Transcript

Welcome to Westboro City Council. This is the May 19th regular meeting. At 6 p.m.

there was a motion and a second to adjourn into executive session

pursuant to RC-121.22, G1, G2, and G8. To consider the employment of a public employee,

the purchase of specific property for public purposes where premature disclosure

of information, given unfair competitive or bargaining advantage to a person whose

personal private interest is adverse to the general public interest, confidential economic

development information, including business strategies of an applicant, persistence,

pursuant to a high revised code chapter 701, 3735, or 5709, and public infrastructure

improvements directly related to such projects, which is necessary to protect the interests

of the applicant or the possible investment or expenditure of public funds. At 657, there

was a motion and a second to adjourn out of executive session, and we are now going to

reconvene if the clerk will please call the roll. Ms. Beckett? Yes. Vice Mayor Stocker?

Yes. Mr. Washburn? Yes. Vice Chair Glasgow? Here. Mayor Grimes? Here. Mr. Wright? Here. Madam Chair

Zaco. Glad to be here tonight. Tonight's invocation will be given by Vice Chair Glasgow,

followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Thank you, Chair Zaco. For the invocation tonight,

I would like to invite Reverend Mary G. Butler to the podium. Reverend Butler has been a

Presbyterian pastor for 47 years, and it's called Westerville Home for eight and a half years.

Thank you, and there's no need to close your eyes. An invocation by definition is inviting

the sacred into a space, in this case, into our community gathering. The sacred is best

invoked not by words, but by actions. The sacred is invoked when we build a community where

all lives are equally valued and supported. The sacred is invoked when our young people are

encouraged to find their true selves, and where those who have much seek the welfare first

of the community. The sacred is invoked when people greet other faith expressions or no

faith expressions with healthy curiosity and respect. The sacred is invoked when we observe the

boundary separating religious devotion and civic responsibility. The sacred is invoked when

each part of the community is represented around tables where decisions are made. The sacred

is invoked when what we say to one another and about one another honors the divine in each other.

The sacred is invoked when we engage big ideas and entertain diverse opinions with respect

in our attempt to find common ground. The sacred is invoked when we speak the truth about our

neighbor and live out our own truth with integrity. The sacred is invoked in every act that promotes

peace and environmental justice and upholds the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Therefore, let us neighbors, even tonight, be about the work of inviting the sacred as we

each understand it, to move among us and within us so that the decisions we make will represent

the best of us. So be it. Amen.

And it's of the May 5th regular meeting, pleasure of counsel. So moved. Second.

It's been moved and seconded. Are there any questions or comments?

Please call the roll. Vice Mayor Stalker. Yes. Mr. Wright. Yes.

Vice Chair Glasgow. Yes. Mr. Washburn. Yes.

Ms. Beckett. Yes. Mayor Grimes. Yes. Madam Chair's they go.

Yes. The minutes are adopted unanimously. Next we have the mayor's report. Mayor Grimes, you're up.

All right. I feel like every time I'm giving the report I say we can't be busier but I feel like we're

busier. May 7th. I want to thank council member Washburn for providing the proclamation at the

warm prayer breakfast. And I also, I told him directly but I really appreciate the proclamation

that he wrote to take on my behalf. It was wonderful. It represented all of our ideals.

So I really appreciate that. If you wanted to speak on your experience, go ahead.

Just it was great to be there. It was a really packed packed house. I was happy to do it for you.

I'll call you out. He did say when we talked about you said you did not look at me because

it made you want to cry. So that that that meant a lot because I put a lot of heart into it. So

thanks. Thank you very much. Mayor Grimes. You're good. All right. The next one.

National Wetlands Month. Vice Mayor Stalker and I went to Frog Friday. That is hosted in partnership

with mad scientists and associates LLC. There were there were lots and lots of kids and families.

Vice Mayor Stalker and Eddie participate many times. Right. That was my first time.

It was cool to see a lot of elementary age students engaging in things that we also teach

in seventh grade science. So that was really cool. This is a great program that I encourage all

families to look into. There are two more. I think the season may be three, but check it out.

It's a great collaboration between Parks and Rec at Highlands. The farmers market. The first

farmers market was last Saturday. We did a cool ribbon cutting to celebrate the eighth anniversary.

This is the second year that the farmers market is located behind co-hatch or next to north high.

It seems to be very popular location. It rained a little bit, but not during the ribbon cutting.

Melissa and I also this is primarily where we get our groceries for the week. So I like to point out

that we are still a true producer's market. It's not a craft fair. It's not like some markets that

you go to in other suburbs. You can actually go and get everything you need for the week.

We love the market. It's also just a great social gathering. So thanks to Uptown Westerville

Inc. for again facilitating a wonderful farmers market this season. EMS and National Police Week.

I put a couple pictures. Yeah, all three pictures. So that was attended by myself,

Vice Mayor Stocker, Chairwoman Zaco, and Vice Chair Glasgow. It was really awesome to be able to

celebrate both our EMS and our police. Tunnel to Towers, Race, and Event had a huge impact

on families here. It's a wonderful organization. Lieutenant Franny made a very good point.

All the money raised in this event. We hope never comes back to this community. We hope that it goes

to other families across the country who need it the most. So it was really touching to say,

we don't want the money that's raised to come back here. And then I'm going to stop with that.

Is that it? Oh, cool. All right. And I will note, we did have two proclamations to do tonight,

but out of respect for everyone's time and also giving those two proclamations the attention they need.

We did reschedule them for June 2nd. Not that they're not worthy, but we thought it might be helpful

to move them to another date. That concludes my report. Are there any questions for the Mayor?

We're going to move on to City Manager's report. Mr. Beek, please.

Thank you, Madam Chair and Members of Council. I'd like to start tonight by addressing something

I know many of us have joined for tonight and that is the future of the development on 64 East

Walnut. The community responds to our initial outreach to start the public process brought

forward some questions and comments that are appropriate to address this evening.

First, we have heard residents and will stay committed to providing information that our community

wants in order to understand the process. I want to be clear this is still the very beginning of

the process. One in which the public is and will be invited to participate to have a voice.

The first of a series of open houses took place last week. There is more planned one for June

the 8th so that residents can engage directly with planning and development, economic development,

my office and council members. We will be hosting this open house at the community center in order

to accommodate the larger crowd. We understand there's a conversation that needs to take place

about the long term by its vitality of our uptown. We understand that the community wants a voice

and how we create spaces that keep uptown thriving and accessible for generations to come. We are

listening. The city's master plans are a factor in this process and I believe our past projects

demonstrate that we do listen and care about the process and the community's feedback. Keep in mind

these plans were built by residents working with city staff and elected officials. This means that

public participation is at the beginning the middle and the end of this entire process.

Specifically, I want to address one of the harder things I heard last week. Some residents told me

that they believe the city already knew what it wanted to do and that their feedback didn't matter.

Healthy civic engagement is essential for our jobs and public servants. I hope you can see this

in the recent projects we have done in uptown that have demonstrated through process and

community-minded outcomes. For example, the sale of 28 South State Street that is now

high-banked distillery and the sale of our blighted armory which is now co-hatch in North

Highbury. I bring these up as examples because both of these were city-owned facilities that we

said and we promised we would redevelop into amenities in order for government-owned facilities

to be reduced in our central uptown. I realize many of you are here tonight to share your

feedback on the project and your hopes for uptown. We are and will continue to be inviting you

into the process. It's a long-term process with long-term plans that guide development projects

like this. We will do better at promoting the places and spaces you can be heard. And lastly,

I'll invite you to reach out to the team directly or to me if you have any questions. Our emails

and phone lines have been added to the westerville.org slash 64 Walnut page. Feel free to reach out

to us. As we navigate these important issues like development, utility deliveries and planning

our parks, we rely on community engagement and we are currently inviting residents to apply for

our 2026 Westerville Citizens Academy. With applications are accepted through May 29th.

