Posted September 12, 200519 yr Please do not point out to me that this forum is called UrbanOhio. ;) From the 9/11/05 Dayton Daily News: Megafarms trigger activism by neighbors By Ben Sutherly Dayton Daily News RANGE TWP., MADISON COUNTY | Dave Savage never thought he'd be swept up in Ohio's increasingly high-stakes debate over large livestock farming when he and his family moved from Iowa to this remote agricultural community outside South Solon four years ago. Then a Dutch immigrant family built a large dairy a mile from Savage's home. Now Savage, 38, a small-scale livestock farmer and part-time insurance adjuster, describes himself as a "reluctant participant" in the appeal of state permits authorizing Stardust Dairy to expand from 700 cows to 2,500. "These dairies are coming in and giving an industrial use to agricultural land," Savage said. "... It's hard to put a cap on capitalism and rightfully so. We don't want to step on free enterprise, but we want to make sure it's responsible free enterprise." Large livestock farms, particularly dairies built in recent years for European immigrant families to own and operate, have triggered a wave of civic unrest and activism unprecedented across rural Ohio. Some citizens groups are no longer content venting their frustrations with the state's regulation of large livestock farms to state legislators and Agriculture Department officials. MORE: http://www.daytondailynews.com/localnews/content/localnews/daily/0911megafarm.html
December 30, 200618 yr Dairy farm might be put near Big Darby in Madison County Company says it can manage tons of manure Saturday, December 30, 2006 Spencer Hunt, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH The ecologically fragile Big Darby Creek soon could have more than 5,400 new neighbors, all of which moo. A proposed dairy farm near Plumwood in Madison County would produce millions of gallons of milk. It would be the state’s largest dairy farm, according to Ohio Department of Agriculture statistics. Conservationists are worried that the tons of manure cows also produce would pollute Darby tributaries and threaten one of its endangered animals. The federally endangered clubshell mussel lives downstream in a nearby section of Little Darby Creek, the Big Darby’s main tributary, said Anthony Sasson, freshwater conservation coordinator for the Ohio Nature Conservancy. State and local officials have spent years on plans to protect the 80-mile long Darby, which drains 555 square miles of land in parts of Franklin, Champaign, Logan, Madison, Pickaway and Union counties. Related Map:http://dispatch.com/news-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/12/30/20061230-B2-01.html MORE: http://dispatch.com/news-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/12/30/20061230-B1-02.html
January 23, 200718 yr From the 12/25/06 Madison Press: Orleton farm: Mega dairy planned for area Monday, December 25, 2006 By MAC CORDELL Press Editor As early as next year, the residents of Somerford, Monroe and Deercreek Townships could have some new neighbors — 5,428 of them to be exact. Menke Consulting, Inc., has informed the Madison County Commissioners of its intention to file a permit with the Ohio Department of Agriculture, possibly as soon as this week, requesting permission to construct a large confined animal feeding operation on the Orleton Farm, at the intersection of state Routes 29 and 38. “This would be the largest farm like this in the state, by far,” said Madison County Commissioner Chris Snyder. Menke is organizing the project for three brothers from the Netherlands who will take control of the dairy farm once it has been constructed. That construction is set to begin in the spring of 2007, with animals expected on site as early as next winter. The farm, which is 2.1 miles from both Plumwood and Choctaw Lake, is 5,290 acres. Thomas Menke said the farm would house 4,420 mature milking cows and 1,008 dry cows. MORE: http://www.madison-press.com
January 23, 200718 yr From the 12/30/06 Dispatch: Dairy farm might be put near Big Darby Saturday, December 30, 2006 Spencer Hunt, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH The ecologically fragile Big Darby Creek soon could have more than 5,400 new neighbors, all of which moo. A proposed dairy farm near Plumwood in Madison County would produce millions of gallons of milk. It would be the state’s largest dairy farm, according to Ohio Department of Agriculture statistics. Tom Menke, a consultant for Orleton Farms LLC, the company that wants to build the farm, said the Darby would be protected. "I think this is a very great opportunity to show farms can be environmentally sound in sensitive watersheds," Menke said. MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/news-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/12/30/20061230-B1-02.html
January 23, 200718 yr From the 1/4/07 DDN: Dutch dairy farmers may house 5,428 cows Former Procter land in Madison County would become home to state's largest dairy operation. By Ben Sutherly, Staff Writer Thursday, January 04, 2007 MONROE TWP., MADISON COUNTY — — Orleton Farm, covering more than 8 square miles, may soon become home to the state's largest dairy farm. A Dutch family, the van Bakels, wants to build a $35 million dairy farm capable of housing 5,428 cows on the farm. Annual payroll for 35 employees would be $1.3 million, said the project's environmental consultant, Tom Menke of Menke Consulting in Greenville. The Procter family of Procter & Gamble fame formerly owned the farm, Menke said. The farm once housed thousands of beef cattle and one of the state's largest swine farms, he said. The van Bakels' Orleton Farms, LLC purchased the 5,290-acre farm in 2001 for $12.8 million, or $2,470 an acre. Orleton Farms will submit permit applications to state officials in a few weeks, Menke said. But when it does, the Nature Conservancy wants the state to stiffen regulations, given the proposed dairy's location in the Big Darby Creek watershed, home to 38 endangered species of fish and mussels. MORE: http://www.daytondailynews.com/n/content/oh/story/news/local/2007/01/03/ddn010407dairy.html
