WESTLAND AREA COMMISSION

January 20, 1999

The meeting began at 7:00pm. Present were Daniel Province, chair, Betty Balthaser, Jerry Billman, Hank Canello, Ron Cooper, Mike Hurd, Glen Hymer, Dorothy Jantzen, Brian King, Carol Makar, Jamie Mueller, Jan Province, Dr. Bob Rinehart, Debbie Wilder, and Ted Wotring. Frank and Saxton were excused. Also present were Leo Abston, Jill Billman-Royer, Dick Fischer, Sgt. David Eing, Mary Failey, Bob Johnson, Tim Madison, Reza Reyazi, Michelle Shemp, Dori Sippial, Jim Voyles, and others.

Jantzen moved to approve the November 1998 minutes. Canello seconded. Approved.

Zoning Committee (Saxton): Province introduced the applicants for zoning request Z98-101.

Tim Madison is the attorney representing the applicants, Dick Fischer and Bob Johnson, who will be the operators of the car wash. Also present is Michelle Shemp, an attorney in Madison's office.

The site is off Norton Road, adjacent to the Thornton gas station. The entire tract was zoned CPD in 1992. The clients intend to purchase a portion measuring a little over an acre. The intended use of the eastern end of the parcel is a car wash. The rear, or western, section of the parcel, which is referred to as Tract 1 in the text, is reserved for future development. At this point, they don't know what, if anything, they will do with that part of the property. The plan is to have some kind of office use in the remaining part of the parcel. The west part of the land will have zoning that is almost identical to the current CPD that exists on the land today.

The drawings in the packet show that there will be six car wash bays. There will be brick facing, and a shingle roof. The east and west ends of the building will also be brick.

The text has not yet been approved by the city Development Department. Conceptually, it has been approved, but the specific language has not been. They expect it to get Staff approval within the next few days. It should be heard before the Development Commission on March 11.

Is the property in question next to Thornton?

Yes, it is contiguous. It is the next property south of the gas station.

What type of office will be built?

At this point, nothing is proposed. It may just sit empty back there, indefinitely. It is possible that Mr. Fischer and Mr. Johnson may put their own office there, for their own use.

Would access to that parcel be through the existing car wash?

Yes.

If we have a warm day in January, and there is a bottleneck at the car wash, how will cars get to the office area?

The attorney can't address that, because there is as yet no plan to build anything at the rear of the lot. The thought is that there is clearly enough room for cars to drive back there, and for cars to exit to the north and south. The applicants clearly are not envisioning any kind of heavy use back there.

Billman asked whether it would be an entirely self-serve car wash, with no tunnel.

Correct.

How many bays?

The drawing in the text shows six bays. This is for illustration purposes only; they don't know exactly what they will be committing in the text. However, the architect has drawn six bays.

Is there any room for expansion?

There is. There may be room for two more bays.

It could not extend toward Norton Road, though?

Correct. There is a 60' building setback line, which is the same setback line as in the current CPD, which is also parallel to the Thornton.

J. Province asked what will happen when Norton Road expands.

Nothing will change. There is plenty of room in the 50' right-of-way for the road to expand. The 60' setback is from the property line.

You would lose the grass.

We would lose the grass. There will probably be trees planted on their property, so that they won't have to tear them out and move them whenever the expansion occurs. They are committing, regardless of the widening, to put in trees every 25 feet facing Norton Road.

D. Province noted that the limited text says that any canopies shall be 25' from Norton Road...

Right.

...and then you say that there is a 60' setback?

There is a 60' building setback. There is no plan for any canopies at this point. That language was placed in there because Thornton has some canopies within the 25' setback. They just duplicated the language, but at this point they do not contemplate any canopies at all within 60'. It is possible they might want to build a very small canopy, with the vacuum cleaner in it, within the 25', but any kind of building would be sixty feet back.

Billman said that they would want to put that kind of set-up in the rear.

The applicant just duplicated the same language that Thornton had, and the existing CPD text, in regard to canopies.

D. Province said that the language usually says 25' from the easement, not from Norton Road.

"I don't, we only, we haven't fully modifying that, how- however, whatever the preference of the Commission is, but as I said, we just duplicated the language, at least, in that respect. There are no plans at all to have anything out here, at this point."