For anyone who wants to see a behind-the-scenes perspective on municipal operations and how we make

decisions, please consider joining the Citizens Academy. Many participants go on to actually

join boards and commissions and help us shape our community. Schedule sessions will occur on Thursday

evenings from 6 to 9 p.m., spanning from July 16th through September 10th. The program will

conclude with the formal graduation ceremony held in city council chambers on September 16th.

We encourage all who are interested in the community to please apply. We are officially open

at city hall and welcoming residents to our new centralized customer service space. As municipal

functions transition from our former offices at 310 West Main and 64 East Walnut into our renovated

facilities at 21 Celstice Street. We have a new payment logistics. The collection box that was

at Walnut Street is now retired. However, residents may continue to utilize a secured drop box

situated at our new city hall location. Public feedback has encouraged us to add a drive up

box which we are moving forward with. I'm pleased to announce that we will be installing a new drive

up box on the left side of the one-way road on the south side of city hall. In other words,

the Westervil girl side. Just past the sidewalk will be a drop off box. It will be installed this spring.

And then last council two weeks ago, we spent the day in court at the Common Police Court for a

content decision on 140 old county line road. I am thrilled to announce the Delaware County Court

of Common Police issued a content decision finding the owner of 140 old county line road in civil

content of a December 1st, 2023 permanent injunction. This is great news for our community and especially

the neighbors. We'll continue to keep our eyes out since the property owner can appeal the decision

on or before June 1st. So with all of that, I would be happy to answer any questions.

Are there any questions in city manager?

I do have a question or I guess it's just a comment. One of the major pieces of feedback that I've

seen is at least from a process standpoint is the timing like literally during the day for

the information sessions because people said you know to really whatever to basically be sensitive

to when most people can get there with jobs or you know weekdays and things like that. But I

appreciate the good thing to a bigger space to accommodate more people. I think that's really

necessary. So thank you.

Have there any other questions or comments that we are going to move on from the city manager's

court? Thank you. On the agenda tonight you see the council representative report. We actually

do not have a council representative report again in the interest of time. So next up we have

citizens comments. Number one, thank you all for being here tonight. So another significant amount

of interest in this agenda tonight and I appreciate everyone being here to make sure that we can

hear from all the residents and complete our scheduled agenda this evening. We are going to begin

citizens comments as usual. I will everyone who signed in so I will read your name from a list and

call you down. We'll just go in order from the start to the finish. We are going to do 30 minutes of

initial citizen comment. Once that 30 minutes takes we're going to move on to finish the rest of

our legislative agenda and then we will come back to anyone else who still wants to speak at the end.

So you everyone in this room we will stay here as long as we want or as long as you guys want.

We will hear everyone's comments but we will pause at 30 minutes finish our legislative agenda and

then come back and finish that out. So with that anyone wishing to speak please approach the podium

and state your name. You have three minutes to speak. When you're done please write your address on

the sheet with the clerk if you have not done so already and we are going to start with John Wood.

Hello, I'm John Wood. I live at 171 East Park with my wife. We used to live about two minutes away,

had some land. I thought that's what we wanted and then came to our senses and moved up town

to Westerville and which we had made that decision years ago. We fell in love with uptown like

everybody seems to. We love being able to walk down a happy hour to a restaurant. We love being

able to walk our dog through NB Park and beyond. And I don't have a lot of my comments will be

brief. I'm just hoping someone, I'm just trying to get somebody to reason with me. I just don't see.

We received the fly that someone distributed to the neighborhood the other day and

it was really taken back. I just, it's the development pictures I've seen seem totally out of place

for our neighborhood. It's a neighborhood. It's not a commercial district in that sense of a hotel

and apartment complex and so on. So I'm just, I'll keep my comments really quick. I'm just

pleading with people. We're just trying to reason with people. Please don't do this to our neighborhood.

Quick note before we continue. If you guys can hold your boss that would help with time.

Good evening council members. Thank you for the opportunity to address you regarding the

proposed sale and redevelopment of 64 East Walnut Street. My name is Kelly Maxwell. I live at 83

University Street, three blocks from this proposed site. The news regarding this plan is a little

over a week old. We are indebted to Gary Gardner in the Westerville news. Many of us would not have

known about it without that. The result of that is what you see here tonight and it's my favorite

thing about my town. Committed, informed and passionate residents, taxpayers and voters,

turning out to support our quality of life. We already have a mixed use development. It's called

uptown. Brick Street's lined with centrialed homes, locally owned shops and restaurants,

where you are greeted by name. Children getting ice cream with their friends,

neighbors strolling together to the library, patios full of laughter and lots of great coffee.

Did I mention our locally owned bookstore? This is all located in the national register historic

district. Many other communities have tried to emulate this, but you know what? That can't be done.

You can build Arlington Gateway or Bridge Park or West Star or Polaris anywhere, but you cannot

build uptown. Don't ruin it. I urge you to delay any consideration of sale and development of

this property without substantive input from the people who live, work and raise their families here.

Commercial development of this scale has its place and it is not here. The encroachment of this kind

of development would be a blight on our town. We found out about this the wrong way. Do the right

thing and delay the sale of 44 East Walnut Street. Thank you.

Mac Taylor. No, chair members of council. My name is Mac Taylor. I live at 89 East Park Street,

which is directly adjacent to the city of 64 East Walnut Street. The materials presented

by the city last week are, I believe, my homes will be overshadowed by an enormous part.

We'll be seeing and hearing plenty from me that's coming months, but tonight I want to focus on

process that we got here tonight. I want to take you back to 2025. Third within the city's

application, community entertainment district at that time, was a table with a line item regarding

a proposed private investment boutique hotel and supporting use to the 64 East Walnut.

I invited the city manager and economic director over email in March 2025, as to any

additional information they provided and how firm the proposed use was. And the city manager

responded that while redevelopment of the 64 East Walnut site would occur, there were no four

bound conclusions about what redevelopment of the 64 East Walnut would be. Fast forward to May

of 2026 and I learned by a news article about a massive development proposed by backyard.

A buyer been selected, purchased price of $2, contract, drafted, ready for your review,

and initial concept that's been prepared. All this without any public process, no transparency,

no voice for citizen, plus or no. So I think the question is how do we go from no four bound

conclusions to that contract, which requires a hotel with 73 or more rooms requires approximately

247 apartments and requires a four-nose-based barbecue rush. How was the buyer selected?

And what other redevelopment or adaptories options were considered? Why was the champion

proposed to disregard it and how was the purchase price determined? Staff tells us that the buyer came

to the city and it seems to me that the staff just took whatever was offered to them.

There are any answers to any of those questions since me without any public process, that's what we're

here at Dasport tonight. You know, when the city parts and drug department did know some

create, there were multiple open houses. When they did edge of part of it at service,

I got an email, saffroning and about, you know, an open house that we're having for their

long proposed plan. This is the enormous redevelopment project for one of the most

valuable assets of the city owns, and this is the start, right? So what happened between

2025 and now? And I don't think it'll be as an idea. It's all been done besides this stuff.

In secret. I guess it's where I'll kind of end up. I think saffron is done to be a disservice here.

They've really negotiated and maneuvered out the public die and arrived at the contract that,

again, these are the buyers, potentially used to the site and proposing a deal which

walks the city into a long-term development that's inappropriate for the site.

The property is not city staffs. It's not mine. It's not yours. It's all of ours.

And there needs to be a public process before any of these things are determined.

It needs to be a true open public promise for everyone to be involved. Not something

where we're commenting on a contract that has already been drafted. That doesn't make any sense.

So, here's the time that I thank you very much.

Thank you. All right. Next, we have Dwight.

Thank you so much.

Greetings, Mayor Grines.

Nice to meet you, Mayor Snarker.

City manager, Dupree.

Sorry. My name is Dwight Heckelman and I'm here to speak on ordinance 202611.