August 3, 200717 yr Duke thinking big in W. Jefferson with Restoration Hardware deal By Brian R. Ball, Business First of Columbus Friday, August 3, 2007 Two distribution centers proposed for West Jefferson in Madison County may spur an Indianapolis developer's expansion plans in Central Ohio. The West Jefferson Village Council on Aug. 6 is expected to consider Duke Realty Corp.'s request that the municipality approve a final development plan for a 795,000-square-foot distribution center for retailer Restoration Hardware Inc. The center would sit on a 405-acre tract the developer has in contract off Route 29 between Route 40 and Interstate 70. A second project of more than 1 million square feet for an unidentified company was scheduled for an initial review at the village's Aug. 1 planning commission. The Park 70 at West Jefferson would give Duke a lower-cost business park alternative for companies put off by rising land costs in the Alum Creek Drive industrial corridor surrounding Rickenbacker International Airport, where Duke has several facilities. Full article: http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2007/08/06/story15.html
September 1, 200717 yr Duke's industrial project emerges By Brian R. Ball, Business First of Columbus Friday, August 31, 2007 Developer Duke Realty Corp. has expanded its regional options for large-scale industrial development through the inauguration of a 405-acre industrial park in the Madison County village of West Jefferson. The Indianapolis-based real estate investment trust launched its Park 70 at West Jefferson in late August with construction of two projects with a combined space of nearly 2 million square feet. Cereal producer Kellogg Co. is expected to take a 1.14 million-square-foot distribution center Duke has zoned under construction on 75 acres. Retailer Restoration Hardware Inc. previously announced its plans to lease a 805,125-square-foot, build-to-suit facility next to the Kellogg facility. West Jefferson and nearby London have gained a handful of projects in recent years, including the Target Corp. distribution center built on land Dublin-based MTB Corp. owned next to Duke's site. Full article: http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2007/09/03/story8.html
October 22, 200717 yr West Jefferson on the move Monday, October 22, 2007 By Mike Pramik, The Columbus Dispatch Tom Phillips, the lame-duck mayor of West Jefferson, knows exactly how many people live in the village. “Four thousand, four hundred and forty … two,” Phillips said with only slight hesitation. “We've been trying to become a city, but the powers that be have fought that, so we have not grown very much.” (A population of at least 5,000 is necessary for designation as a city.) Change, however, is coming to the Madison County burg, at least on the commercial side. Several developers have descended on the intersection of I-70 and Rt. 29, coveting what Phillips calls a “golden triangle” of land ripe for distribution business. Four years ago, Target opened a warehouse center there, and now Duke Realty Corp. is developing an industrial park that already has attracted Restoration Hardware and Kellogg Co. Phillips said other developers are interested in land west of the village center. If they follow through on their plans, the I-70/Rt. 29 intersection could explode as a center of logistics. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2007/10/22/ZONE.ART_ART_10-22-07_G01.html?sid=101
January 20, 200817 yr Planned megadairy farm opposed Residents cite environmental record of family proposing 5,428-cow site Sunday, January 20, 2008 - 3:47 AM By Monique Curet, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH A grass-roots group has mobilized against the proposed construction of a megadairy near members' Madison County homes. Active Citizens for Responsible Environmentalism opposes a 5,428-cow farm planned for 5,290 acres along a tributary of ecologically fragile Big Darby Creek. More than half of the members of ACRE live in Choctaw Lake, a private development of about 850 homes a few miles from the farm site. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2008/01/20/megadairy.ART_ART_01-20-08_D1_1293CPT.html?sid=101
February 5, 200817 yr West Jefferson pinning its hopes for development on improved access Business First of Columbus By Brent Wilder For Business First Friday, January 4, 2008 With a growing roster of marquee tenants, the Madison County village of West Jefferson may be poised to be the next big thing in Central Ohio greenfield development. Outgoing Mayor Tom Phillips says West Jefferson is looking toward plans with the state to improve the Interstate 70-Route 29 junction serving the industrial park area that jolted forward with three new major deals in 2007. And Phillips is optimistic the growing tenant mix will prove an employment as well as tax boon for the village. Duke Realty Corp.'s 2007 announcements of signing Restoration Hardware Inc. and Kellogg Co. as the first tenants at its 405-acre Park 70 at West Jefferson industrial park, in conjunction with the high-profile focus brought by Duke's land acquisition in 2006, has jump-started interest at West Jefferson Commerce Park, says Brad Block, vice president of Dublin-based park developer MTB Development Co. Commerce Park signed on a FedEx Corp. freight distribution center in late November to an approximately 70-acre site, Block says. MORE: http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2008/01/07/focus2.html
July 7, 200816 yr Centerpoint, Fed One make play for West Jeff warehouses Business First of Columbus - by Brian R. Ball Friday, June 27, 2008 Two Columbus real estate developers are jumping into the burgeoning West Jefferson industrial development market. Centerpoint Development Co. LLC and Fed One Dublin LCC paid a combined $3.4 million June 19 for a 160-acre tract and 37.6 nearby acres in the West Jefferson Commerce Park off Route 29 and Interstate 70. The developers plan to build up to 3.6 million square feet of distribution and light assembly buildings on the parcels. Centerpoint President G. Bradford Johnson and Fed One Managing Member Robert Biondi plan to market the site primarily to build-to-suit tenants seeking an alternative to the Alum Creek Drive industrial corridor close to Rickenbacker International Airport. Full article: http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2008/06/30/story3.html
