Far Northwest Coalition

JUNE 2004 FNWC MINUTES

FAR NORTHWEST COALITION ( FNWC )

FAR NORTHWEST COALITION
P. O. BOX 340285 COLUMBUS, OH 43234

June 30, 2004

The Far Northwest Coalition (FNWC) met for its regularly scheduled meeting at the Northwest Library. Members present of the FNWC Board were John Best, John Murley, Mark Seeger and Rich Herner. John Best opened the meeting with an introduction of the FNWC Board members to the group in attendance.

Best first discussed a letter he plans to send to Jeff Brown, attorney for the developers with projects on the old Antrim property asking the developers to donate a fair share to the City as seed money for the new park to be built on the north side of Hard Road. He asked Board members if they had any comments on the draft he had forwarded to them. There were no other comments at that time.

Best then advised the group that he had heard nothing on the Sawmill Road widening project north of I-270 to Billingsley Road, nor anything on the DSI Architects council variance for property on Dublin-Granville Road. He also noted that the retention pond on Billingsley Road has been getting the grass cut, with better maintenance but there is still scum on the pond surface. He also said he has heard nothing about CarMax project.

Herner advised the group on the latest meeting of the ODOT I-270 North Outerbelt Study. He noted that ODOT has made its recommendations for the design concepts. The I-270 and I-71 interchange modifications could begin as early as 2006; while the other changes for the US 23 and SR 315 interchanges with I-270 would be another couple years down the road.

Jeff Pharion of code enforcement and Michelle Williams, city liaison to the area were also present. Michelle briefly discussed the Regional Neighborhood Network Conference coming to Columbus in September. She noted that exhibitor space was still available.

Clair Howery then made a presentation to the group on his request for a BZA variance on his property located at 851 Maple Hill Boulevard (case # 04310-0045). He and his wife would like to add a 10 x 15 foot sun porch to their patio home. However, this would reduce the rear yard space requirement from the 25% of the total lot minimum to 22%. He presented the FNWC members with a form signed by all of his neighbors within sight distance of the addition, stating that they had no objection to the addition. He said the addition conforms to all setback requirements; the only issue is the rear yard size requirement. The room will have the same stucco finish and the same windows as the rest of the house. The request should go to BZA for review on 8/24/04.

Jeff Brown and Daryn Fair, representatives of MI Homes then discussed their request to rezone the 55 acres on property located at 7189 Linworth Road from R-1 to PUD-4 (The Lakes of Worthington). This request had been tabled from the last meeting. They noted that the open space will be controlled by the HOA in the area but in practicality, it will probably be available to the public. MI has a separate company that manages HOA properties. The evergreen tree line along I-270, on the southern boundary of the property will be maintained as a buffer to the roadway. Other trees in the lakes area and the trail system will also be maintained. There will be a grass, tree lined median on Hard Road in front of the property, again to be maintained by the HOA. They will also buffer the west side of the development, along Worthington Kilbourne with deciduous and evergreen trees.

Brown noted that they have been in discussions with the City Engineer’s office about ways for residents to cross Hard Road to the planned city park. They have also spoken to the city about adding a left turn lane on north bound Linworth Road to enter the proposed development. They noted that they would commit to having no garages face the street in the town home area, all would be side or rear loaded. All streets in the project will be public and will have sidewalks. They also noted that MI always does street trees as part of their construction.

Brown said they plan to install a fence, not determined yet whether it will be wood or vinyl, to define the perimeter of the full project. Anticipated density would be 3.8 units per acre in the area to be rezoned. They also noted that MI Homes no longer had a contract on the 9 acres on the northeast portion of the property.

Best then went into more detail concerning his letter to the Antrim property developers asking for seed money to get the city park started. It was noted that the communication should have no intimation that the donation of seed money would have any bearing whatsoever on the FNWC zoning decision on this property. The request for assistance to get the park started is a separate request and not related to the zoning change.

The FNWC members then again discussed the 7189 Linworth Road rezoning request. It was noted that the area would be losing the last good piece of land suitable for parkland but the availability of the walking trails planned for the project would somewhat offset that loss.

All members present were in support of both zoning requests; the BZA variance for 851 Maple Hill Boulevard and the rezoning request from R-1 to PUD-4 for the acreage located at 7189 Linworth Road.

There being no further business to come before the FNWC, the meeting was adjourned.

Respectfully submitted,


Rich Herner, Secretary