June 21, 200915 yr I would add that much of the worst sprawl is actually Genoa Twnship, though certainly Westerville has its fair share. The south side of town near 270 needs the love, it is looking quite worn. The investment in bike paths has been well down though a few more east-west paths would make it more useful for getting around. I would love to see the city encourage more of the area to grow to resemble Uptown. I know they didn't want to create a competitor to State with Cleveland, but it still could have been a bit less big box, and Polaris is an abomination to all things well planned, but it is a nice and friendly 'hood, at least Uptown is.
June 21, 200915 yr I think Genoa township is only worse because Westerville let it be so, they suburbanized from the core and spit it out on the otherside. Essentially Westerville is suburbanized out, now it is up to the townships to continue it . . . . . . OR they will incoroporate the most available surrounding farmland that is still available and continue to spread . . .. . .. .. . ... .
June 21, 200915 yr Most of the newer developments have been at a relatively high density per square mile even if it is on the cul-de-sac/development model rather than a continuation of the Uptown grid. The least dense areas seem to be quite a bit older (late 60s and 70s), such as the area near Inniswood.
June 21, 200915 yr ^I just drove through Westerville to do an autocross at Westerville North HS, and did not like it. I ended up having to drive through miles of just houses at 25mph to get there. There were no businesses, nothing to walk to. I've since found a better route. I was scared. yeah, there's not much around north, other than houses. but county line road is 35/45, which goes to every north/south arterial in westerville. not sure which way you went. i would suggest going uptown. also, the whole altair development soon will be a walking friendly place with a promenade, offices, restaurants, etc: I got off 270 at 3C Highway, went east on Schrock (which quickly degenerated into awful '70s subdivision hell), then went north on Spring Rd. into an even more disturbing section before going east on County Line. I did see a few people "power walking" to nowhere. That's the funny part about sprawl -- people have to drive long distances to do anything, yet when they get home, they have to walk around aimlessly in order to still get walking in that day. And people wonder why they have no time. Alright, I've gone off-topic enough; maybe I should cut and paste this rant in the sprawl thread.
June 21, 200915 yr But the irony is that those areas aren't actually that far from neighborhood business activity. It takes about 10 minutes at most to get around Westerville (not counting sitting in traffic along State Street). You did pick pretty much the worst corridors of area, with Spring as fully residential boulevard. There is actually a very well used bikepath that goes from that area directly to the business district at Maxtown and State. The southern part of Westerville is a lot of seventies crap and the Huber Village stuff does not fill me with a lot of hope for its long term future. The real sprawl is actually the stuff off the 3C, Sunbury, Africa, Worthington Rd heading north of Polaris.
February 21, 201015 yr Westerville buys land for Polaris-County Line connector Westerville plans to use the western one-third of the property for the road and sell the residential portion BY BRET LIEBENDORFER, COLUMBUS LOCAL NEWS Published: Thursday, February 11, 2010 - 7:34 PM EST The creation of a north to south road through the middle of Westar took one more step toward being a reality. In a 6-0 vote, Westerville's City Council approved the purchase of a 1.8-acre residential property at 776 County Line Road W. for $401,000. The western one-third of the property will be used for a roadway. "A north-south road connecting Polaris Parkway, at its intersection with Worthington Road, with County Line Road West was recommended by the Altair traffic study and approved as a component of the development plan for Altair," said Assistant City Manager Julie Colley in a staff report. The city has had difficulty developing the northwest corner of Westar, known as the Zummstein tract, due to difficult natural terrain and concerns about the appearance of the city's gateway from Polaris Fashion Place. Full article at http://www.columbuslocalnews.com/articles/2010/02/11/multiple_papers/news/allwecounc_20100211_0944am_11.txt
February 21, 201015 yr Ideally, if they could connect this up at that Worthington Rd. interchange at Polaris, it could help develop that plot and help mitigate some of the atrocious traffic on Polaris.
March 9, 201015 yr Developer eyes offices, housing on County Line Rd. Wednesday, March 3, 2010 - 2:29 PM By Jennifer Nesbitt, ThisWeek Staff Writer Potential developers presented plans to the Westerville Planning Commission Feb. 24 to construct offices and multi-family housing along a parcel of land stretching from 776 County Line Road to Orion Place. Earlier this month, Westerville city staff presented plans to city council to purchase 776 County Line Road in order to create a north-south connector from County Line Road to Polaris Parkway at Old Worthington Road, with plans to sell the remaining property to a developer. At the planning commission meeting, Trivium Development and Vince Romanelli Investments were identified as potential buyers for that site and an additional site just to the north that connects it with Orion Place. The city would work with developers of that property and with NP Limited, the developer of the 100 acres directly to the north known as the Zumstein property, to construct the north-south connector and a road linking that with Orion Place to the west. FULL ARTICLE: http://www.thisweeknews.com/live/content/westerville/stories/2010/03/03/0304wvcounty-line_ln.html?sid=104
March 9, 201015 yr There seems to renewed real estate action between State and Worthington (which includes all these articles above). There are number of signs popping up with acreage under contract and the like. This is the future of Westerville (sadly, it seems that the Polaris model seems to be the development style).