Will there be any access from the gas station to the car wash?

There have been no discussions with Thornton about that. The applicant doesn't think they would want it. To keep the traffic flow the way it should be, they would want to maintain the curb cuts where they are.

Madison said he thinks it would be prohibited by the zoning text, because there is a 5' or 10' setback along the north side for landscaping.

So their business is not connected in any way with Thornton?

Not at all. In fact, to Madison's knowledge, there have been no conversations with Thornton's. They are completely independent of each other.

"Thornton" is misspelled in the limited text.

They will correct it.

Hymer said there should be some limitations on what can be built at the rear of the property.

They are not changing the zoning of the rear of the parcel. It is maintaining the same zoning classification it had before. Currently, the owner can build anything now on the land, without coming back before WAC, so long as it fits the CPD text, which is office type of use.

Did Thornton come before WAC before they erected the gas station?

D. Province said no. It was in the text, that they could build one gas station in that parcel. But Province does recall that the original text allowed only one entrance and one exit, but again, Traffic handles that. What we don't want is a lot of traffic going across five lanes in a short strip of road.

Mueller said that a larger property is being, or has been subdivided.

Right. If this zoning passes, it will be subdivided. The original property was about 92 acres.

How much commercial frontage is there? How deep is the commercial frontage behind Thornton?

"Behind Thornton, here?"

"One back of the apartment. You have vacant ground, one back. So that's..."

"This is 379. It looks, a hundred... about half, maybe? That's your question? Thornton's here. You're asking the depth from here to here?"

"And I'm assuming that's all one land owner."

Yes. All of this land is one landowner. He zoned the entire tract in 1992 as CPD. The applicant is buying one acre from him.

And the only thing that has been subdivided so far is Thornton Oil?

Correct.

Province said he thinks it was L-C4.

Was the owner Fritsche?

No. He thinks the whole area was CPD, which is why Thornton's could build without coming back for a rezoning. It was already in the text.

Province said they knew it would never become a shopping center, as the owner originally promised. There never was enough room.

The text does not state that the building will be brick.

They would be happy to commit to that. It was the original idea, to do brick. They will incorporate language to commit to brick facings.

Province asked for a motion to approve. Billman so moved. Cooper seconded.

Province said that the WAC zoning committee approved the issue, unanimously.

Balthaser yes Makar yes

Billman yes Mueller abstain

Canello yes D. Province yes

Cooper yes J. Province yes

Hurd yes Rinehart yes

Hymer yes Wilder yes

Jantzen yes Wotring yes

King yes

The motion was approved. It will be heard by the Development Commission on March 11.

Province introduced Mary Failey. She distributed copies of a flier that describes the EcoTeam Program, and allowed a few minutes for everyone to read it.

Failey said that she has an EcoTeam project going in her own neighborhood, which is off Sawmill Road near I-270. The program has provided her with a fun way to get to know her neighbors. At the same time, they are adopting habits that are earth-friendly. They are doing things that they have wanted to do, but have just not gotten around to doing.

Some of they people on their team have already been recycling, and have found ways to cut down on their utility usage, and they joined to teach others their techniques and to inspire others. There are others on the team who have not done much, but want to.

The other benefit that this program has, is to get people together, and to build community.

This program has been implemented in six other cities around the country. People are learning how to conserve their resources, and they are getting involved in other activities to support the neighborhood. This is one of the reasons that the Columbus Health Department is sponsoring this program.

She is looking for people who want to bring the programs to their neighborhood. The program is operating in six neighborhoods right now, and five more neighborhoods are getting organized. There is nothing much on the west side of the city; there is one neighborhood off Riverside Drive, near the Humane Society, that is organized.

Failey passed around a sheet listing dates and times of organizational meetings, and asked interested people to put down their names and telephone numbers so that she can get back to them.

Province asked where the training sessions take place. Where is their headquarters?

They have an office in Clintonville, off North High Street, near North Broadway.

Rinehart asked whether they do programs for schools.

There is a new program. They use a workbook. It is a structured program. The program is successful because it is structured. It is much like a support group. The program for children (ages 9 to 12) is on the Internet. The address is www.journey4theplanet.org.

Cooper asked whether they are associated with any other organizations.