Let's say that's 64, used to all that. But more importantly, I think I'm here to speak on legacy.

I'm going to request the council to do three things in regards to this property.

One would be a pause on the current plan and a full disclosure of the financial incentive package.

Specifically, this property being tax evaded and to what extent.

I think starting this on the backs of our schools would be a non-starter for a lot of us.

Secondly, I want to request that you look forth in RFP, request for proposals from the community.

What does the community want?

I believe I speak for many when I say it's hard to imagine a project mirror, misaligned with our

historic uptown, the surrounding neighborhood, the existing businesses, the park, the library,

located in this property backyard and are surrounding the schools. Five at my count.

I'm also going to request that I should do these proposals.

One of the proposals would be an art center.

This should be obvious to anyone who is here in Westerville. We have a thriving arts community.

I could spend my remaining two minutes listening off the community bands,

orchestras, theater troops, dance studios. By double the time I couldn't get through our community

arts events that we do here in the city and I couldn't even begin to cover all our visual artists,

artisans that we see every week uptown, fourth Friday or not, but we don't have the unifying space

and I think this could be the catalyst for that. The second reason that our proposals are

surrounding communities do have that space. Dublin is in building $16 million art center,

where I think it has the Mac, New Albany has McCoy. How are we ensuring that the people who want

to live, work and play in Westerville want to be here if we can't compete with these other cities?

I want to leave you with this and it would be easy, maybe not easy, but it's going to be easier to

shrug and say take the money. The city has financial responsibilities and this helps satisfy them,

but easy doesn't leave a legacy. The passion surrounding the eventually use of this property

has shown this community views this as a rare opportunity to craft a legacy and we're giving

the choice what our community choose, what it'd be a hotel, apartment, a restaurant,

with that bear legacy, or is it something bigger? Something much bigger, something that lifts

our entire community, something that find no small virtue of its very unique location

creates something better than itself. When you look back at this decision in this moment,

when you'd be able to say it wasn't the easy route with the corresponding short-term payout,

but you had a hand in shaping a long-term investment in our community, a legacy. Thank you

for your consideration, please. Thank you. All right, next up we have Peter Maxwell.

Good evening, members of the Kent City Council. The historic unpeager Maxwell, historic uptown

Westerville is truly the crown jewel of Westerville. Its business spaces are fully occupied by

thriving locally-owned shops, anchoring the district to the south, is a wonderful modern library

loved and supported by the community. It is surrounded by neighborhoods of well-attended

historic homes. I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. Uptown doesn't need to be redeveloped.

We don't need Dublin's bridge park or the short north. I think everyone in this room feels

the same way. We were all here for the same reason. Gary Gardner and his Westerville News

alerted us to trouble brewing. Thank you, Gary. Since 2017, we've known that after the remodeling of

this Justice Center and City Hall, several surplus buildings would be sold, including the

office building at 64 East Walnut Street. For some reason, rather than simply selling this building

for reuse, City staff have been planning to sell the parcel for high-density mixed-use development.

The sale would include the enjoying city parking lot, which is critically needed for

uptown with our library and park visitors. This parcel is adjacent to our uptown business district,

library, hand-by-park, woodware elementary school, school bus facility, well-maintained private

homes, and belong now overloaded Walnut Street at its intersection with highly congested state

street. Shouldn't drastically changing the use of this parcel begin with extensive communication

and coordination with each stakeholders? How many of them have even heard about this project?

There have been no public hearings on this. None. Why did you and City staff think that we will be

pleased? One thing that doesn't need to be addressed is state street traffic, which often backs

up from Walnut to Schrock. And even to the interstate, this congestion hurts both business and

uptown and residence quality of life. Fustrated commuters driving through our neighborhoods to avoid

the bottleneck make our narrow streets dangerous to the residents, school buses, delivery trucks,

service and emergency vehicles who must use them. Westerville doesn't have a traffic engineer or

even a current traffic study to address these and other congestion problems. Why would you make

matters worse by proposing to add hundreds of additional cars to uptown congestion?

There are so many things wrong in this proposed plan now that we are aware of it. A public

process should have begun many years ago when this building was purchased. It's time to start now

and do it right. Too much is at stake. Thank you.

Roast Taylor. Good evening. I'm Charles Taylor. I reside at 31 Emerald Crossing.

I'm speaking concerning ordinance number 2026-11. The sale and redevelopment of 64 East Walnut Street

require this council to weigh the pros and cons of redevelopment against the legitimate

concerns of the homeowners that will be directly impacted by your decision. That's an important

responsibility. While I generally favor well planned development, I do not support

this the sale and proposed redevelopment plan for many reasons. The proposed redevelopment project

is massive. A four or five-story parking garage. It is out of scale with and includes elements

that are inconsistent with the existing residential neighborhood, the nearby schools and parks,

as well as Westerville Public Library. This project would substantially compound the traffic

problems that already exist on Walnut State, Park, Vine and Summit streets. No comprehensive

traffic study for the proposed project would fail to reach any other conclusion. Any feasible fixes

to these traffic problems will be insufficient. The environmental impacts would be significant

during the demolition of existing building, construction of the new facilities,

and the operation of the proposed facility. Look up air pollution from large parking garages.

It's likely any mitigating measures that are proposed will not make the project safe for the

permanent residents in a nearby neighborhood. You've already heard this. The public participation

process for this project has been at odds with the objectives of identifying and evaluating the

concerns raised by the public prior to selecting a redevelopment plan. Council has been asked

to authorize this sale based on a single specific redevelopment proposal before traffic infrastructure

needs and environmental impacts impact studies are completed. It appears that little or no

effort has been put into soliciting and evaluating alternative proposals, including repurposing the

use of the existing building and site as well as proposals for more modest scale site redevelopment.

The residents are relying on this council, our elected representatives, to deny approval of

this ordinance, and direct the city's professional staff to incorporate three items as they move

forward. One, solicit a range of proposals based on what is learned from this initial

citizen input. The proposals must include options for repurposing the use of the existing building,

which is what I think people would have anticipated, and exclude large-scale massive

demolition and redevelopment. You should also require that each-

your time has expired. I'll send my comments, so I'll give you three now. Hold your round.

I'm going to try not to get emotional because I haven't really slept since this time.

I was unveiled. You see, these are my kids. We live at 63 U.S. Walnut Street and they're

called students of Woodier Elementary. They're just two of the kids on this most impacted

strip of U.S. Walnut Street where there are at least 15 other kids, students of blending woods,

Westerville South, and current and future students of Woodier. In this day and age,

we already have to worry about our kids, the dangers of social media, potential violence in

schools, so having to worry about them at our home has just been a little too much read-a-bear.

To live on East Walnut Street already means that we have to be so careful around our homes,

with the amount of traffic that we already experienced. The fact that this plan will multiply

these concerns times hundreds of a transient population is very overwhelming. For those of us that

live in this very residential area densely populated with children. Emotions aside,

there are facts that are publicly available that make this a bad plan. Like that,

according to Westerville police records that I received this week, they've been called to

their current Renaissance location, a location with 222 rooms versus the 328 children rooms in this

plan. 35 times since last May for things like a number of disturbances, suspicious vehicles,

suspicious people, a hit-and-run additional traffic accidents. So it only stands to reason that

our cross-street neighbors would see a rise in incidents from zero to 35. Can we still send our

kids to the park, to their schools, to the library knowing this fact? Facts like that this developer

already has a horrible reputation in Bexley and in Upper Arlington, a history of overbuilding and

has been successfully sued in Tennessee for $2 million. I have all of these reports with me

if I want to give them to the clerk reports. I also see no higher for poor business practices.