March 18, 201015 yr Westerville council OKs $400,000 purchase of 1.8 acres Friday, March 12, 2010 - 3:19 AM By Jennifer Nesbitt, The Columbus Dispatch The Westerville City Council has authorized the $400,000 purchase of a 1.8-acre property on County Line Road West. Assistant City Manager Julie Colley said the city will retain 100 feet of the property for an east-west connector road between County Line Road and Polaris Parkway. Plans call for the remainder of the land to be sold to developers for $250,000. Representatives of Trivium Development and Vince Romanelli Investments presented proposals last month to the city planning commission for an office or hotel, an apartment building and multifamily housing units on the property and an additional parcel directly to the north that connects it to Orion Place. Colley said the developers' proposals still are preliminary and are subject to change. FULL ARTICLE: http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2010/03/12/copy/westerville-oks-land-purchase.html?adsec=politics&sid=101
March 18, 201015 yr Future looks bleak for Westerville ‘Tea House’ Council may raze aging building in order to redevelop the uptown site Wednesday, March 17, 2010 - 2:55 AM By Elizabeth Gibson, The Columbus Dispatch For 40 years, bright red pillars, paper screens, cherry blossoms and kimonos served as a window into early 20th-century Japan in uptown Westerville. Now, even longtime advocates of the landmark say they hope someone tears down what's left of the dilapidated property that used to be known as the Kyoto Tea House. "I don't like to look at it anymore," said Helen Chan, once president of the now-defunct Friends of the Westerville Tea House and Shrine. "It's a great story that is going to die out." Westerville city officials are considering buying the property so that the city can demolish the structure and redevelop on what's a valuable piece of real estate at 109 S. State Street. "It's not typical that we tear down a building in the uptown district," Vice Mayor Anne Gonzales said. "We like to preserve, but it's in such bad shape that it just can't be restored." The structure was never technically a Japanese teahouse. It started out as an ordinary house, became a doctor's office and then George Henderson II retrofitted it in the 1950s to look more Japanese after being deployed to Japan as a U.S. Army linguist. Henderson's son sold the teahouse and shrine complex to the Potter family for $500,000 in 2005. Then, in 2007, Tony Meldahl bought the property for $330,000 with grand plans to restore the building to hold Japanese cultural classes for children. But the property eventually was foreclosed on. The city has proposed buying it for $126,000. FULL ARTICLE: http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2010/03/17/copy/future-looks-bleak-for-westerville-tea-house.html?adsec=politics&sid=101
March 27, 201015 yr City, Otterbein to create data center Facility on Collegeview Road could serve as potential 'business incubator' Tuesday, March 16, 2010 - 6:34 PM By Jennifer Nesbitt, ThisWeek Staff Writer Westerville and Otterbein College officials are in talks to create a partnership that would begin with establishing a data center and could eventually lead to a "business incubator." Westerville City Council heard a proposal at its March 9 work session for the development and construction of a Business and Education Innovation Center, the first component in a partnership with Otterbein. The data center would be housed at 60 Collegeview Road, on the Otterbein campus, and would initially provide the city with needed data center space, disaster recovery, infrastructure for advanced electrical metering and public safety operations. "We're not building a building from the ground up," Westerville spokeswoman Christa Dickey said. "We're using a building Otterbein already has." Through the partnership, others -- including Otterbein and Westerville businesses -- also would have access to data center space and broadband service. The center also would provide the city with the capacity to expand data storage and future network needs. It also would provide technology for local businesses. FULL ARTICLE: http://www.thisweeknews.com/live/content/westerville/stories/2010/03/10/Ottebein-data-center.html?type=rss&cat=&sid=104
March 27, 201015 yr Some Westerville St. Ann's Hospital development news embedded within an article about an expansion of Mount Carmel's New Albany Surgical Hospital. From the Business First article "New Albany hospital’s expansion cleared to go by Mount Carmel" (full article link below): Mount Carmel also has a $100 million expansion in the planning stages to add a full slate of heart services to its St. Ann’s Hospital in Westerville. Meanwhile, physician investors and developer Equity Inc. are building a 60,000-square-foot office building next to the hospital. OrthoNeuro, Central Ohio’s largest orthopedic and neurology practice, will leave offices attached to the hospital to become the anchor. The building also will house an outpatient surgery center. Although Mount Carmel is not a partner in that project, Hugh Jones, Mount Carmel’s senior vice president of strategy and system development, said “We both agree that it’s essential that we coordinate and cooperate on the development of the campus over time.” FULL ARTICLE: http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2010/03/15/story7.html
March 31, 201015 yr Another article about the Tea House site in uptown Westerville. This article has a better photo of the Tea House site at the link. City looking to purchase foreclosed Tea House site $125,000 land buy would make way for development Wednesday, March 24, 2010 - 2:09 PM By JENNIFER NESBITT, ThisWeek Staff Writer Westerville city staff members brought a proposal before city council last week to purchase a foreclosed property at 109 S. State St. for commercial redevelopment. The property once was the site of the Kyoto Tea House and Shinto Shrine, a Westerville museum of Japanese culture. The Shinto Shrine was moved to the Franklin Park Conservatory in 2005, and the tea house has not been maintained since. Assistant City Manager Julie Colley said if approved by council, the city would purchase the 0.14-acre property for $125,000. City staff would then work to create a plan to redevelop the site. Once a plan is identified, the city would issue a request for proposals to solicit developers to refine and carry out that plan, Colley said. Once plans are established, she said, the city would go before the Uptown Review Board to allow for the demolition of the 1,171-square-foot tea house and redevelopment of the site. FULL ARTICLE: http://www.thisweeknews.com/live/content/westerville/stories/2010/03/24/0324wvcity-forclosed_ln.html?sid=104
March 31, 201015 yr i hope they could dedevelop it into a new teahouse and shinto shrine instead of just redevelop the site for undetermined but likely commercial purposes. it was kind of nice to have something like that in the middle of uptown westerville.