November 30, 200915 yr Madison County collaborates on growth New community improvement corporation has plan for county’s economy Business First of Columbus - by Jeff Bell Friday, November 27, 2009 November has been a good month for the economic development team in Madison County. Intelligrated Inc., one of county’s largest private-sector employers, accepted $24 million in state incentives Nov. 3 to stay in Ohio and expand its manufacturing operations in London. A day later, the fledgling Madison County Community Improvement Corp. rolled out its first major project since it was launched in January – a plan for guiding economic development in the county. Madison County, with a population of about 41,000, is best known for its farms, two state prisons, a Battelle research laboratory and as the site for Ohio State University’s annual Farm Science Review. Located west of Franklin County, it also has landed a number of distribution operations in recent years, including ones serving Target Corp., Restoration Hardware Inc., Staples Inc. and FedEx Corp., and is home to manufacturers such as Stanley Electric Company Ltd. and London Industries Inc. Under Ohio law, community improvement corporations have powers that include acquiring land, funding road and public utility improvements, and construction projects such as business parks. Some of that may happen down the road in Madison County, but the initial focus of its improvement corporation has been crafting an economic-development plan. MORE: http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2009/11/30/story4.html
August 17, 201113 yr Municipal Court building gets OK in Madison County Committee votes to wrap up plans and request bids By Holly Zachariah, The Columbus Dispatch Tuesday, August 9, 2011 - 4:42 AM LONDON, Ohio — Bickering among local officials has meant that plans to build a new Madison County Municipal Courthouse have been on-again, off-again for more than two years. Now, they’re on again. The committee guiding the project voted yesterday to finish engineering plans and seek proposals and bids for construction. If the price from contractors is too high, the plan still could be delayed or scrapped but, given the economic climate, the Madison County commissioners say they expect it to come in under budget. Plans for the new building, which could cost as much as $2.5 million and would be built on land in downtown London across from the Madison County Courthouse. READ MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2011/08/09/municipal-court-building-gets-ok-in-madison-county.html
January 25, 201312 yr Fourth proposal emerges for outlet mall Glimcher looking at land in Madison County; developer that lures best retailers will win By Steve Wartenberg, The Columbus Dispatch Thursday, January 24, 2013 - 7:10 AM Glimcher Realty Trust has joined the growing list of developers hoping to build an outlet mall in central Ohio. The Columbus-based mall developer and operator is looking at property in Madison County, according to a county official. “(Glimcher) came in to review our development standards in mid-November ... for an outlet mall-type property,” said David Hughes, director of the Madison County building and zoning department. The 52-acre site Glimcher is interested in is farmland located just north of I-70, near London, he said. This is the fourth proposal for an outlet mall in the region, but experts say it is likely that only one will be built, and that the ultimate winner will be the developer that signs up the most important anchor retailers. Glimcher officials declined to answer questions about the potential outlet mall project in Madison County. ... The three other proposals include two near the I-71 and Rts. 36/37 interchange in Delaware County and one in New Albany, on Beech Road, just north of Rt. 161. READ MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/business/2013/01/24/fourth-proposal-emerges-for-outlet-mall.html
July 11, 201311 yr New courthouse contract awarded By Dean Shipley, Madison Press Staff Writer April 29, 2013 The proposed municipal court building has been given the green light. Madison County commissioners on Monday awarded the municipal court contract to the lowest and best bidder, Staffco of Fairborn, Ohio, in Greene County. Through further negotiations, the commissioners were able to remove $122,700 from the bid of $3,946,000 to bring the cost of the base bid down to $3,823,300. In the agreement, options for the finished basement, at $174,000, and the additional ceramic tile for the bathrooms, at $5,000, were also approved. Some of the more costly deductions made will include: • deletion of CPM schedule and replace with ghant chart, $15,000 • delete dumpster enclosure, $22,000 • delete “water specialty brick,” replace with accent brick, allowing basement wall to go from 16 inches to 12 inches, $20,000 • delete stone back fill around perimeter of building. Use on-site dirt for back fill and install gravel on top of perimeter drain only, $15,000 • Change of windows, with no sacrifice of function or energy savings, $22,000. Commissioners reiterated the funding for the building is there. Currently in the special projects fund, created by former municipal court judge R. David Picken, specifically for the building, is $3.2 million. Based on the number of cases passing through municipal court every year, the fund receives approximately $300,000. MORE: http://www.madison-press.com/2013/04/courthouse-contract-awarded/
October 6, 20159 yr Open house for both courthouses Wednesday Event will show off new building, kick off campaign for old By Dean Shipley, The Madison Press October 2, 2015 Celebrating the new and the old. Madison County commissioners are inviting the public to tour the Madison County Courthouse, 1 N. Main Street, and the new Madison County Municipal Court Building, 55 N. Oak Street. The event will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 7. The open house will launch the county’s imitative to refurbish the courthouse, which is 125 years old this year. The historical building at the center of London is a “gem,” according to Commissioner Paul Gross. ... Gross said they intend to start at the top of the building and work down. “We’ll go out for bid for each component of it, rather than all in one package. The final amount will be determined on a component by component basis,” Gross said. In December, commissioners received a quote of more than $6 million for the building’s complete renovation. The new municipal court building opened late this summer. MORE: http://madison-press.com/news/3143/open-house-for-both-courthouses-wednesday
