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Will These Block Up Scenery? Break Your Mind?

The annexation petition of an 8-acre parcel on the west side of Dublin Road, south of Hayden Run Road and north of Mountshannon Road, from Norwich Township to the City of Columbus is poised to be developed as multi-family housing.

On the opposite side of Dublin Road from the Shire Cove subdivision in Hilliard, the parcel currently contains a barn and two residential structures.

Franklin County Commissioners on March 21 approved the annexation petition of the 7.8 acre parcel but Columbus City Council is yet to act on accepting the annexation.

It must consider the annexation petition no later than 60 days after the March 21 action of the Franklin County Commissioners.

Opponents of the annexation petition attended the March 21 Franklin County Commissioner’s meeting and the March 27 session of Hilliard City Council, although Hilliard officials have no legal role in the issue.

“It concerns us more, the less we know (about what is proposed for the site),” Dublin Road resident Holly Hollingsworth said April 3.

But the developer said April 4 that plans are to be communicated.

“As the process proceeds, we are committed to working with and seeking input from the community,” said Daniel van Hoogstraten, spokesperson for RockRun Developer LLC.

But Franklin County Commissioners made it clear March 21 that the future development plans for the parcel were not a factor when considering the annexation.

“Ohio Revised Code provide us no authority (to Franklin County) to consider possible future land use (when reviewing annexation),” John O’Grady, president of the Franklin County Commissioners

Jim Schimmer, director of economic development and planning for Franklin County, told commission members March 21 that the “expedited annexation” petition “has met all the statutory requirements” and that Columbus City Council had previously indicated by ordinance that it has the capacity to provide water and sewer service to the parcel.

After commissioners and Columbus City Council considers whether the annexation petition meets statutory requirements, the matter of rezoning is addressed at which time the resident’s concerns of land use can be considered, according to Jeanine Hummer, with the prosecuting attorney’s office for Franklin County.

To that end, Hollingsworth said she and upwards of 100 neighbors in the vicinity of the proposed development, who reside in the City of Columbus, the City of Hilliard, and Norwich Township, formed the Scioto Property Owners Collective, or SPOC, and have met as a group to discuss how best to publicly communicate their concerns going forward about the proposed development.

According to a document supporting the annexation petition filed with the City of Columbus, the 7.8 acre site is an “infill annexation” and its current use is residential.

“The anticipated use is apartment residential and commercial,” according to the document.

The site is not within the boundaries of an area commission, according to the document.

“Planning staff have conducted a preliminary review and are supportive of the proposed use as it is consistent with Columbus City Wide Planning Policies, Guiding Principles and Design Guidelines.”

Annexation does not guarantee a zoning application will be approved as zoning requests require a separate application process through the Department of Building and Zoning Services, according to the document.

The petitioners and property owners are Repar Properties, represented by Sean Mentel, an attorney with Kooperman Mentel Ferguson Yaross Ltd., 250 E. Town St., Columbus.

Calls to Mentel were returned by van Hoogstraten.

Hollingsworth said she and two other residents briefly spoke with Mentel after the March 21 commissioner’s meeting but are still seeking further detail.

“I am frustrated they are not telling us more (and) I am not happy the current plans are for something incongruous for the area,” Shire Landing Road resident Charlie Toland said April 3.

According to Hollingsworth, higher-density residential development or commercial development would not be a good fit adjacent to Shire Cove, especially owing to the absence of sidewalks.

Additional storm water runoff onto property in Shire Cove, as well as light and noise pollution, are additional concerns, said Shire Creek Court resident Luke Gomez.

The 7.8-acre parcel straddles two school-district boundaries. The northern portion is Dublin City Schools and the southern end is Hilliard City Schools.

A 6-acre parcel to the immediate south of the 7.8-acre parcel is also under consideration for annexation and development as well, all by RockRun Developer LLC.

The addresses are 4747, 4781 and 4723 Dublin Road. The 4747 and 4781 addresses have already begun annexation and are awaiting the 60-day statutory period to be annexed into Columbus, according to van Hoogstraten.

“We will seek to annex the 4723 address, but it has not yet begun annexation as we are waiting for the legal and plat map to be completed. For all three parcels combined, the planned development will be multi-family housing, including townhouses and garden flats, as well as amenities,” van Hoogstraten said.