August 16, 201014 yr City takes steps toward eminent domain Easements needed along South State Street to allow for burying utility lines Tuesday, August 3, 2010 By JENNIFER NESBITT, ThisWeek Staff Writer Westerville has taken the first steps toward using eminent domain to obtain easements from nine parcels for South State Street improvements. City planning and development director Karl Craven said the city staffers are working hard to avoid resorting to such action, though. Craven said he's confident in the process, as the city has dealt with 150 property owners in the past 15 years in situations that could have required eminent domain, but only one resulted in court action. Nevertheless, city council took the first step July 22, passing ordinances declaring the city's intent to use the 1.2 acres to allow for the burying of utility lines and other planned improvements on South State Street. Full article: http://www.thisweeknews.com/live/content/westerville/stories/2010/07/28/hp6.html?sid=104
August 16, 201014 yr Walmart will wait in Westerville Major redevelopment of Westerville Square centered on a 'small' Walmart didn't make the August agenda of the city Planning Commission BY BRET LIEBENDORFER, COLUMBUS LOCAL NEWS Published: Wednesday, August 11, 2010 The process of deciding on whether a Walmart can come to Westerville will not begin until the end of September at the earliest. The Hadler Cos., owners of the Westerville Square shopping center at the northeast corner of State Street and Schrock Road, announced plans for a major redevelopment of the property centered around bringing in Walmart as the new anchor on June 18. But the project has not yet been scheduled to go before the Westerville Planning Commission, which next meets Aug. 25. Westerville Planning Administrator Rich Kight said he expects it to be on the commission's Sept. 22 agenda. Under the current proposal, a smaller than standard Walmart, at 108,000 square feet, would be constructed in the center of the plaza after vacant stores formerly occupied by anchors Lazarus, Belaire Furniture and Hancock Fabrics are demolished. Kight said, in understanding the proposal, city staff needs to study the history of the site, the future of the area and how the project would fit into the South State Street Corridor. Full article: http://www.columbuslocalnews.com/articles/2010/08/11/multiple_papers/news/allwewalma_20100811_0907am_2.txt
August 16, 201014 yr This is going to turn into a battle royal. Westerville has a strong anything but Walmart vibe. I think an Anderson's would do fantastic in Westerville and fit the city's ethos far better.