The EcoTeam Program was created by a non-profit environmental organization called Global Action Plan. The Columbus Health Department is sponsoring the program, which was developed by that organization.

Are they associated with other environmental groups?

No.

Not the Sierra Club, or Greenpeace, or something like that?

No.

The strength of this program increases when people who are already active and involved in their community bring this program to the neighborhood and involve people involved. She has had people in her own group who had never before been involved, get involved. Their program encourages other programs to get started, too. In her neighborhood, there is a need for parkland. They are talking about petitioning the neighborhood, and taking the petition to City Council, in order to get parkland.

Province said that the hearings for the new bond packages will take place in March. One of the bond packages will be for Recreation and Parks money. From that money, the city buys land for parks. The city's plan to buy land or to refurbish existing parks is shaped by the people who attend those hearings, who state what they want. The bond issues will then be voted on in the November election.

J. Province said that these are public hearings. It is worthwhile to go, to make your voice heard.

Canello asked whether there is a limit to the number of households involved in a group. As he reads the sheet, he can't help comparing it to a blockwatch.

Yes, there is a limit. The ideal group is five or six households, so that there is a lot of discussion. If the group gets too big, then people can't share information as well. If there are more than five or six households interested, then it is best to form two groups.

So, is the purpose of the groups education?

No, though information is shared about recycling, insulating homes, etc. The group is more of a support organization. It helps us accomplish the goals we set for ourselves. Each person on the team may be doing something a little differently. The group may offer suggestions, but each person does what works for himself.

Province asked whether they are affiliated with Priority Partners, which is also part of the Health Department?

The person Failey works with at the Health Department is a part of Priority Partners.

Province suggested that the Westland website be linked to her website.

Province said he thinks this is a good organization. WAC was one of the first organizations to formally support the Parkland Dedication Ordinance, which was recently passed by City Council. Province was a member of that committee. We need to be more environmentally oriented. It's difficult to catch a bus in most of this neighborhood. We are car oriented. This is probably the fifth or sixth car wash in our neighborhood.

Failey said that she could easily ride a bicycle to her grocery store, but she doesn't. Not yet. This is one of her personal goals.

It's hard to carry groceries on a bike.

Province turned over the meeting to Reza Reyazi, to discuss the revisions to the Westland Area Plan.

Reyazi said that he isn't here to talk, much. He wants our opinions. He mailed copies of the draft of the revised Westland Area Plan to all of the commissioners.

As he went through the process, his foremost plan was to make as few revisions as possible. When he came to a decision about that, he chose to change the existing plan as little as possible.

The scope of the update was limited. They were primarily interested in updating the land use plan, because, as new zoning applications come in, the revised Westland Plan will give Staff a tool in understanding what WAC's wishes are. There had been an erosion of the Plan as it has existed up to this point, and it was becoming increasingly more difficult for the Zoning Staff, as they were reviewing applications, to know what the community's wishes were.

Because of that, what he has done is to make minor changes to the proposed land use, which is primarily in the area north of West Broad, between Doherty and Rome-Hilliard, and the area to the east of Holt Road, between Georgesville and Alkire. There may be some other minor things, but those are the two areas where there are changes in the proposed land use, between the revised land-use plan and the existing one.

He has addressed the "village center" concept. He is proposing a new approach. What they had before were two sites that were pointed out in the existing plan, that were proposed for village centers. One of those sites is already being subdivided for single-family residences. The other one is just sitting there. Not much will happen if the land just sits there until there is an application for a rezoning. By the time the application is received, it is almost too late to do something. The developer already has a plan in mind for the site, they have a concept they want to implement, and they are not very flexible. He can understand their position, because there is a lot of work and effort involved to get to that point.

What he is proposing is a working group involving WAC and perhaps some of the developers and local officials, to get together after this plan has been approved, to discuss whether the village center is something that the community still wants, and if it is, to discuss the best way to implement it, talk to the developers, create studies such as a market analysis of some kind. If that route is taken, perhaps we can attract some of the businesses we want, such as restaurants.

Reyazi has already talked to some of the Council aides. He cannot guarantee that the city will make the money available, but he thinks it is a real option. They were receptive to the idea. If it comes from the community, it would be possible to do that.

