MOUNT VERNON — After hearing public comments and requesting more information about traffic speeds, Mount Vernon City Council members postponed the third reading of legislation accepting the Liberty Crossing comprehensive development plan.
The city’s Municipal Planning Commission approved the plan at its Jan. 12 meeting. At Monday’s council meeting, Gary Smith of G2 Planning & Design reviewed the highlights for the 102-acre PND (planned neighborhood development).
The PND features multi-family units, patio homes, townhomes, and single-family homes. The units cover 54 acres; the remaining 48 acres are green space. The development area will not disturb two streams and a wetlands area.
Referencing an archaeological report by Weller & Associates, Smith said that while people have found artifacts, preservationists are looking for signs of settlement: an encampment or burial grounds. He said that further investigation is warranted if such signs are found moving forward, but not now.
Comments during the public hearing revolved primarily around traffic issues and residents’ lack of awareness of the project. Brookwood Road neighbor Tim Burton distributed a letter that caused concerns about the city potentially taking property by eminent domain to widen Newark Road (Ohio State Route 13). City officials say they have no plans to do that.
Newark Road resident John Spadafore said people were largely unaware of the project, and the city should have notified neighbors across the road. City code requires only that adjacent property owners be notified.
He recommended the city notify a larger group of residents and hold another public hearing.
“I have no desire to live across the street from an apartment complex,” he said, adding that residents opposed a similar project a few years ago.
Leota Holland, Greg McBride, and Tim Burton are concerned about the effect on Newark Road.
“[The road] is almost impossible to improve upon the way the properties sit so close to it. If you are going to widen it, then that impacts a lot of people,” Burton said. “You are going to see Newark Road crowded; you’re going to see people taking Glen Road, Parrott [Street] or one of the others to get over to Martinsburg [Road] and Mount Vernon.”
He noted that the plan calls for 30 three-story apartment buildings across the road from his home and asked how flooding the area with 200 to 400 houses would increase his property value.
“It’s going to affect me a bunch with all of the extra employees coming and going in the industrial park, semis coming up and down Glen Road — which it’s stated no through trucks, and semis come up and down through there all the time — it’s going to affect a lot of other people in that whole south end of Mount Vernon,” Glen Road resident Greg McBride said.
Regarding the potential widening of Newark Road, McBride noted that he previously lived on Coshocton Avenue during its improvement project. Had he not accepted the city’s offer, he feels the city would have taken his property via eminent domain.
Pointing out the number of police, fire, and ambulance calls heading south past her Newark Road home, Catherine Preece asked, “How are you going to put up with the extra traffic? It’s already congested through there. … I’m not against improvements and all of that, I just don’t want to be stuck in my driveway waiting for 20 minutes to get out.”
City Engineer Brian Ball said Part 3 of a traffic study to evaluate the speed limit between Range Line Road and Blackjack Road/661 still needs to be done. The speed limit is 45 mph; he said it is unknown if that is correct for today’s roadway.
Smart Services, an independent consultant for the developer, Highland Real Estate, has looked at the traffic to and from the site, turn lanes from Range Line Road through the industrial park, and potential change by the year 2033.
“At Range Line Road, you would have an additional 46 cars during peak time am traffic if the site is 100 percent developed and it is 10 years in the future. If you are at Blackjack Road — State Route 661 — you would be looking at an additional 173 cars at that intersection during the peak am hours,” Ball said.
Referencing concerns about widening Newark Road, Ball said, “The only thing that is justified is one turn lane at the site in one direction. The other turn lane is nearly justified. I would recommend that if we’re going to do it that we build both turn lanes.”
Ball said turn lanes would be carved out of the developer’s property and the existing right-of-way.
“It wouldn’t be carved out of anyone else’s property, as far as I can tell,” he said.
Based on Smart Services’ study and city numbers, Newark Road has reserve capacity during peak and off-peak hours.
“So, at this point, it’s not something we would even consider, or 10 years in the future, to change or widen Route 13,” Ball said.
Ball also addressed how the development would connect to city sewer. City lines are already in place to Industrial Park Drive, across the creek from HRE’s property. HRE will need city and federal permits to access the lines.
Ball said there is enough capacity to handle the development’s connection to city sewer.
Current parcel co-owner Mark Ramser of RJM Land Development said that two short easements were put in place when the city put in the sewer line. Sewer connection would take place through those easements.
Council members will hold a 45-minute committee meeting at its March 13 session to discuss the issue further.