October 24, 201014 yr Westerville: High-end condos proposed at County Line and State Thursday, September 30, 2010 By Jennifer Nesbitt, ThisWeek Staff Writer A heavily wooded property near N. State Street and County Line Road soon could become the site of high-end condominiums. Romanelli & Hughes wants to build a 30-unit condo complex there, with three main residential buildings and three smaller garages. The units would sell for between $200,000 and $275,000 apiece, said attorney David Fisher, who represented the company before the Westerville Planning Commission. MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2010/09/30/High-end-condos-proposed-at-County-Line-and-State.html?sid=101
October 28, 201014 yr Rebuilt and reoriented St. Ann's main entrance to face Schrock Wednesday, October 20, 2010 By JENNIFER NESBITT, ThisWeek Community Newspapers As Mt. Carmel-St. Ann's Hospital gets closer to breaking ground on renovations, it is looking to reorient the main entrance to Schrock Road. Initial plans called for adding a tower with 30 additional beds, new catheterization labs and an emergency-room chest pain unit to create a cardiac care center. To help with traffic flow, new plans call for reconstructing the main entrance to face Schrock Road, said St. Ann's president Janet Meeks. A parking garage will be added at the southeast corner of the hospital campus. Because of the slope of the hospital's property, she said the design will make the entrance the visual focus, not the garage. The goal is to finalize plans by next spring, Meeks said. A date has not been set for breaking ground for the expansion, she said, but once the work starts, renovations are expected to take two years. MORE: http://www.thisweeknews.com/live/content/westerville/stories/2010/10/20/st--anns-main-entrance-to-face-schrock.html?sid=104
October 28, 201014 yr This is going to turn into a battle royal. Westerville has a strong anything but Walmart vibe. I think an Anderson's would do fantastic in Westerville and fit the city's ethos far better. It sure looks like a battle is brewing. From yesterday's Dispatch: Westerville ready for fight over Walmart Planning panel meeting tonight to discuss plan Wednesday, October 27, 2010 By Elizabeth Gibson, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has its eye on a storefront in Westerville, but the world's largest retailer seldom moves into a town without at least some protest. The Westerville Planning Commission will review Wal-Mart's proposal for a 108,000-square-foot store at 7 p.m. tonight in City Hall. That's about a mile up the street from the store's proposed location at the Westerville Square shopping center. MORE: http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2010/10/27/copy/westerville-ready-for-fight-over-walmart.html?adsec=politics&sid=101
October 28, 201014 yr And a report from last night's Wal-Mart meeting: Proposed Westerville Walmart criticized, defended Thursday, October 28, 2010 By Elizabeth Gibson, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH City officials say deliberation over the proposed Westerville Walmart is likely to take months, but it kicked off last night with an impassioned two-hour debate. Objections ranged from questions about the landscaping to an unabashed hatred of the retail chain. But ultimately, the Westerville Planning Commission is supposed to judge the project on the design of the building, not on who's moving into it. The government has to make its judgment based on features such as consistent architecture and traffic engineering. But commissioners raised what could be serious problems. The original shopping center was built in 1968, and as a result, newer zoning and streetscape standards don't necessarily apply. Plans call for demolishing the center chunk of the strip mall and expanding it to accommodate the 108,000-square-foot Walmart. Commissioners said lawyers are going to have to work out whether rebuilding that much would qualify it as a new project, subjecting it to tougher restrictions. MORE: http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2010/10/28/copy/proposed-walmart-criticized-defended.html?adsec=politics&sid=101
November 3, 201014 yr More from ThisWeekNews about the Wal-Mart battle: Public comment split on Westerville Walmart plans Monday, November 1, 2010 By JENNIFER NESBITT ThisWeek Community Newspapers Residents who spoke during the public comment portion of last week's planning commission meeting expressed divergent opinions about plans to bring a Walmart to Westerville Square. According to some, Walmart would attract people to the nearly vacant and dilapidated Westerville Square shopping center. Others said the company imports from China, treats workers poorly and would drag down the city and drive away locally owned businesses. The Hadler Companies, which owns the shopping center, presented its renovation proposal for Westerville Square - including construction of a Walmart - to the planning commission on Oct. 27. The Hadler Companies' current plans for the site involve demolishing three storefronts totaling 90,500 square feet and constructing a 108,000-square-foot Walmart. The remainder of the plaza would be renovated to match the new Walmart, which would include a multiple-plane facade constructed with a variety of materials to help visually break up the front of the building, said Mark Ford, the architect hired by The Hadler Companies for the project. MORE: http://www.thisweeknews.com/live/content/westerville/stories/2010/10/27/Public-comment-split-on-Westerville-Walmart-plans.html?sid=104
November 5, 201014 yr Does the Columbus Metro Area really need another Wal-Mart? They are already all over the damn place!
November 8, 201014 yr Not an argument in favor of it, but NE Columbus only has the one at Easton. And the people in the north have Lewis Center and the people in the east have Taylor Station. Wal-Mart just goes overboard sometime IMHO. Do they really need TWO supercenters in NE Columbus?
November 8, 201014 yr Westerville isn't supposed to get a Supercenter. This is supposed half the size of the current stores.