It is a more pro-active approach than just waiting for the next rezoning application to come in. It is more likely to result in a village center, if that's what the community wants.

He has added two new sections. "Sense of Community" deals with different housing products and the need for lots of different sizes, to accommodate people who want to buy second houses and who want to stay in the area.

The second new section is under "Public Spaces" and this comes under the discussion of the kinds of landscaping we are seeing along the arterials, along Holt Road and Norton Road. There is a tendency to see privacy fences coming up to the right-of-way, and they tend to be different types of fences, with no screening or planting. He proposes a not very demanding standard, which should go a long way in providing uniform landscaping and screening along the arterials.

He was confronted with a "done deal" in the matter of fire and police protection. Both the fire and police departments looked at this issue two years ago and made their decisions. They decided to go with a new police substation outside the area, but which has the capacity to hold another precinct, if and when the need arises. The fire department does not foresee a need, given the current trend in the number of houses that have been built in the last five years, if trends continue as they have, for a fire station or a new expansion in the area. There may be a need to update the equipment, but that is beyond the scope of this study.

Finally, he looked at the park issue. The map shows where the city has already acquired some land. The Recreation and Parks Department is quite certain that, within the next five years, they will have money to make improvements to the two sites they have already acquired. Within the next five years, they foresee at least beginning improvements to what will be active parks, with ball diamonds and soccer fields. There is a plan to link the parks with a pathway system.

Rinehart said the land-use plan shows Bolton Field as a combination of "agricultural" and "institutional" use. Shouldn't it be gray for "transportation"? On the zoning map, the area near the airport is zoned for commercial use, but the proposed land-use map shows agricultural or very low density residential use.

Reyazi said that the existing plan shows the runway area as blue for Institutional. That is a standard practice, as the airport is a public entity. There are two choices there. The intent is to make clear the objective that that area remain part of Bolton Field. The second aspect involves the area west of Bolton Field. There is a line which is the current service boundary for water and sewer facilities. The city does not currently have plans to extend water and sewer facilities west of Bolton Field. It doesn't extend even to Norton Road. That is the boundary for service. Without water and sewer, it was not foreseen that there would be the potential for industrial, commercial, or even high-density residential development in that area. It could only be low- density residential development.

Voyles asked, where is the water and sewer boundary in the south?

It zig-zags. It is hard to see. It does not stop at Johnson Road. It will be marked more boldly on the map in the final version.

The site for the new high school does fall within the boundary.

J. Province said that the line was lifted from the Columbus Comprehensive Plan.

Yes.

D. Province asked how the public can get involved in this process, now. The newspaper reporters are here, and they want to know.

Reyazi said that, given the response he received to the last open house, and given the small number of changes he is proposing for the Westland Area Plan, he is content with holding only one more public open house. Before that, he intends to incorporate the small changes WAC has proposed. He will make the whole thing look a little nicer, he will make the corrections, and he will come back to WAC with the final product. The Plan has to go to the Development Commission, but he will not take it there until he has heard all of our comments. The Building and Development Services, basically the Zoning Staff, need to look at it. He still doesn't have their comments. They have been very busy because they are moving their offices.

In terms of public input, he is planning to hold one more open house. He doesn't know when it will be. He plans to hold it as soon as possible. It could be in a month or 45 days. He will need time to advertise it.

J. Province said that much of the existing Westland Area Plan is dated. If you remove from the existing Plan all of the things that have already been accomplished, plus the language

relating to the village center, there won't be a whole lot left.

Reyazi said he is not comfortable taking out things he has not addressed or looked into. To some extent, what is already there is what, after an extensive public process, the neighborhood decided they want in the plan. Since he has not gone through that process, he is not comfortable taking things out. Obviously, he wants the plan as updated as possible, and things that aren't true anymore should not be there, but at the same time, since they have not gone through an extensive public hearing process, he is hesitant about what to take out.

It is important not to have inaccurate information, but this is not a re-write of the Plan. It is an update of the four basic issues he talked about the last time he was here: land use, the village center, police, and fire. That was the primary focus. That doesn't mean he hasn't looked at the recommendations for road improvements that were made, and he has not updated those, because some of them have already taken place, and he has tried to indicate that.

If there is something important that we feel he should take out in a big chunk, he will want to get everyone's feelings about it. He doesn't want to make major changes in the Plan.