October 27, 20159 yr Madison County Municipal Court moves to spacious new digs By Holly Zachariah, The Columbus Dispatch Tuesday, October 27, 2015 - 5:35 AM LONDON, Ohio — Judge Eric Schooley used to call his dingy municipal courtroom and its tiny basement offices — the magistrate held small-claims hearings in a walled-off cubicle — the coal bin. Not anymore. Even though old cases are stacked in the back and still must be filed away, everything is up and running in the new $4.3 million Madison County Municipal Court building in downtown London. A recent open house was the final step to complete the move from the bowels of the historic Madison County Courthouse to across the street. ( . . . ) Now, the county commissioners turn their attention to saving the 125-year-old Second Empire-style traditional courthouse across the street, something other counties are all too familiar with. ... Madison County commissioners hope to put up scaffolding in the spring and start on what could be as much as a $3 million plan to stabilize degradation of the traditional courthouse’s exterior and finally fix the failing roof and leaking concrete and masonry, Commissioner David Dhume said. “The business that goes on inside our courthouses is the most important that a county does,” Dhume said. “We are obligated to find money to save them.” MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2015/10/27/spacious-new-digs.html
October 27, 20159 yr The report from the Dispatch about the opening of the new Madison County Municipal Court Building - which is catty cornered from the 125-year-old Madison County Courthouse - also referenced a restoration of the older historic County Courthouse that is planned to begin Spring 2016. Below is a current photo of the 125-year-old Madison County Courthouse:
October 27, 20159 yr Madison County preparing for growth By Dean Narciso, The Columbus Dispatch Monday, October 19, 2015 - 8:01 AM Madison County officials have watched Delaware County’s rise from a quiet farming community to a commercial powerhouse, with neighborhoods and retailers branching out with each extension of water and sewer lines. They have waited and wondered if they could replicate some of that success in their county, which clings to its proud farming heritage but also seeks new tax revenue to keep its schools and roads in top condition. Change, county leaders hope, is about to begin. The evidence lies deep below a recently harvested cornfield near the intersection of I-70 and Rt. 42. County Commissioner Paul Gross visits the site often to watch a drilling rig pump water from an aquifer 350 feet below in the quest for a perfect source of groundwater. Eventually it will be cleansed in a water plant, fill a water tower and flow under new streets and into the shops and restaurants. MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2015/10/19/madison-county-preparing-for-growth.html
August 7, 20168 yr Madison Health plans $26 million expansion, renovation By Andrea Chaffin, The Madison Press June 3, 2016 Madison Health is planning a $26 million major expansion and renovation that will give the hospital a whole new face, leaders announced Friday. Construction will begin in spring 2017 on a two-story, 24,000-square-foot addition at the front of the hospital. The addition will face North Main Street and cover most of the current front of the hospital, providing a new front entrance and lobby. Front parking lots and landscaping will be re-done as part of the project. The new building will house a 12,000-square-foot emergency department on the first floor, tripling the space currently allotted to the ER, and a new cancer center on the second floor. MORE: http://madison-press.com/news/120653/madison-health-plans-26-million-expansion-renovation
August 7, 20168 yr Contractor: Renovating school for city offices could cost $1.37 million By Andrea Chaffin, The Madison Press June 4, 2016 An estimate for how much it may cost to renovate the former London Primary School for city offices was thrown out for the first time on Thursday. About $1.37 million. Allstate Exteriors, a general contractor in London, calculated the quote based off drawings created by DesignNetwork, an architect the city hired for the job for $30,000. It was presented to members of the City Properties Committee on Wednesday and to council on Thursday. The figure includes a “wish list” renovation of the 1960s-era building, located at 20 S. Walnut St.: upgrading all electrical, adding high-efficiency lighting, installing a new ceiling, converting classrooms into office (new drywall, furniture), painting, installing new fixtures, adding some carpet and a new roof, said Dean Bollinger, owner of DesignNetwork. MORE: http://madison-press.com/news/121165/contractor-renovating-school-for-city-offices-could-cost-1-37-million
August 7, 20168 yr At the main intersection of the Village of Plain City in Madison County, a clock tower sits on top of a two-story commercial building. It's been there since 1902 and has become the symbol of the small village. However, from time to time, it requires maintenance. And after 114 years, the maintenance is extensive enough that the clock needs to be removed for a major restoration. Below is a link to a 2015 Dispatch article detailing the repairs needed. Also below are the stories from The Plain City Advocate and the Columbus Dispatch about the clock removal in May: - Plain City’s iconic tower clock needs repairs: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2015/02/05/clock-needs-work.html - Plain City clock tower to be removed for repairs: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2016/05/12/plain-city-bell-tower-to-be-removed-for-repairs.html - Time flies: Plain City clock successfully removed for restoration: http://plaincity-advocate.com/news/2894/time-flies-plain-city-clock-successfully-removed-for-restoration Here is the Plain City clock tower at the village's main intersection: Clock being prepped for its move: Clock being lifted: Clock placed on flatbed truck to be moved for its restoration: The restoration project is expected to cost about $60,000. About $30,000 of the funds were raised by the Uptown Plain City Organization Commission. The other $30,000 will be paid by the village and later reimbursed by state capital improvement funds. Officials hope to have the project completed and clock back in place by Sept. 17.