December 13, 201014 yr Township concerned about OhioHealth expansion Saturday, December 4, 2010 By BONNIE BUTCHER ThisWeek Community Newspapers OhioHealth's plans for a $20-million expansion at its Westerville campus at the corner of Polaris Parkway and Africa Road has raised concerns among Genoa Township residents. The Westerville Planning Commission has recommended approval of the plans, which include construction of a two-story, 48,000-square-foot building with a full-service emergency department. The center would also have a ground-level helipad that would be used to transport patients from the center to area hospitals. Genoa Township has received "numerous phone calls" calls about the changes proposed to the medical campus, according to Joe Clase, township director of development and zoning. Township administrator Paul Wise said estimates are there would be two helicopter flights a month, with the helipad used only for flights out of the facility. Clase said residents are concerned about possible disruptions caused by the 24-hour service, additional traffic and helicopter flights. They are also concerned that once the helipad is permitted, its use would increase, he said. MORE: http://www.thisweeknews.com/live/content/sunbury/stories/2010/12/04/Township-concerned-about-expansion.html?sid=104
December 16, 201014 yr Westerville City Council Jan. 4 public hearing set on OhioHealth expansion Monday, December 13, 2010 By JENNIFER NESBITT ThisWeek Community Newspapers Westerville City Council will hold a public hearing Jan. 4 on OhioHealth's plans for its Westerville campus before legislation associated with the plans has a third and final reading. OhioHealth's proposal to construct a $20-million, two-story building to house a full-service emergency department and medical offices raised concerns among council members when the legislation was read for the second time Dec. 7. The Westerville Planning Commission approved the plans in November, but also voted to declare the expansion a major change to the company's site plan, which means it must receive final approval from Westerville City Council. MORE: http://www.thisweeknews.com/live/content/westerville/stories/2010/12/08/Jan-4-public-hearing-set-on-OhioHealth-expansion.html?sid=104
December 24, 201014 yr OhioHealth expansion in Westerville draws opposition Project would bring $60 million in annual payroll, but residents to the north are fighting it By BRET LIEBENDORFER, COLUMBUS LOCAL NEWS Published: Saturday, December 18, 2010 9:55 AM EST Residents are not the only ones with issues regarding OhioHealth's proposed expansion. Last week Westerville City Council members asked for more details and expressed concerns about the development of a $20 million, 48,000-square-foot new building on OhioHealth's 43-acre Westerville Medical Campus, located at the northeast corner of Polaris Parkway and Africa Road. The first development of the site opened in January 2009, a 75,000-square-foot "hospital without beds" center for a wide range of outpatient services with attendant doctor's offices and clinics. Current plans for the new two-story building call for its bottom floor to house a stand-alone emergency room and the top floor additional medical offices. Behind the building, east of the current parking lot, would be a helicopter pad. MORE: http://www.columbuslocalnews.com/articles/2010/12/21/multiple_papers/slideshow/doc4d0c1366b52b7940570685.txt
January 13, 201114 yr OhioHealth expansion approved With helipad removed and parking buffer doubled, City Council approves expansion including emergency room By BRET LIEBENDORFER, COLUMBUS LOCAL NEWS Published: Thursday, January 6, 2011 10:39 AM EST After an emotion-packed 2 1/2 hours of comments from residents at a public hearing Tuesday night, Jan. 4, Westerville City Council voted 5-1 to approve plans for an expansion of OhioHealth's Westerville Medical Campus at the northeast corner of Polaris Parkway and Africa Road. The expansion will bring a new 48,000-square-foot, two story building to the site at 300 Polaris Parkway, with a stand-alone emergency room on the ground floor and medical offices on the second. OhioHealth made changes to its proposal prior to the vote, eliminating a helipad that was a rallying point for the opposition. But corporation officials said they plan instead to use its parking lot for rare helicopter transports for trauma patients from the new emergency room - estimated at 2-3 a year. Other objections raised by opponents included fears of increased noise and traffic and OhioHealth's eventual conversion of the campus into a full-scale hospital. OhioHealth's 44-acre site is bounded by Genoa Township single-family homes to the north, the Meijer shopping center and and associated apartments to the east, Polaris Parkway to the south and Africa Road to the west. MORE: http://www.columbuslocalnews.com/articles/2011/01/13/westerville_news_and_public_opinion/news/wehealth%201_20110106_1000am_26.txt
February 16, 201114 yr More from ThisWeekNews about the Wal-Mart battle: Public comment split on Westerville Walmart plans Monday, November 1, 2010 By JENNIFER NESBITT ThisWeek Community Newspapers Residents who spoke during the public comment portion of last week's planning commission meeting expressed divergent opinions about plans to bring a Walmart to Westerville Square. According to some, Walmart would attract people to the nearly vacant and dilapidated Westerville Square shopping center. Others said the company imports from China, treats workers poorly and would drag down the city and drive away locally owned businesses. The Hadler Companies, which owns the shopping center, presented its renovation proposal for Westerville Square - including construction of a Walmart - to the planning commission on Oct. 27. The Hadler Companies' current plans for the site involve demolishing three storefronts totaling 90,500 square feet and constructing a 108,000-square-foot Walmart. The remainder of the plaza would be renovated to match the new Walmart, which would include a multiple-plane facade constructed with a variety of materials to help visually break up the front of the building, said Mark Ford, the architect hired by The Hadler Companies for the project. MORE: http://www.thisweeknews.com/live/content/westerville/stories/2010/10/27/Public-comment-split-on-Westerville-Walmart-plans.html?sid=104 Catching up on the Westerville Walmart proposal. It was on the Westerville Planning Commission's Feb. 23 agenda. Apparently the developer requested a postponement until the Commission's March 23rd meeting. Slightly more about this from This Week News: Westerville Walmart proposal postponed until March