Facts where basic math would tell you that the building plan will consume all of the proposed

garage spaces and leave nothing for those that use the existing spaces. Knowing these hard things,

it's hard to understand how this plan got this far in the first place but because it did ultimately

what I'm most concerned about is that Westerville will be willing to trade financial gain for the

deterioration of the children's community in this neighborhood. They have their own community here

because of the close proximities to the school park library. They know and enjoy friendships with

each other across their ages. It's the best sound in the city to hear them call to each other

from across the streets as we're out and about. These children need these kind of interactions

away from social media and devices time with each other. The community that these children have built

on their own is the most unique and special thing about Westerville and it's the reason we're so

passionate about keeping apart at the city we love. If the kids are not safe here due to all the

reasons you're hearing tonight then there's no community at all. The community is over that I

promise you this community is worth protecting. It's not about a misunderstanding of the plan or the

botched rollout or rumors. This is a tipping point where it will be made clear what kind of care

the city of Westerville has for its residents. What we're asking for is to go back, restore the trust

and look for a safer, smaller scale alternative when we can all be excited about. Show us that

Westerville still values the community we have built here in the safety and well-being of our

children. Keep Westerville the best walkable livable city in central Ohio. Please.

I'm Ted Cheney of 22 East Walnut Street. Obviously I live very close to this proposed

development. I think it's totally out of scale with our neighborhood. Our brochures of the city

tout our historic neighborhoods which you seem to be willing to destroy ours. I don't understand

how you can do that. Most of the other thing I was going to say has already been said. I've been

kind of upstaged but I wanted to make one more point. What's wrong with reusing the existing

building or at least keeping the structure of that scale instead of going five stories up.

It'll just ruin our neighborhood and the point about traffic nobody seems to be concerned about

that in our city government but we're approaching Redlock. I hear all the time from people that

they avoid uptown Westerville because they can't get through it and they can't park there.

And this is going to make it much worse. So with that I'll stop and thank you very much.

I'm Sharon Lincoln. I live at one five four Logan Avenue and have probably called Westerville

my home for 57 years. I want to begin by saying that my comments tonight come from a genuine

love for the city for the neighborhoods that make it special. We have us choose to live here because

of the sense of community safety, walkability and the care of this council has historically shown

in protecting the character of our city. I understand that growth and development are part of a healthy

community. I'm not opposed to the progress but I believe growth should reflect the values

that the residents cherish about this city in the first place. That is why I have concerns about

the proposed hotel development in our neighborhood. My concerns are rooted in preserving the safety

stability and quality of life that families have worked hard to build. We all want a city that

is welcoming and economically strong but we want safe streets for our children and families,

neighborhoods where residents know their neighbors, responsible planning and respectful existing

communities and development that fits the character and the long-term vision of the city. We understand

that development can bring economic benefits but those benefits should never come at the expense of

the safety and the quality of life with the existing residents, such as increased traffic and

pedestrian safety risks, especially in their homes, schools, parks and intersections already

industry. Increased late night activity in a ways disturbances that may affect families that

nearby residents and the public safety demands on police fire and emergency services that may

already be currently not equipped for the added volume. In sufficient infrastructure planning,

including parking, overflow and neighborhood access concerns to name a few. I respectfully ask

the council to take in consideration whether the location is appropriate for the hotel at all.

I ask the council to carefully consider whether this proposal truly aligns with the goals and whether

the surrounding infrastructure and the public safety resources are prepared for this impact.

But most importantly, I ask the residents to continue to have a meaningful

voice and decision that directly affect our homes and our daily lives. I speak not tonight out

of anger but out of the care for the community and hope for its future and for the city we all love.

Thank you for your time and your service.

Our press in the room, ma'am. That is there. This is the council area. If you could stay out of that,

that would be great. Thank you so much. Okay, next on the list we have Jeff and Linda Maxwell,

but we can only have one speaker at a time, so I'm not sure which who wants to speak from

Jeff and Linda or people. Okay, all right. We're going to move on to Randy Berghita.

If I mispronounce your name, I am deeply sorry you can correct me.

Evening council members, imagine this. Your parent in the Westerville,

your child walks to Whittier Elementary or plays at the pad in Hanby Park,

just steps from 64 East Walnut. Right now that corner is surrounded by over 3,000 children

every school day. 373 at Whittier, 5353 at Hanby, over 600 at Blinda Middle School,

hundreds more at Emerson and nearly 1,500 at Westerville South High School, all within striking

distance of the proposed Marriott Hotel. The hotel means transient strangers checking in out

in and out daily with minimal oversight. People, the Franklin County Sheriff won't notify us

about unlike when a predator moves into a neighborhood home. This fight is deeply

coastal to me. My family has had children attending Whittier Elementary, Blinda Middle,

and Westerville South for the last 15 years and we will continue to have children in these

same schools for the next 15 years to come. My teenage son Tristan currently attends Whittier

Elementary. My three-year-old daughter Josephine will follow the exact same path her big sister

Parker took starting at Whittier than Blinda than South. Parker herself grew up walking these

streets and attending these schools. She is now soft, more songwriter, major at Belmont University.

This is not some abstract concern for us. These are the same schools and parks my children

used and will continue to use for decades. Her great grandfather Harry Buck Ewing was known as

Mr. Athletics at Audubon University. During World War II, he coached both men's and women's teams

while serving as Athletic Director. Her great-grandmother Nancy Ewing Askins, a great-grandmother

Paul, great-grandfather Paul Askins pulled their hearts into this community. Paul worked to

help create the Harris Askins House that still supports our seniors today. Their legacy is

woven into the very fabric of uptown and neighborhoods we love. I will not stand by and watch

risk turning the safe walkable community via help build into a revolving door for transient

strangers right next to our children's schools and playgrounds. We are living in the age of Epstein.

We know how predators and traffickers exploit hotels near children. This is not progress.

This is negligence. We trust you to protect our kids above developer profits. I demand you

reject this plan or relocate the hotel far from our schools and parks. No amount of economic

development is worth risking even one child. You can't buy Westerville's silence when our

children's safety is on the line. Daniel Vermeer. Good evening. My name is Dave Vermeier. I speak

as a Westville resident. I was out of one-on-one spring-tree court but primarily on behalf of the 64

East Walnut resident who I'm in a long-term relationship with. We strongly oppose the current 64

East Walnut development proposal. The scale and intensity would deteriorate the character and

availability of the surrounding neighborhood and unique fabric of uptown and will have permanent

impact for generations. I am very disappointed in the lack of transparency in community engagement.

It is not at the start of the process. I respectfully ask council to pause the current

sale and read about the process until meaningful community engagement and objective impact studies

occur first. Residents deserve transparency in genuine two-way dialogue before momentum builds

around a predetermined course. Critical impact concerns still need to be carefully evaluated

and addressed. In putting traffic parking, density, lighting, noise, drainage, infrastructure

capacity, removal of mature trees that can't be replaced, a useful demolition of a building,

a building height that will block sunsets and intrude on privacy. The pedestrian children's safety

with the proximity of several schools, playgrounds, by-path and community library and overall

compatibility with adjacent residential property and community spaces. Westville has successfully

demonstrated the adaptive reuse of important civic buildings that can preserve community identity

while still supporting growth and investment. I strongly urge council to seriously pursue that

path for the existing 64-east Walnut structure. For nearby residents, these decisions directly

affect homes, neighborhoods and quality of life that we have cared for and financially invested

in maintaining and improving. West council to recognize that nearby residents do not have the

large development group financial resources to pursue complicated rezoning or land use actions

after a project is approved. If the city intends to fundamentally transform this corridor,

then fair and accessible opportunities for adjacent homeowners to adapt properties must be

established before they prove sale, not years later after irreversible momentum and legal barriers

exist. This is ultimately about fairness, transparency, and responsible stewardship of West

ville's future. I respectfully ask council tonight to slow this process down, further engage nearby

residents. This is staying reversible and the damage here will please stop carefully considered

the direction being taken before momentum swells and irreversible actions were made. Thank you for

your time. This is going to be our last speaker, then we are going to pause. We're going to throw

the rest of our legislative agenda and we will come back and reopen, citizens comments for everyone

else who wants to speak after we get through the motions on the agenda. So Melissa Hall, come on down.

