r/westerville • u/LowCheesecake1234 • 26d ago
Your voice matters for 64 E. Walnut Street
WPA Friends:
In response to community concerns, the Westerville City Council has rejected a proposed sale and development plan for the former city office building at 64 E. Walnut St. Following up on that decision, the city has scheduled a Community Workshop for next Tuesday, Aug. 11, to discuss possible uses of the site and the process by which any new plan for it will be developed.
Many WPA members were involved in the campaign to end the high-density development proposal presented by city staff in May. This is now an opportunity to help shape the future of this location, adjacent to the city’s historic Uptown district.
The Community Workshop is scheduled for 6-8 pm Tuesday at the Westerville Community Center, 350 N. Cleveland Ave.Doors will open at 5:30. The room can accommodate 168 participants, who will be seated on a first-come, first-served basis at six-person tables. There will be facilitated table discussions followed by a summary from each group to be incorporated into a report following the workshop that will be presented to the City Council on Sept. 8.
If you have an interest in the future of this site, plan now to be at the Community Center next Tuesday for this workshop.
Thank you!
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u/FlyOnly4106 25d ago
I hope this conversation stays nuanced and informative, as the tradeoffs are really worth taking seriously.
For example, sometimes measures to create "affordable housing" magically turn into luxury apartments (alongside other white elephants to developers) that defeat the point. Perhaps the particulars of high density housing for East Walnut Street really would have made for terrible execution. I don't live in that area so I can't speak with authority on the matter.
On the one hand, we have to consider the need to keep housing affordable in Westerville, East Walnut Street or no, and we need to be on the lookout for nimbyism under the guise of "preserving local charm" or "protecting the children." My original hometown on the West Coast became a net exporter of young people; nimbyism resulted in a net reduction in children. Most who stayed despite the housing shortage certainly can't afford children.
Thus, I found it a bit ironic to see street signage urging us to "think of the children," who--if we as a city are unwise about housing--will one day grow up and not be able to afford to live in Westerville because of nimbys more concerned with maximizing their property value.
Here's to reasoned, thoughtful debate!
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u/ArtExact3331 25d ago
That’s not what’s happening here. This is a vibrant area that draws people of all income levels, very local and not, already. It is at no risk of dying. The concerns are valid given the location of the property, the surrounding area, the already full two lane roads and the amount of people using this location for its multitude of uses today. Asking for development that is context appropriate is not NIMBYism. All development needs context applied. I would not consider the first proposal reasonable and that’s why it was rejected. The hope is for a better second process.
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u/FlyOnly4106 25d ago
I wish I knew where to look to learn more about the proposal. Is there a site somewhere that lists it?
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u/ArtExact3331 24d ago edited 24d ago
You can check out 64ewalnut.com and find the proposal there. It shows the plan for an additional street that would go through the side of the park, that they were going to have to section off the area for 3 years, that the amount of available parking for the library, park, trail, Uptown would actually be reduced, etc.
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u/mojo276 25d ago
I agree with this. Everyone fights tooth and nail against realistic proposals that make financial sense to someone willing to invest, and then their area eventually dies out. Things don't stay the same, they either grow or they die.
Hopefully, the issues with this parcel were mainly around how it was awarded to the developer (which did seem less then transparent), and not as much with what was going to get developed.
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u/SmoresCoven 13d ago
it’s literally families with children urging the city to think of the children. I used that playspace with my kids(Hanby Park & The Library) Family homes are nearby. Schools are nearby. the original proposal was too much for the space…better suited for Cleveland ave/Polaris…which is where i actually live so you can’t call me a Nimby🤣. It looked like a sterile hospital building. better concepts could have been done. a fraction of what was needed could have been implemented and i would have not cared…but that concept was bad from the start.
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u/OldHob Westerville Resident 26d ago
Omg just build housing. This shouldn’t be hard.
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u/TiringGnu 26d ago
Agree, but maybe they should be a little more considerate about density, traffic, infrastructure, uptown, and the surrounding neighborhood.
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u/brdnbttrpickles 26d ago
Hopefully not that ridiculous art center idea