March 27, 201114 yr More about the Westerville Walmart proposal. After a postponement from the February Westerville Planning Commission agenda, the proposal is heard on March 23. And the Walmart proposal was ...[drumroll]... tabled until April. Westerville Walmart plans tabled again Planners say significant progress toward approval has been made, but they likely will deem the plan a major modification -- triggering more review by City Council. By BRET LIEBENDORFER, COLUMBUS LOCAL NEWS Published: Friday, March 25, 2011 - 11:10 AM EDT A decision on a redevelopment that would bring a Walmart to Westerville has been postponed at least another month. On Wednesday, March 23, an attorney representing The Hadler Companies asked the Westerville Planning Commission to postpone its decision until April, following a nearly two-hour public hearing that included feedback from staff, the commission and residents. The company has applied for approval to redevelop its Westerville Square Shopping Center with a new Walmart at its center, replacing three vacant anchor stores. READ MORE AND RENDERING OF PROPOSAL: http://www.columbuslocalnews.com/articles/2011/03/25/multiple_papers/slideshow/ssallwewal_20110325_0940am_3.txt
April 28, 201114 yr Westerville Walmart plan will go before council Planning board recommends it if issues resolved Thursday, April 28, 2011 - 03:09 AM By Collin Binkley, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH The Westerville Planning Commission decided last night that a proposal to put a Walmart in Westerville Square would be a major modification of the shopping center. That means the proposal will go to the Westerville City Council. The commission voted 5-1 to forward it with a recommendation to accept the plan as long as the developer resolves all issues, which primarily are traffic concerns. The Hadler Cos. wants to demolish three of the storefronts in Westerville Square, totaling 90,500 square feet, to build the 108,441-square-foot Walmart. READ MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2011/04/28/westerville-walmart-plan-will-go-before-council-with-backing.html?sid=101
May 9, 201114 yr Walmart's fate rests with city council Wednesday, May 4, 2011 By JENNIFER NESBITT ThisWeek Community Newspapers Westerville City Council will make the final decision on whether The Hadler Cos. can tear down three storefronts in its Westerville Square shopping center to construct a 108,000-square-foot Walmart. The Westerville Planning Commission voted 6-0 on April 27 to declare the proposed changes to the shopping center a major modification, meaning that city council will have to vote on the matter. The commission also voted 5-1 to recommend that council approve The Hadler Cos.' application, as long as any outstanding issues the city has with the plans are resolved. Senior planner Bassem Bitar said the earliest the case would go before council is May 17 but a date has not yet been determined. READ MORE: http://www.thisweeknews.com/live/content/westerville/stories/2011/05/04/walmarts-fate-rests-with-city-council.html?sid=104
June 17, 201113 yr Walmart at council; Hadler sets open houses BY BRET LIEBENDORFER, COLUMBUS LOCAL NEWS Published: Wednesday, June 8, 2011 3:06 PM EDT As the Walmart question reaches Westerville City Council, its developer has announced a pair of open houses for residents to see how the redevelopment would affect the Westerville Square shopping center. The Hadler Cos. will host open houses from 5-8 p.m. June 17 and 2-5 p.m. June 18 in the former office of H&R Block, 14 Westerville Square, now a vacant storefront in the center where the Walmart is proposed. . . . Westerville City Council heard the first reading of legislation to allow the redevelopment on June 7. A public hearing and vote on the project are expected on July 5 -- in council's final public meeting before it adjourns for the balance of July and its August summer recess. The development proposes to demolish 90,000 square feet in the center of the complex that used to be occupied by Lazarus, a grocery store and a furniture store. A new 108,000-square-foot Walmart, small by the retail giant's standards, would be constructed on its footprint. The rest of the center would get a major makeover. READ MORE: http://www.columbuslocalnews.com/articles/2011/06/11/westerville_news_and_public_opinion/news/wewalmart%20_20110608_1221pm_6.txt
July 6, 201113 yr Looks like Westerville's getting a Walmart after all. Walmart finally coming to Westerville Many residents opposed plan, but council OK'd it 6-1 Wednesday, July 6, 2011 - 03:08 AM By Collin Binkley, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH After fighting a lawsuit in the past from other developers whose request to bring Walmart to Westerville was denied, the city opened its door to the retail chain last night. With a 6-1 vote, the Westerville City Council approved a 108,000-square-foot Walmart for Westerville Square, a decade after denying plans from other developers. READ MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2011/07/06/walmart-finally-coming-to-town.html?sid=101
July 8, 201113 yr Walmart's Westerville foes want to take fight to ballot Friday, July 8, 2011 - 03:07 AM By Collin Binkley, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH A group of residents has vowed to seek a referendum in an attempt to block a planned Walmart in Westerville, but the developer said the residents have no legal ground. Ultimately, a court might have to decide. Developer George Hadler, who received the go-ahead this week from the Westerville City Council to bring the retail giant to an ailing shopping center, suggested that if residents attack his plan with a referendum petition, he might sue. "Are we going to defend our legal rights aggressively?" he asked. "The answer is yes." At question is whether the ordinance, which passed on Tuesday and allows Hadler to build a Walmart in the Westerville Square shopping center, constitutes a new legislative action or application of an existing law, said Bruce Bailey, the city's law director. Legislative actions can be repealed through referendums, but applications of a law can't, Bailey said. READ MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2011/07/08/walmarts-westerville-foes-want-to-take-fight-to-ballot.html?sid=101
July 11, 201113 yr If it weren't for the clustercuss of traffic that already exists at this spot, it really can only benefit the city (for goodness sake, there is a Meijer, Giant Eagle, two Kroger's, Marc's, and Kohl's in a 2 mile radius and Polaris and Easton and even Columbus Square are only minutes away). The earnings tax and property tax bump alone makes it worth it, plus this was one ugly shopping center.