Good evening. I just want to say everyone has spoken so eloquently this evening.

My name is Melissa Hall and I've called Westerville my home for 45 plus years. I have a personal

stake in Uptown Westerville and while I've witnessed a great deal of development over the decades,

I have never felt the need to speak at a city council meeting until now. I am vehemently against

the current plans for development of the 64 East Walnut Street property and from the looks of

the number of people I saw attend the open house this past Thursday, there are a multitude of

residents who feel the same as I. Our Uptown Westerville is quaint, historic, charming, and idyllic.

It is not bridge park and it is not creekside nor do we want it to be. The current mixed development

proposal does not fit the footprint of our Uptown Westerville. The amount of traffic alone is

recent to put halt to such a project. The congestion on state street is nearly unbearable as it is

let alone adding 247 apartments and 81 hotel rooms. All of this directly across from a busy

school bus depot in the same vicinity as multiple school buildings adjacent to a bike path with

families homes a stone's throw away. How is any of this a good idea? City officials continually

report keeping its promise to residents by selling the Walnut Street property and I'm tired

of hearing the word promise. When Westerville voters approved the bond request for the Justice Center,

we were not promised a hotel apartment building in the heart of our Uptown. Slaping a cutesy word

like boutique on the front of it does not make it any more palatable. What is the timeline for

constructing this monstrosity? How long will our charming Uptown look like a disaster zone?

It sounds like a nightmare. The state of the city presentation was given by our city manager

on March 2nd. In it she reported that the three words that residents used to describe our

community were family friendly, safe and comfortable and that too much development was an area of

concern on the resident survey. In addition it was reported that quote what we know is that Westerville

residents pay attention to city publications. For example, the Westerville Community Guide sent to

your home every other month is in the 90th percentile of residents to report reading it and finding

value in it. End quote. If that is the case can someone please direct me to the issue that detailed

the plans for 64 East Walnut? I couldn't find it. Transparency is severely lacking. Furthermore the

state of Westerville address reminded residents that when we remain actively engaged that we,

the residents become the architects of our future, informing decision making and making the dreams

of our community a reality. City Council, this development is not the dream of our community.

Don't sell this property to a mixed-use developer to ruin the current point charm of our city.

Allow residents to be the architects of Westerville's future. Please listen to your constituents who

voted you into office. Please. Thank you. Hi we're going to move on to ends of legislation. The

the clerk would read ordinance number 2026-07 by title, please. To amend chapters 757 of the

codified ordinances of the city of Westerville to enact updated provisions governing vehicle

for higher services, taxi cab operations and to conform the regulation of transportation

network companies with state law. This is the time of the third reading presenting tonight is Mr.

Minkle. Good evening Madam Chair and members of council. Thank you for the opportunity to present

this ordinance for its third reading this evening. I'll be brief but a quick reminder of this ordinance

is mostly housekeeping and a modernization measure. We'll do three things. One recognized state preemption

of rideshare services so that's lift, that's Uber and other rideshairs. It would say that any taxi

driver, delivery vehicle driver or vehicle for service driver licensed in Columbus would be able

to operate the city of Westerville and it would expressly reserve all police powers, public safety

powers for the city. Notably it would not create any new licensing. There'd be no additional

enforcement and we don't anticipate there'd be any impact to customers for any of these services.

So without I be happy to answer any questions you have on the ordinance.

There are any questions or comments from council. Pleasure of council on the ordinance.

So moved second. It's been moved and seconded. Are there any other questions or comments?

All right, please call the roll. Mr. Washburn. Yes. Mayor Grimes. Yes. Vice Mayor Stalker. Yes.

Mr. Wright. Yes. Vice Chair Glasgow. Yes. Ms. Beckett. Yes. Madam Chair Zaco. Yes.

Ordinance number 2026-07 passes unanimously. The clerk would read ordinance number 2026-08 by

title please to approve the form and authorize the execution of the Potomac Energy Center's schedule

with American municipal power incorporated and to take other actions in connection there with

and to declare an emergency. This is the time of the third reading Mr. Mom's call. Thank you

Madam Chair. Members of council happy to be here tonight to bring forward the third reading for

two energy ordinances two important pieces of our diverse five power support portfolio and I'm

happy to report there are no changes since first reading but I'd be happy to answer any questions.

All right, are there any questions or comments from Pleasure of council on the ordinance?

So moved second. It's been moved and seconded. Any other questions or comments?

Please call the roll. Mayor Grimes. Yes. Mr. Wright. Yes. Mr. Washburn. Yes.

Vice Mayor Stalker. Yes. Vice Chair Glasgow. Yes. Ms. Beckett. Yes. Madam Chair Zaco. Yes.

Organic number 2026-08 passes unanimously. The clerk would read ordinance number 2026-09 by title please to

approve the form and authorize the execution of the Bright Mountain Solar Schedule with American

municipal power incorporated and to take other actions in connection therewith and to declare an

emergency. This is the time of the third reading Mr. Mom's call. Thank you again Madam Chair.

Similarly there are no changes to the Bright Mountain Solar since second reading but I

would be happy to answer any questions. Just a comment. I'm so excited so many people are here to see

this on the third reading because you know me and Solar so cool to have so many people to watch it.

Any other questions or comments? Pleasure of council on the ordinance.

Um, so moved. Okay. That's like why are you pointing at it?

It's like so and so much. I thought you'd like to make a move.

No thanks to you. All right it's been moved and seconded. Are there any other questions or comments?

Can I have a confirmation on who moved and who seconded? Mr. Mayor Grimes moved.

Vice Chair Glasgow thank you. All right please call the roll. Mr. Wright. Yes. Mr.

Washburn. Yes. Ms. Beckett. Yes. Vice Chair Glasgow. Yes. Mayor Grimes. Yes. Vice Mayor

Stalker. Yes. Madam Chair Zaco. Yes. Ordinance number 202609. Passes unanimously. Thank you. Thank you.

The clerk would read ordinance number 2026-10. Vice title please.

An ordinance to provide for the appropriation and transfer of appropriation ending

December 31st, 2026. All right this is time of the first reading. Mr. Yoder.

Thank you Madam Chair and members of council. I'm happy to be here tonight to present

the first reading of ordinance 2026-10 which is our budget cleanup ordinance which outlines

requested adjustments to our 2026 budget. As a reminder this is a twice a year process for

city staff review current performance to budget to see if there are any items that need to be adjusted

due to unexpected changes. If changes are needed staff tries to utilize the existing budget to cover

those expenses but if there isn't any unencumbered budget available we then try to transfer budget

to support the expenses. If a transfer cannot be utilized we then ask for an increase to our

appropriation. With respect to this spring cleanup request there are three primary things for the

related changes we're proposing. The first relates to supply chain and inflation increases through

the background economical impacts. Second relates to positive growth here in the city operations

and third relates to timing issues related to collection of revenue and planned expenditures.

To begin the service department a seed of large cost increase due to supply chain issues

and inflation requiring an additional $200,000 to purchase a hydro excavator truck as well as

an additional $140,000 to support the bulk bin storage facility. Additionally the police

department is working to complete upfitting for 10 new cruisers but due to chip shortage and other

supply chain issues they require an additional $23,500 to complete the upfitting. This will assist

with getting these cruisers integrated into the fleet this year. Relating to positive growth in

the city the planning and development department has seen an uptick and utility and locating

an inspection request and so $375,000 is requested to support these services. Please note that while

the expenses are increasing they will be fully offset by increased right-of-way permit revenues.