January 16, 20178 yr It took a bit longer than planned, but Plain City got its clock tower restored and reinstalled: Plain City re-installs its 1902 clock tower after major renovation: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2016/11/30/plain-city-clock-tower.html
May 15, 20187 yr A couple bits of big news regarding a large warehouse park located in West Jefferson - located just west of Franklin County. Big news #1: Big deal alert: West Jefferson warehouse park to sell for $233M A real estate trust is planning to buy four big warehouses west of Columbus in what will likely be one of the largest real estate transactions this year. Toronto-based Granite Real Estate Investment Trust announced it has struck a deal with Indianapolis-based Duke Realty to acquire the warehouses in the Park 70 at West Jefferson development in a $232.5 million deal. The site is at Rt. 40 and Rt. 29 near I-70 in West Jefferson and includes 78 acres of land. Duke developed the four buildings, which total over 3.8 million square feet. Granite said the properties have good access, average seven years old and hold a diverse tenant mix, with two having options for 200,000 square feet of expansion. The four buildings have long-term tenants taking major space, according to the release: • 10 Enterprise Pkwy. (534,040 square feet) hosts an Ace Hardware distribution center with a 6.4-year lease term. • 15 Commerce Pkwy. (1.3 million square feet) hosts a Mars Petcare pet food distribution operation with a 4-year lease term. • 100 Enterprise Pkwy. (1.2 million square feet) hosts a Restoration Hardware home furnishing distribution center with a 10.4-year lease term. • 115 Enterprise Pkwy. (743,600 square feet) hosts Bon-Ton's retail distribution hub, which has a 7.3-year lease term, though that operation is shutting down. In its statement, Granite said despite the Bon-Ton liquidation, "The re-leasing prospects for this building are strong." Duke Realty has marketed the master-planned Park 70 at West Jefferson, 20 miles west of Columbus, as a convenient distribution site, looking to develop buildings in the 300,000 to 1 million square foot range. There are several hundred acres of land remaining in the area to be developed MORE: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2018/05/14/big-deal-alert-west-jefferson-warehouse-park-to.html
May 15, 20187 yr Big news #2 for that warehouse park: Amazon wants to build fourth fulfillment center here, add 1,500 jobs By Tristan Navera – Staff Reporter, Columbus Business First Posted: May 14, 2018, 5:01pm EDT Amazon is planning to build a sorting facility in West Jefferson, creating 1,500 full-time jobs. The online retail giant intends to build an 855,000-square-foot sorting facility at 1550 W. Main Street in the Park 70 at West Jefferson development. According to Amazon, the facility would open by late 2019. Duke Realty, which has developed the existing warehouses on that site, would develop this one as well, according to documents submitted to the state. ... The development would be a substantial addition to the warehouse park. It was recently announced that Duke had sold four existing buildings in the park just to the north – 3.8 million square feet – in a $232.5 million deal to Toronto-based Granite Real Estate Investment Trust. The sale of the buildings to Granite likely will free up capital for Duke to reinvest in building this new distribution center. This has been a long-term strategy for the developer as it seeks to finance huge warehouse projects as e-commerce drives a boom in demand. MORE: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2018/05/14/amazon-wants-to-build-fourth-fulfillment-center.html
May 15, 20187 yr ^^ Good thing for West Jeff, especially since it just lost those other 300 or so jobs. This will more than make up for that. Of course a part of me has to wonder if this is kind of a consolation prize, as in "Thanks for participating in our H2Q search, but unfortunately we have chosen city X as the location....etc. etc.".? *After the way Amazon behaved by bullying Seattle regarding a few million dollars to help the homelessness problem, I am kind of glad we have never really had a chance with the H2Q. Any city that gets it (except for the very largest ones) will be at the mercy of Amazon and can be held hostage by threats of relocation. At least the other companies in Seattle against that thing mostly kept their mouths shut. Not a good look for Amazon. *This thing is also going to be located just down the road from me. The traffic on 40 in West Jeff is gonna get alot worse.
May 15, 20187 yr I don't think these fulfillment centers really have anything to do with corporate jobs. They are strictly placed according to where they need to go to efficiently distribute/deliver orders. Almost every large city now has at least a few of them. I still would agree we don't have much of a chance for HQ2 landing here, but I wouldn't read anything into this news about that
May 15, 20187 yr We have distribution facilities for businesses that don't even have any other locations nearby for example.
May 31, 20187 yr http://www.dispatch.com/news/20180529/plan-would-extend-columbus-sewer-service-to-plain-city-environmentalists-wary The above linked article is about a request from the Village of Plain City to the City of Columbus. Plain City is asking Columbus to extend its sewer service to Plain City. If granted, it would divert Plain City’s current wastewater discharge from the environmentally sensitive Big Darby Creek. However, the request would also help facilitate new development along the Route 161 corridor between Plain City and Franklin County (see the map above). According to the article, "In Columbus' petition to the Ohio EPA to expand the city’s service area, Columbus notes that Plain City expects the addition of 11,486 residential units in its service area over the next 20 years, and nearly all of those (11,129) are expected in the Route 161 corridor. To put this growth into perspective, 1,646 residential units are currently in Plain City’s service area - for a population of 4,357 as of a 2016 census estimate. Because of this projected growth, environmental groups that watch over the Big Darby Creek watershed are wary of this proposal for the amount of stormwater runoff that would be created. The president of the Darby Creek Association said in the article that "environmental groups should have been part of the process from the start" and "suggested something akin to discussions that led to the Big Darby Accord, a formal agreement that limited development within the Big Darby watershed in western Franklin County."