July 17, 201113 yr Mount Carmel adding heart center at St. Ann's $110 million expansion starts today to give St. Ann's its own heart-care center. It will be one of several in the region. Thursday, June 30, 2011 - 03:06 AM By Suzanne Hoholik, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Today, Mount Carmel St. Ann's joins the lucrative heart war in central Ohio. The Westerville hospital breaks ground on a $110 million heart center. The project will add 60 beds, space for four new operating rooms for open-heart and other surgeries, and a parking garage. The new center joins heart programs at practically every hospital in the region, with the two largest being the Ross Heart Hospital at Ohio State University Medical Center and the McConnell Heart Hospital at Riverside Methodist Hospital. (. . .) The hospital also will get a new look. The main entrance will move from Cleveland Avenue to the south side of the complex. At rush hours, traffic trying to turn south onto Cleveland Avenue often clogs parking lots, Claus von Zychlin, chief executive of Mount Carmel Health System said. RENDERING OF NEW SOUTH SIDE HOSPITAL ENTRANCE MAP OF ST. ANN'S HOSPITAL PROJECTS READ MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2011/06/30/mount-carmel-adding-heart-center-at-st-anns.html
August 10, 201113 yr From the Westerville edition of This Week Newspapers - a notice about a relatively small but interesting project at the corner State Street and Schrock Road. Approval was given for the demolition of an existing 45-year-old Huntington Bank at this corner to allow construction a larger bank building. The new building would be located closer to the intersection as per a planning overlay Westerville has for South State Street. THIS WEEK NEWSPAPERS: Westerville Planning commission approves new Huntington Bank
August 11, 201113 yr Walmart's Westerville foes want to take fight to ballot Friday, July 8, 2011 - 03:07 AM By Collin Binkley, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH A group of residents has vowed to seek a referendum in an attempt to block a planned Walmart in Westerville, but the developer said the residents have no legal ground. Ultimately, a court might have to decide. Developer George Hadler, who received the go-ahead this week from the Westerville City Council to bring the retail giant to an ailing shopping center, suggested that if residents attack his plan with a referendum petition, he might sue. "Are we going to defend our legal rights aggressively?" he asked. "The answer is yes." At question is whether the ordinance, which passed on Tuesday and allows Hadler to build a Walmart in the Westerville Square shopping center, constitutes a new legislative action or application of an existing law, said Bruce Bailey, the city's law director. Legislative actions can be repealed through referendums, but applications of a law can't, Bailey said. READ MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2011/07/08/walmarts-westerville-foes-want-to-take-fight-to-ballot.html?sid=101 If Walmart referendum makes ballot, it'll be 2012 Even if backers file enough signatures Thursday, they will miss this fall's election -- and they still face a legal fight. By BRET LIEBENDORFER, COLUMBUS LOCAL NEWS Published: Tuesday, August 2, 2011 11:32 PM EDT If a referendum to overturn Westerville City Council's approval of a Walmart in the Westerville Square Shopping Center makes it to the ballot, it will be in November 2012 -- not this fall. According to the Facebook page "Whack The Walmart Westerville," backers of a referendum to overturn the Walmart expect to submit at least the required 1,679 signatures on Thursday, Aug. 4, the final day of their 30-day deadline. But the issue cannot go to a vote of city residents this Nov. 8 because the petitions already are set to miss the Aug. 10 filling deadline to make that ballot, due to a state law requirement. READ MORE: http://www.columbuslocalnews.com/articles/2011/08/06/westerville_news_and_public_opinion/news/wewalmart%20_20110802_1031pm_16.txt
August 12, 201113 yr This is going to end up in court, because they will likely have to file suit to stop Hadler from moving forward and then things get ugly and stupid fast.