Additionally the WeConnect Data Center team has been working hard to not only retain their

current customers but also expand their current customer base. In order to support both the current

growth and the new growth they are requesting $150,000 to replace their Crack HVAC unit which

cools the data center equipment but an additional $50,000 for new racks to house new equipment

for new clients and customers. The Parks and Recreation Department would like to further expand

our tree replacement outside of our ongoing capital projects in 2026 and thus is requesting an

additional $50,000 from the Tree Replacement Fund to support this initiative. As city staff

complete their move to the new city hall the building and grounds team is requesting $50,000 to

support additional contracted services to assist with the final close-out items in city hall

and surplus services. With regard to timing issues the state and Hough Tiff Fund requires a $64,000

new appropriation to transfer funds from the North Ridge Tiff to the state and Hough Tiff to support

a final payment owed to a developer for infrastructure investments. This was intended to be funded on

full-year Tiff proceeds but since we haven't fully received those the new funds are needed to keep the

fund solvent. One of the community center rooftop HVAC units has experienced an outage and

requires a coil replacement and request $50,000 to replace the coil to keep the center running

cool during the day. Finally the service department requests a transfer of appropriation of $180,000

from the street maintenance and repair fund to the sewer fund to support personnel expenses.

To prepare for the ongoing rate study that we are conducting currently some position funding

sources were changed to the sewer fund after the budget process was completed to better align

their expense with the work they do for this city. This transfer will ensure that staff are

properly supported for the remainder of the year. City staff appreciate your time reviewing

these requests and I'm happy to answer any questions you have this time. All right thank you.

Do we have any questions comments from the outside? Seeing no questions or comments this concludes

the first reading. If the clerk would read ordinance number 2026-11 by title please.

To authorize and direct the city manager to perform a real estate purchase agreement to provide

for the sale of real property located at 64 East Walnut Street. This is the time of the first reading

is right. Good evening Madam Chair and members of City Council. The ordinance before you this

evening is the first step in a multi-step process. As you and members of the public here with us this

evening have seen already the timeline on the screen in front of you outlines the process journey

that this redevelopment that the redevelopment at this site would follow. Tonight is the first

of three readings for just the purchase contract which is step one as you see on the screen.

So no decisions will be requested or made this evening. I'd also like to emphasize that a purchase

contract is not a final decision on the use of the property or the design of the site.

The city retains control of the property throughout the process and will not close of the property

until after the public approval process has been completed and satisfied.

Surprising the planning, zoning and development agreement steps.

City Council retains full authority to approve or decline the proposed sale and any subsequent

approvals through the approval process. The proposed buyer is Continental Development Ventures,

a developer who is experienced with developing in Westerville and in communities throughout the region

and beyond. Continental is responsible for the Renaissance at Westerville,

Hotel and Conference Center which has achieved and sustained a level of quality that has earned

it a number one ranking in the world for customer satisfaction. The developer has proposed a concept

that would include a boutique hotel co-managed with the Renaissance ensuring the highest level of

quality for the property. The concept also includes a restaurant that would be associated with the hotel

as well as class a multi-family and a parking garage. The developer advanced a project with

the city that conceptually achieves some of the goals identified in plans like our economic

development strategy as well as our community plan and the uptown plan. I want to be very clear.

This plan will evolve. It is still a concept and it will evolve for the better with the community

feedback and engagement that we've already received and will continue to receive through the process.

This is my final slide that includes an Andrew table summarizing the purchase agreement terms

including the purchase price of two and a half million and the process for closing which again

I'd like to reiterate will not occur until after all the steps we've discussed this evening

have been completed. Staff's recommendation is approval of the purchase agreement

at the third reading. Thank you and I have to answer any questions you might have.

Thank you Miss Ray. I would like to just start off with giving the amount of questions and

concerns from the residents. I do think that council needs additional time for review and more

community input. Before we move forward with a second reading and further consideration of

this ordinance I'd also like more time for the public to weigh in and for us to hear those

concerns. So we will get into council questions and comments but before we get into that I would

like to move to postpone further consideration of ordinance number 226-11 to September 15th,

2026. Do we have a second? Thank you.

It's been moved in second and could you please call them or actually do we have any questions or

comments on this? Are we going to speak at the end of this? I mean I have comments but

if you have questions or comments specifically on the motion to postpone you can do those now.

If you have questions and comments on the ordinance as soon as we vote on the motion to postpone

then we will dive back into discussion on specific ordinance. All right I just I guess I would

just say on the on this motion I think it's a very good idea. I appreciate you making the motion.

The feedback has been sorry I'm over here the feedback has been overwhelming that we need to slow

down that we need to pause this process so the community can catch up and to a certain extent I

feel like guys still need to catch up and I agree with that. I think this will give more time to

inform the public. I think it will give more time for Team Westerville and us as a council to

consider feedback and I hope given how much public input there has been that the developer

is listening and considering this feedback that we're getting as well and I hope that this all

gives time for that so I'm in support of this motion. Any other questions or comments on the motion?

Did I? If the clerk would please call the roll. Mayor Grimes? Yes. Mr. Wright? Yes. Mr. Washburn?

Yes. Vice Mayor Stocker? Yes. Vice Chair Glasgow? Yes. Ms. Beckett? Yes. Madam Chair Zago?

Yes. The motion to postpone for the consideration of ordinance number 2026. 11 to September 15, 2026

passes. So now I will open the floor to questions and comments from council members on ordinance number

2026. I would like to make another motion. I move to direct the city staff to conduct two additional

public open houses regarding the potential sale and proposed redevelopment of 64 East Walnut prior

to the second reading of this ordinance on dates to be determined by city administration and

communicated to council and the public in advance. Second. Second. Is there any questions or comments

on this motion? I also think this is a good idea. Thank you, Madam Chair May I have a clarification

question. Yes. Two additional on top of the June 8 or the June 8 counts as one of the two. June 8

and then an additional. Okay. Thank you for the clarification. Okay. No more questions or comments?

All right. Please follow the roll. Mr. Beckett? Yes. Vice Mayor Stocker? Yes. Mr. Washburn? Yes.

Vice Chair Glasgow? Yes. Mayor Grimes? Yes. Mr. Wright? Yes. Madam Chair Zago? Yes. So the motion

has passed. That motion is to direct city staff to host two additional open houses. One will be

June 8th and one is to be a date determined, but it will happen before the second reading of this

ordinance. Now we move on to questions and comments from council on this ordinance.

I will let me say I think I said it before relative to the motion. I would just reiterate that

at this point I don't think I have a bunch of substantive comments on the proposal itself.

Other than I'm glad that we're we're stretching this out to answer many many questions that

I have and I mean we obviously got a huge amount of feedback already. I'm glad that we're going

to make this process where we get more and I hope that'll be well incorporated by everyone involved.

Thank you. Any other questions or comments? Just I agree that taking a step back I think it's

the right move. It's clear that we have a lot of questions that we need to resolve issues that we

need to address and public feedback that we need to collect from our residents who deserve to

provide that meaningful feedback. So I think this is this is a good move. Any other questions or comments

from the ordinance? I would be informed with the residents. What resume? Yes, we will

yeah, we'll come back in some time. It's a delay station. You don't have to have the answers now

but I think you know some things I know you guys are tracking those concerns and I just want to

make sure that we get before we get to second read that we have a really comprehensive list of what

those common themes are and what those questions are so that we can really start to dial in on those

answers. I would also like to see sort of in scale imagery because right now the imagery that we have

is just one photo that quite frankly looks ginormous. So I would like to see if there are other

proposal images for this project, those how those would actually fit on this plot and what that

would look like in scale with the neighborhood. I think that would be very helpful to counsel as

we kind of consider that it's hard to kind of conceptualize that you know how it's going to fit.