January 28, 20196 yr https://www.columbusmessenger.com/hundreds-attend-hospital-expansion-grand-opening.html Madison County Hospital (now called Madison Health) - located in the county seat of London - held a grand opening ceremony for the hospital’s $25 million, 26,000 square-foot expansion and renovation project. The new construction includes a new cancer center for the hospital and a new 16-bed emergency department.
February 14, 20196 yr West Jefferson getting another huge warehouse (over 850,000 square feet): https://www.dispatch.com/news/20190213/west-jefferson-to-get-large-new-warehouse-near-i-70-and-state-rte-29
September 20, 20195 yr West Jefferson getting another 170 jobs with expansion of Jefferson Industries: https://columbusregion.com/news-events/press-releases/jefferson-industries-corporation-expands-operations-in-west-jefferson-ohio-invests-10-8-million/ Also besides the 850,000 square foot Amazon warehouse with it's 1500 jobs and Pizzuti working on an 850,000 square foot warehouse with an additional warehouse of about half that size south of route 40, a Dallas developer is aiming to build yet another 850,000 square foot speculative warehouse as well: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2019/03/08/dallas-developer-plans-west-jeffersons-second-big.html
September 20, 20195 yr Also utility work on extending water and sewer lines from downtown West Jefferson eastward across Little Darby Creek to the 40 /142 intersection (and beyond) are progressing (and making rush hour on 40 a mess). This is to access the land annexed across the creek for a new 12,000 square foot Kroger Fresh Eats store and a mixed use development with 1,000 housing units-which would be the biggest residential growth in West Jefferson in decades.): https://www.columbusmessenger.com/bids-in-for-utility-extension-to-kroger-sky-ranch.html West Jeff really needs some kind of real grocery store-Family Dollar and Dollar General just do NOT cut it! Edited September 20, 20195 yr by Toddguy different stuff, you know how it is.
November 11, 20195 yr Well not that it matter much to anyone in this forum ? but along with the Amazon warehouse, two of the 850,00 square foot warehouses are up, and another about half that size. With Amazon, the expansion of Jefferson Industries, and these huge new warehouses you are looking at probably at least 2,500 new jobs(1500 Amazon jobs alone) I would guess. And all in a township(Jefferson Township which includes West Jefferson)that has just under 7,000 people...not too bad. *and West Jefferson has taken a page from mid century Columbus in that all of these things are within West Jefferson Village limits. They made the expanded Battelle site on 142 annex into West Jeff in order to get water. And they are continuing to work on the water/sewer construction across Little Darby Creek over to 142 and the new development that is supposed to eventually have about 1000 housing units-there are only about 1750 housing units in West Jeff right now, so that will propel West Jeff into city status and a population of what, 7500, 8,000? Hey, someone has to keep up with what is going on in the uncool crescent! ? Edited November 11, 20195 yr by Toddguy
November 11, 20195 yr While West Jeff certainly has the characteristics of the Uncool Crescent, it's a little too far out of town to be "official". Now Alton on the other hand, epitomizes the tiny Uncool Crescent hamlet never recognized by Cool Crescent dwellers. Peers include Valleyview, Reese and Lockbourne.
November 11, 20195 yr 14 hours ago, GCrites80s said: While West Jeff certainly has the characteristics of the Uncool Crescent, it's a little too far out of town to be "official". Now Alton on the other hand, epitomizes the tiny Uncool Crescent hamlet never recognized by Cool Crescent dwellers. Peers include Valleyview, Reese and Lockbourne. There is barely anything there in Alton. Now the old New Rome would really epitomize the uncool crescent lol. I tend to think of West Jeff as part of the "greater" uncool crescent..sort of like Circleville. *Also overlooked Uncool Crescent areas: Urbancrest, Briggsdale, Brice, Edgewater Park.
November 11, 20195 yr Speaking of Circleville, there's some pretty big projects going on in this little town that never has much going on. A four-story 100 room Hampton Inn is under construction. A new Holiday Inn Suite Hotel and a shopping center will break ground any day on South Court Street and Crites Road. Then on the north side of town across from Mary Virginia Hannah Crites Park, Epcon is building 60 cluster house condominiums. Of course this isn't much by Columbus standards, but it proves that outlying areas are now benefitting from Columbus success.