August 22, 201113 yr This is going to end up in court, because they will likely have to file suit to stop Hadler from moving forward and then things get ugly and stupid fast. It sure looks like it. Although, according to the updates from This Week News (posted below), the lawsuits might begin with the developer. It sounds like Hadler needs to stop the referendum process before he can start construction. The reports state that as long as the referendum is heading to the ballot, Hadler can't procede. The petitions weren't filed in time to get on the November 2011 ballot. And apparently referendums must be heard on genreal election ballots - which pushes the vote out to November 2012. That's a long time for a developer to wait after he's received approval from the city. Here are the updates from This Week News: Petitions filed for Walmart referendum Hadler vows to fight referendum on Walmart Westerville Walmart petitions headed to election boards
August 23, 201113 yr This is going to end up in court, because they will likely have to file suit to stop Hadler from moving forward and then things get ugly and stupid fast. It sure looks like it. Although, according to the updates from This Week News (posted below), the lawsuits might begin with the developer. It sounds like Hadler needs to stop the referendum process before he can start construction. The reports state that as long as the referendum is heading to the ballot, Hadler can't procede. The petitions weren't filed in time to get on the November 2011 ballot. And apparently referendums must be heard on genreal election ballots - which pushes the vote out to November 2012. That's a long time for a developer to wait after he's received approval from the city. Or, umm, nevermind :roll: Walmart referendum fails to make ballot in Westerville
August 24, 201113 yr An updated version of yesterday's referendum story in the Dispatch. I included a quote box from today's article about Hadler's construction timetable for the shopping center: No Westerville referendum on Walmart: Group fails to get enough valid signatures to get on 2012 ballot Work will begin within 60 days to demolish the three existing storefronts totaling 90,500 square feet and replace them with a 108,441-square-foot Walmart.
August 31, 201113 yr Two public right-of-way project news items from Westerville. One for the future - decorative gateways on State Street. One for the present - the just completed West Main Street bridge over Alum Creek. Both items are below: Businesses battling Westerville over 8-ft. fences Owners say walls will hide them; eminent domain also at issue By Collin Binkley, The Columbus Dispatch Thursday, August 25, 2011 - 7:50 AM When motorists drive through Westerville’s south entrance on State Street, city leaders want them to see a bold gateway of brick pillars and wrought-iron fences emblazoned with a regal W trumpeting the city. The fixtures are planned as part of a project designed to spruce up a commercial strip and make State Street safer for drivers and pedestrians. But the fences also hide businesses from potential customers at the two intersections where they are planned, some property owners say. “They’re overtaking and obscuring my business,” said Jim Taylor, who owns the land leased by the U.S. Bank branch at State Street and Heatherdown Drive. “Maybe it’ll look pretty leaving town, but it doesn’t help me and my livelihood.” The city plans to wield its power of eminent domain to take part of his property, and officials are prepared to use the power to obtain land at each corner at that intersection and at each corner of State Street and Schrock Road. READ MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2011/08/25/businesses-battling-city-over-8-ft--fences.html Columbus Local News: City celebrates opening of W. Main Street bridge
January 7, 201213 yr STAT: $150M in medical projects roll in Westerville's 2011 By BRET LIEBENDORFER, COLUMBUS LOCAL NEWS Published: Wednesday, December 21, 2011 - 7:08 AM EST For Westerville, no theme dominated the news in 2011 like the continued development of medical facilities. The city saw its "medical corridors" of Cleveland Avenue, Polaris Parkway and West County Line Road strengthened by three major projects and plans for more. The theme was so prevalent it even topped the controversial approval of a major redevelopment featuring the world's largest retailer, as Westerville's top story of the year. Residents breathed a sigh of relief with the completion of one major infrastructure project while the city's southern gateway continued under construction for most of the year. Other top 10 stories for the year included national recognition for the city's past, the implication of controversial technology, plenty of public projects and a shake up among city leaders. MORE: http://www.snponline.com/articles/2011/12/23/multiple_papers/news/allwecityy_20111220_0939pm_2.txt
February 28, 201213 yr Next phase of State Street rebuild will cross Schrock Road The $9 million second phase of the work will bury utility lines in 2014 and construct improvements in 2015 By BRET LIEBENDORFER, COLUMBUS LOCAL NEWS Published: Friday, February 17, 2012 - 7:06 AM EST The city's major upgrade to South State Street is prepping to shift a little northward. Planning is being finalized Phase Two work on the city's southern gateway project, which is burying overhead utility lines, and installing mast-arm traffic signals, sidewalks and decorative features. City Council heard a staff report during a meeting Feb. 7 that focused on streetscape improvements that would stretch from Tim Horton's at 772 S. State Street to Starbucks at 533 S. State Street. The project started last year at State Street's intersection with Interstate 270 and eventually will stretch north to the edge of Uptown at Walnut Street. MORE: http://www.columbuslocalnews.com/articles/2012/02/18/multiple_papers/news/allwestate_20120217_0658am_5.txt
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