I know traffic is another issue that I know our our team is great, I have confidence in our team

but I would like to hear what the actual ideas to address those things are because it's one thing

for us to say I trust our team but that's not really helpful I think for people who are maybe not

doing this every day. So more specifics on things that potentially can mitigate or what those

impacts would be would be great. I would also like to hear some more information about

traffic impacts of a variety of use types because there is a question about what is the impact

of this going to be but I don't want to pivot to something else only to find out that that

impact is higher or more challenging at certain times of the day. We really like to understand

that whole picture for this parcel. So those are my big things for now I also want to make sure

that for the public open houses that there are multiple displays of all the imagery so

if it's crowded, if there's not just one poster of each item I think that would be very helpful

and you know spreading it out to a larger venue it's going to be really important. So there's

some things that I just off the top of my head right now I want to make sure that we hit and

obviously will be a longer conversation and this gives us some time to really look at that

but yes so those are my things for that. Are there any other questions or comments from council?

Yes. Oh okay. The staff memo replied that the boutique hotel and the infill housing

were specifically laid out as action items in the Advanced Westerville plan which they were

but there were other action items listed as well. That's correct. So if we could explore those

as well as options for this opportunity and present those to council or as options.

Sure. Any other questions or comments? Okay. This concludes the first reading. Thank you very

much. I'll show you the feedback. Thank you. We are going to move on to emotions. First we have

emotion to authorize and direct the city manager to finalize negotiations of an execute a master

network agreement and all associated and necessary exhibits, agreements, attendance and incidental

there too. Cincinnati Bell extended territories LLC, DBA doing business as Ulta Fiber for the

development of broadband infrastructure and related services. Pleasure of council. So moved.

Second. Sorry I forgot to like let you resign. Oh. It's okay. Go ahead and move. All right.

Well good evening council. We have brought the Ulta Fiber public private partnership to you

in several meetings but tonight what we're asking for is the finalization of the negotiations

and the master network agreement. So as we as council knows but since we have a public

an audience full of public I'll also let them know. We've been looking at how to get

fiber to our residential properties for about five years in Westerville. We looked at lots of

different options including getting fiber built ourselves and turning it into a utility.

Through those investigations we actually had Ulta Fiber approaches and offers to do a private

public partnership. What this looks like is that we would be able to work with Ulta Fiber. They

would be able to introduce fiber to every single residential property in the city and allow the

resident to tap into fiber but does not force the resident to tap into fiber. It also allows us to

secure specific safe fiber lines for our utility services. So this would actually help us do

automated distribution on our electric system to allow for smaller shorter quicker repairs of

outages and other really cool smart city initiatives. The third major point is that we would actually

be hosting Ulta Fiber in our We Connect data center which allows for a long term anchor

in our center. So the master agreement itself really facilitates this comprehensive public

private partnership. I want to point out that Ulta Fiber just like AT&C spectrum or any other

fiber entity could come into the city get permits and put it in the ground through our legal process.

What this actually allows us to do is work through the other details including it would have the

ability for us to communicate with our public when they're going to be in their neighborhood,

how they're going to be affecting their private property and then also allow us to help with

Ulta Fiber repairing their lawns after putting fiber. On the exchange, Ulta would privately fund

the entire capital rollout of fiber throughout our entire community. They would pay for all the

permitting, locating, and inspection efforts just like any other company. They would commit to having

a localized customer support for our residents and then they would also have the dedicated fiber for

our utility division. So as I pointed out already the city facilitates all of our normal regulatory

processes including right-of-way permits, inspection, and utility locating but Ulta will pay for all

of those services. We would collaborate with Ulta on the public awareness campaign again to make

sure that our residents knew when they were coming and made sure that their properties were remediated

after the effort and then of course we would be hosting them in our We Connect Data Center.

So overall again Ulta could do this without us but thanks to the partnership it's actually a win-win

every residential home in Westerville end up having access to fiber and at the end of the day we

would also be able to host Ulta in our We Connect Data Center. So at the end of the day it's a really

good public partnership so we would recommend that City Council authorize the city manager to

finalize the negotiations and execute the master agreement. I'd be happy to answer any questions.

All right do you have any questions or comments? I'm just excited about it. Everybody I've talked to

about this has already signed, gone to the website and signed up and said as soon as it's available

I want it if I had one complaint I'm in zone two. My house is in zone two so I guess I gotta wait

with that that's okay. Other any other questions or comments? I'm very excited for this. I mean this

is I think the key thing that I hope everyone hears is that they can do this anyways they don't need

our partnership and so they could just come I mean they have the right of way just like 18 to

year right. I mean all of these companies do. This is a really cool way for us to be able to get

this service for residents in a way that maybe a level that is that what we would like to offer

to our residents. So this is a really unique partnership and very excited about this and because

I did things out of order I now would like pleasure of council on this move. It's been moving

seconded are there any other questions or comments? Since I asked it publicly when it was first

introduced my greatest concern was the level of customer service that residents expect

maybe not in communication most recently but I think it's generally understood that most people

in this room expect that when they call the city regarding any of the services that the city provides

that you get exceptional service and response from our staff. Getting to tour and interact

with the ALTA team and taking a lot of a lot of my not as smiley questions I'm pretty confident

that they're going to rise to the level and meet the level of customer service that we are used

to expecting on a daily basis so I'm excited to address my question that I asked a month or two ago.

It's not related with this it's just well we're going we can have the conversation a little bit

like lower in the room just from my seat I can cure you guys talk and then I cannot hear

what everybody's saying or when the team is just picking so yeah the acoustics in our not our

temporary space are very poor yes so if you can just keep the conversations to allow well they're

presenting or talking I really appreciate it but I'm excited for all to fiber we're really excited

for this it's a great partnership please call the room vice chair Glasgow yes Mr. Washburn

yeah Mr. Wright yes vice mayor stalker yes mayor Grimes yes miss Beckett yes madam chair Zeko

yes motion passes unanimously the city manager is so authorized thank you next we have

a motion to award bid for the 2026 Africa Road underground conduit project to complete general

construction company as lowest and best bidder pleasure council so moved seconds it's been moved

and seconded Mr. Monticelli welcome back thank you madam chair a really electric division we

invest you know the $750,000 into our system to keep our reliability numbers up and really

continue that investment strength in our system this year's no different this project that

we're recommending for your consideration tonight will bring an additional two five inch conduits

up along Africa Road that will actually support additional redundancy for our 88 acres at West

our park as well as further enhance our ability to underground the overhead facilities currently

on Africa Road this project is critical in advancing that finalizing that piece in really making

Africa Road complete when we are able to remove those overhead facilities and bring them underground

the bids were keen and very favorably and actually under our engineers estimate by nearly 150,000

dollars so a really strong project and of course with complete general being the recommended

awardee another strong contractor that is currently doing the work at East Africa Road so with

that I'd be happy to answer any questions there any questions or comments from council well this

is just so exciting I'm just so thrilled about conduit all right are there any other questions

there comments please call the roll miss Beckett yes vice mayor stalker yes mr. washburn yes vice

chair glass go yes mayor grimes yes mr. right yes madam chair say go yes motion passes

next we have sorry passes unanimously next we have a motion to award bid for the 2026

fr a westerville Ohio to eerie trail PID 124397 project just browser paving company ink as

lowest and best bidder mr. forkway oh oh wait no do I have sorry I'm off today

pleasure of council on this motion so second it's been moved in seconded now

thank you good evening chair zaco members of council thank you for having me this evening

last year staff brought forth a motion to council and authorize the city manager to enter into

grant application into Ohio Department of Transportation to receive federal funding for

paving project with for our ios eerie trail we were successful obtaining that grant and so

tonight I get to the pleasure present to you the bid awards for that once again this work will

be completed on maple book drive north to max town road sections of Ohio to eerie trail

and from electric add new to old county line road thank you the scope of the work includes

concrete repairs sidewalk replacement pavement markings and then also the procurement

of flashing beacons that will be installed once they arrive that's going to be close to a year out

for that so we submitted the bids I'm sorry we submitted this four bids and the lowest bidder came

back company that we're very familiar with straws are paving who has done a lot of work in central

aisle extremely favorable pricing on this project so we're excited to enter into work with them

just one more slide here just to show that we will have to close sections of the trail for this

work if approved tonight and so we will have some detours so folks can continue to use our trails

and get around town we'll make sure that this gets publicized so folks have that available to them

and with that would be happy to answer any questions thank you any questions or comments

is the north side and an additional chunk that work covering her has that always been part of the

that's always been a part so when we actually applied for this grant the first time we were only

going to do the second section yeah and actually they approached us about adding additional sections

to our project before we submitted the grant application and so we added that section into take

advantage of that and thank you for reminding me also this grant is fully reimbursable so this

will just be 1.2 million if authorized and that will just be reimbursed by the federal government