November 11, 20195 yr On 11/11/2019 at 12:20 PM, Rowntowner said: Speaking of Circleville, there's some pretty big projects going on in this little town that never has much going on. A four-story 100 room Hampton Inn is under construction. A new Holiday Inn Suite Hotel and a shopping center will break ground any day on South Court Street and Crites Road. Then on the north side of town across from Mary Virginia Hannah Crites Park, Epcon is building 60 cluster house condominiums. Of course this isn't much by Columbus standards, but it proves that outlying areas are now benefitting from Columbus success. Well go ahead and post it in the Circleville/Pickaway County Development Thread so it will be in there. *edit* I am interested in what is going on in all of Central Ohio along with the more urban development in the "core' of the city. Edited November 13, 20195 yr by Toddguy
November 18, 20195 yr Aerial view of new warehouses in West Jefferson from The Dispatch: https://www.dispatch.com/photogallery/OH/20191115/BUSINESS/111509997/PH/1
November 20, 20195 yr On 11/18/2019 at 12:14 PM, cbussoccer said: Aerial view of new warehouses in West Jefferson from The Dispatch: https://www.dispatch.com/photogallery/OH/20191115/BUSINESS/111509997/PH/1 These things are huge. They are just south of 40 roughly across from the Ace Warehouse. There is another one just as big as the back one that is north of 40 south of the Target Distribution Center(I think that is the Pizzuti one and these are from the Dallas developer.) I wonder how many people are usually employed in these things given they are roughly 800,000 square feet? The construction dust and dirt that would blow onto 40 would be like a dust storm at times with lots of traffic. They have also dug up and are working on an area just west of these, but I don't know what is planned for that area. This area has also been annexed into the village of West Jefferson which is not shown on google maps. Also not shown is that a large area on both sides of 142 from 40 to 70 has been annexed as well(including the Battelle Property). They are in the process of annexing around 400 acres southeast of 40 and 142 for the planned development there as well. They have now pushed west along 40 from Downtown West Jefferson to nearly halfway to Lafayette/route 42. Edited November 20, 20195 yr by Toddguy
May 10, 20205 yr Another big speculative project starting in West Jefferson Speculative development in the busy warehouse industry continues in West Jefferson. A new 1.13 million speculative warehouse has received approvals to begin construction at 70 Enterprise Parkway, near the I-70 exit at State Route 29. Developed by Atlanta-based Core5 Industrial Partners, the building and 62-acre site will feature a 40-foot clear height and has an anticipated delivery date in the second quarter of 2021. The busy Park 70 at West Jefferson next to this site, developed by Duke Realty, already includes distribution centers for Kellogg's, FedEx, Target and Ace Hardware, plus an Amazon fulfillment center. Duke has envisioned almost 400 acres ready for building to the north as the market demands it. To the south, a joint venture of Dallas-based Hillwood and Continental Real Estate Cos. is finishing a speculative 840,000-square-foot distribution center building. Next to it, Pizzuti Cos. announced last year it would build two new speculative warehouses. While the Covid-19 pandemic has upended many other sectors of real estate, brokers predict e-commerce logistics nodes in Central Ohio will not be impacted in the same way. The region has already seen healthy activity as the pandemic has accelerated the pace of people shopping from home. MORE: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2020/05/07/another-big-speculative-project-starting-in-west.html
May 10, 20205 yr 23 minutes ago, Columbo said: Another big speculative project starting in West Jefferson Speculative development in the busy warehouse industry continues in West Jefferson. A new 1.13 million speculative warehouse has received approvals to begin construction at 70 Enterprise Parkway, near the I-70 exit at State Route 29. Developed by Atlanta-based Core5 Industrial Partners, the building and 62-acre site will feature a 40-foot clear height and has an anticipated delivery date in the second quarter of 2021. The busy Park 70 at West Jefferson next to this site, developed by Duke Realty, already includes distribution centers for Kellogg's, FedEx, Target and Ace Hardware, plus an Amazon fulfillment center. Duke has envisioned almost 400 acres ready for building to the north as the market demands it. To the south, a joint venture of Dallas-based Hillwood and Continental Real Estate Cos. is finishing a speculative 840,000-square-foot distribution center building. Next to it, Pizzuti Cos. announced last year it would build two new speculative warehouses. While the Covid-19 pandemic has upended many other sectors of real estate, brokers predict e-commerce logistics nodes in Central Ohio will not be impacted in the same way. The region has already seen healthy activity as the pandemic has accelerated the pace of people shopping from home. MORE: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2020/05/07/another-big-speculative-project-starting-in-west.html I saw this article the other day which led to the comment I just made over in the Ohio population thread. There was a comment that we would never see development west of Columbus towards Dayton because of the Darby Accord. However, with all of these distribution centers going up in West Jefferson, I was wondering if people think it could spur development between Springfield and West Jefferson.
May 10, 20205 yr 41 minutes ago, TH3BUDDHA said: I saw this article the other day which led to the comment I just made over in the Ohio population thread. There was a comment that we would never see development west of Columbus towards Dayton because of the Darby Accord. However, with all of these distribution centers going up in West Jefferson, I was wondering if people think it could spur development between Springfield and West Jefferson. If there isn't any future urban development between Columbus and Dayton/Springfield, it won't be because of the Big Darby Accord. For one thing, the Big Darby Accord only applies to the western townships in Franklin County from the current western urban edge of Columbus and Hilliard to the county border of Franklin-Madison Counties (which happens to be the Big Darby Creek). And even in those areas, the accord doesn't ban development - it manages it through additional regulation. In the Big Darby Accord thread at https://forum.urbanohio.com/topic/1163-big-darby-accord-region-developments-and-news/page/2/?tab=comments#comment-889813, there were three residential/mixed-use developments proposed just last year. One residential development site was annexed into Columbus. Another mixed-use development was proposed to be annexed into Hilliard but was put on hold late last year over a disagreement about the developer's agreement with the city - https://forum.urbanohio.com/topic/417-hilliard-developments-and-news/page/3/?tab=comments#comment-935259. But all of this warehouse development in Madison County, is not within the Big Darby Accord Region. So there's nothing regulatory preventing additional development of this type or other types like residential from spreading west. However, any residential development of a significant size would require modern sewer infrastructure, which would also need to be built. So this is a limiting factor unless additional sewer capacity is provided by the City of London, or the villages of West Jefferson and Plain City, or some future Madison County Sewer District, to span the gap between Columbus and Springfield.
