsidetowing.com

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