Canello said that he gets the impression that, if we don't do something soon to create a working group, the little that is left on the village center will go away.

Absolutely true. Reyazi has talked to a couple of commercial developers who have done work in this area. There is still a window of opportunity left. If there is to be something done in the way of a village center concept, something needs to be done in the way of formation of a working group within two months. Three months after that, the group needs to make a decision as to whether to go forward, to have a study done, and so forth. A year from now, there needs to be a solid, concrete plan with sites in hand, with a study in hand, with a minor marketing analysis showing that there is a market for a village center. If something doesn't happen within the next year or so, the land will be used up with other uses.

Would the developers be patient enough to work with us? Could this be a means to get some of the upgraded housing that is mentioned in the text?

Possibly. The best thing that could come out of the working group could be a realistic dialogue with the developers. They could say "Never in your wildest dreams," or they could say "Show me the facts." Once we know what they are looking for, we can get that stuff together. We could convince them that this is a viable commercial enterprise, or we could not convince them because the numbers just aren't there.

Some of those numbers could be used for residential stuff, but there is not a direct tie. It would have to be more specifically geared toward the commercial market. How many people are within one or two miles, what is the average income, what is the median income, etc. There is a cross- over with some of that stuff.

What does Reyazi recommend we do to encourage the development of second homes in the area, for people who want to upgrade without leaving the area?

A market analysis, in a rudimentary way... He doesn't want to speak on our behalf, so his conversations with developers so far have been on an elementary level. The shopping center just west of the Lincoln Village one is up for sale. He was talking to the realtor who is involved in that. He said that they don't have trouble selling the shopping center. The trouble is that the buyer must decide what kinds of tenants to attract to that center. That is done not with anecdotal stories, but with hard numbers and facts.

Maybe we will have to do a survey of 200 or 300 residences in the area, along the line of the survey we have already done.

Province asked whether Reyazi has talked to developers about when this might happen.

No. He had some conversations with Council aides, about whether we might get $5000 or $10,000 for some kind of market analysis. They said that, if he has the support of the community, and it is for a specific purpose or need, it is possible to do it. We must form the working group, and convince Council that we are serious about it. Reyazi thinks that asking developers whether the village center is likely to happen is premature.

Province said he has talked to them. The developers said that, if we can provide two anchors, such as a high school, a middle school, a fire station, it could be feasible. It would take a great deal of money.

Cooper asked whether this working group is going to bring an "Easton" to this side of the city, probably called "Weston".

Is that what Reyazi is saying?

(Laughter). Absolutely. No.

J. Province said that it might have, back in the days when the Westland area was mostly soybean fields. Currently, it is an idea whose time is done. It's not going to happen. However, if it is deleted from the Westland Plan, along with the paragraphs that there ought to be a traffic signal at the corner of Norton and Sullivant, and that Sullivant ought to be connected to Westwoods, etc., there isn't a lot of Westland Plan left. In looking it over, it appears that the Plan is surprisingly obsolete, and it does need a major overhaul. By leaving completed road projects in the Plan, that pads it out, and makes it appear to have enough pages to constitute a real plan.

D. Province said that, tomorrow night, at Bolton Field, a planning and engineering firm will be holding a public meeting about stormwater drainage problems along Norton Road.

Eat dinner at 6:00pm at JP Ribs, and then attend the meeting in the terminal building at 7:00pm.

Cooper said that the proposed Marathon oil pipeline has been moved out of Jackson Township into Pleasant Township and Columbus. It was to follow the AEP power lines just west of Holt Road. It has now been moved slightly west of that. All of the Marathon folks who were involved in the negotiations have been reassigned.

Voyles reported that the WABA banquet and auction will take place on February 27 at Gala Events.

The committee is working on the July 4 Parade. They are excited about the number of commitments they have gotten this year. They were concerned about the manpower issue, since the people who have been doing it over and over again are getting burned out. They have been able to do that. They are also looking at the parade route. Perhaps they can start at the school, or at Aldi's.

Hymer said that the Prairie Township trustees will be holding a special meeting on the 26th regarding the parking of recreational vehicles and trailers of any kind. The meeting will take place at 7:00 at the Prairie township building.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:10pm.