May 10, 20205 yr 1 hour ago, Columbo said: If there isn't any future urban development between Columbus and Dayton/Springfield, it won't be because of the Big Darby Accord. Interesting. Ever since I started reading this forum, I've seen the Darby Accord pop up a few times for why there isn't much development in the southwestern portion of Franklin county. I hadn't heard of the Darby Accord before reading about it here. Since reading about it, I had just gone under the assumption that the Accord is the primary reason you see such an immediate, drastic transition from development to farmland west of Hilliard and why there is no sprawl down 70W, especially after comments like the one ColDayMan made in the population thread that I replied to. I was under the assumption that if the Accord didnt exist, you would see more urban sprawl west of the city.
May 10, 20205 yr 9 minutes ago, TH3BUDDHA said: Interesting. Ever since I started reading this forum, I've seen the Darby Accord pop up a few times for why there isn't much development in the southwestern portion of Franklin county. I hadn't heard of the Darby Accord before reading about it here. Since reading about it, I had just gone under the assumption that the Accord is the primary reason you see such an immediate, drastic transition from development to farmland west of Hilliard and why there is no sprawl down 70W, especially after comments like the one ColDayMan made in the population thread that I replied to. I was under the assumption that if the Accord didnt exist, you would see more urban sprawl west of the city. Well, that's not completely off-base. The Big Darby Accord does limit (and somewhat prohibit) standard sprawl development. And the reason for the accord was that this area was becoming desirable to developers in a sensitive watershed for the Darby creeks. So yeah, if the Darby Accord didn't exist, we probably would see more urban sprawl west of the city. But it looked like developers were getting ready for some big developments in the Accord region during the late 2000's. Then the Great Recession hit and residential developers became more risk averse. So they went to more proven areas, like north past Westerville/Worthington into Delaware County and northwest past Dublin into Union County. As the residential market recovered, developers started looking into the Accord region again with those two big development proposals and a smaller one last year. Now the Covid Recession has hit - so we'll see if those proposals move forward. The point I was making was that its not as black and white as the Accord shutting down development. It does limit it - and the developer needs to be alot more creative with open space and handling stormwater runoff than the standard model. But it can be done. It just hasn't been done to any large degree yet.
October 22, 20204 yr Developers want to add 112 homes and condos, and 20+ acres of mixed use/undetermined use. A developer is interested in a roughly 20 acre site at the northeast corner of 40 and 142. The plans include stores, some office space and some apartments. Another developer wants to rezone a 27 acre stretch along and east of the railroad tracks that parallel 142 heading southwest out of town and between Converse Avenue and Garfield Avenue. This is a long strip that is surrounded by development and would simply fill in a blank space between the sections of West Jeff east and west of the tracks. 112 SFH's and 2 story condos are planned. This would be pretty big housing development for West Jeff, the biggest in at least several decades I think. No new news found on the other big planned areas east of 142 and south of 40(this is something like 400 plus acres and planned for over 1,000 housing units among other uses). https://www.columbusmessenger.com/new-development-could-be-coming-to-west-jeff.html
March 3, 20214 yr 1,000-acre solar farm in Madison County lands approval The Ohio Power Siting Board has approved a solar farm that will encompass nearly 1,000 acres of Madison County. The board signed off on the Madison Fields Solar Project, a plan to build a 180-megawatt solar farm in Pike Township near Rosedale. Kansas City-based Savion LLC, which has developed 130 solar projects across 26 states, is developing the Madison County farm. The majority of the land is farmland held by a few different families. The developer's intent is to lease the property, which sits on a tract of land near the border with Union County. ... The developer said in filings that it intends to begin construction in the fourth quarter of 2021 and begin commercial operations at the end of 2022 or in 2023. The project will include mounted solar panels that rotate during the day to capture the sun. It will feed into a substation that will then connect to the grid. ... This is another large-scale solar farm that have been pitched in Central Ohio in the past few months. To the south along western Franklin County, Invenergy LLC is planing out a 1,700-acre, 250-megawatt solar farm near Big Darby Creek. Big energy companies like American Electric Power have been buying energy from farms like these as they diversify their energy generating capacity. Also, Franklin County and other municipalities have pushed more renewable energy investment. MORE: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2021/01/22/1-000-acre-solar-farm-in-madison-county-gets-a-nod.html
April 19, 20214 yr Senior living community, fine dining restaurant planned for London Patrick Cooley - The Dispatch - Apr. 15, 2021 "London, the small city at the center of Madison County, will have an upscale seafood restaurant and steakhouse later this year. The eatery is part of plans for an independent senior living community with more than 55 housing units. Entrepreneur Paul Gross, who owns property near the Bluebird Retirement Community on Route 56, plans to open Farm Table this fall. ... The community includes condos and apartments in 40 buildings organized like a subdivision. A clubhouse with a pool and a patio will be built directly behind the Bluebird, and the restaurant will sit just off Route 56 near the community's entrance."
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