I love that because I did not remember the north side and so I was surprised and

that's awesome and if it's starting in June yes we're going to wait till school is out and so we'll

start it in June they anticipate being done by August so we can get that open back up but we will

make sure we post updates at least by running club time absolutely thank you this is this is awesome

any other questions or comments from council yeah just to echo that I love the attention continue

attention to our great trail system that we have here and I also love the words fully reimbursable

grants yes that is makes me happy yes thank you for that we love that as well thank you

brand funding is awesome great job all right the clerk will please call the roll vice mayor stocker

yes mr. right yes vice chair Glasgow yes mr. Washburn yes miss Becket yes mayor Grimes yes

madam chair Zago yes the motion passes unanimously and the bid is awarded

at this time we are going to return to citizens comments actually we're going to take a five-minute

recess and then we will return to citizens comments at 838 p.m. back in citizens comments

everyone can take their seats as a reminder it is hard to hear up here with the acoustics

so while people are speaking just keep that in mind we want to be able to hear everyone

so keep like the conversation down to a minimum if you can just a reminder anyone wishing to speak please

approach podium state your name you have three minutes when you are done write your address on the

sheet with the clerk if you have not done so already it will be calling from the list if we get

to the end and you did not sign on the list but you still want to speak you can I will have I will

then invite anyone else who haven't spoken to come down so next up we have Tammy Marka hello everyone

and good evening my name is Tammy Marka when I live in a turn of the century house on east park

street seven houses from handby park I've lived there for 20 years I move to Westerville like lots

of people do because it's a safe place with good schools to raise children my daughter was able to

walk to the school all three schools actually Emerson Westerville south in the middle school

the library the graders the parks all of that we have enjoyed immensely the feel of a small town that

this this community provides us I'm concerned about several things I'm concerned about the traffic

it already takes me a while to get to east park street down state street for whatever reason I haven't

decided to go down stroke and go down autobine perhaps I need to do that but I can only imagine that

if this were to go forward there will be a tremendous amount of more traffic I'm also concerned

about the probability or the increased probability that there will be more crime in our community

in particular in uptown I believe the folks who would be staying at the hotel or living in the

apartments are not committed to this community in a long-term way like most of us are thank you

for your time and I'm really pleased that you are here enough that this is the first time I've

ever done this probably will be the last but I really appreciate it thank you thank you all right

next we have Andrew Esposito thank you council mayor thank you for the decision to table the second

reading as a delay for a little bit my name is Doris Pesito I love a 251 North Fine Street we just

had seventh annual art walk in the spirit of community and things like that that have come to

grow in love on a lot of the stuff that's been said I will just reiterate I want to focus that

tabling this motion probably isn't enough I think that council should consider revisiting this

entire process I was a little offended by this idea that this was transparent that this was the

first meeting it's all in public comparing it to the post office comparing to the other projects

that all went through the formal RFP process like I don't know how this passes master legally

they're talking about a multi-million dollar project that wasn't about the bed

it's crazy like we need to rethink what we're doing it just seems really shady it really seems

kind of underhanded and it's insulting to the intelligence at least of me in the audience

when a here city manager saying this is all being done in public it's not

if also I've been here for 15 years my kids go to Whittier they go to Blondon they go to South I've

voted for every increase in development including the post office including the new restaurants

including ampersand including asterisks and various licorial licenses and fourth Friday from

on the sidewalks to the street and then to the door right like western rail needs to thrive

but it needs to thrive in the right way right this isn't bridge park I feel for these gentlemen

that have five story in their backyard that's crazy just looking down on your kids I'm not a

fear monger so I'm not going to go down that route we're trafficking and all this stuff

but it loses the safety and security and I will say housing is of a concern

how class A apartments that are probably going to go for $3,500 a month is solving that problem

of families that last week we're going to talk about routes apartments in hotels do not plant

routes in communities thank you you're up I'm Nancy McFarland and I am usually at school board

meetings so this is a little bit new for me I typically I'm not at a city council meeting

however um I um as everybody asks for six fours wallet uh every night I live off of college avenue

hallue to sidewalks I now walk three miles every night and my route goes past walnut so I live

about a mile and a half from one it this proposed um I looked at continental support FOIL today

for FOIL I don't see anything in there that looks remotely like Westerville I don't even understand

this I mean like upper Arlington Kingston Arlington I mean uh Arlington Bexley Gateway it doesn't

look like Westerville my kids when I pick them up at the airport born and raised here the best thing

that they love to do is they like to drive up we get off 270 we drive up state street and they're

like oh home I don't want to drive up state street and see this monstrosity over the top of the library

well let's see that when I drive into Westerville we live here because of the historic

Westerville honestly we could live anywhere in Ohio and we pick Westerville we stay here our kids are

gone and we stay here um so that looks I would like to take them off the table I think that it was

kind of um by reading mr gardeners article I thought it was kind of you know in bad business

that we didn't let somebody else that had been talking to the city for two years we didn't let

them know and they found out through the Columbus this batch and we're like oh sorry I'm

miscommunication bad business means bad transparency means no trust from the public we know this

and we know that that's what happens um I also um I'm questioning why we need another

Marriott when I lived here and City Council brought in a left hotel it was it was termed as a

boutique hotel coming to Westerville I don't I I find it hard to believe that anybody in Westerville

is saying we need another hotel I find that hard I don't know where you guys got this information

from I don't know who you talk to but I find it ironic when we have two Marriott's why we need

a third Marriott that doesn't make any sense to me and what and my biggest concern honestly

is the schools and the tax agreements what what's the deal here what are we giving Marriott

what are we giving this kind of to come in and build this entrosity of apartments and we're not

working this city has historically had and the school system has had an historically had a hard

time working together we have two teachers on our board one of the reasons that I want teachers

on the sport is because I want you working with the school district hand-in-hand and I think that

we need to just go back redo the plan look for other options get the Westerville Arts Council

involved look for how we can use this with the community and start fundraising let's go

yeah Duncan I live at 31 East Walnut I've spoke to you some of you already the email in person

and you know I'm truly grateful they've shelved it for now and and delayed it I don't think it's

enough I think it needs to just be off the table at this point it doesn't work for the community

you know I'm gonna live practically next to it I have two kids one goes to video the one goes to

blending it's insane they walk down the street every day it's dangerous enough to where they can't

walk down the street without having to you know avoid cars you know you can't safely cross the

street as it is it's insane I don't understand we we moved here 10 years ago we wanted to live in

a quaint town you know with stuff right on the outside of the city you know we could have moved

anywhere in in central Ohio you know and we lived in Chicago for this I'm used to big developments

that's not the problem here you know we we fully accepted that they were going to put something

in that building I knew it you know my wife and I talked about it and we had you know in our minds

you know some of the worst case situations and this is 10 times that it's 10 times that you know

and I've expressed some of these concerns to you already and I just I don't know I don't know I

wish you would just you know throw out the plan at this point we start over again we engage the

people who live around it and ask them what they're you know what they're comfortable with

because I'm not comfortable with the hotel you know I'm not comfortable with my daughter walking

from our house to the dance studio in her dance clothes with a bunch of people

wearing from a high-rise building I'm not okay with that I don't know how you guys are okay with that

you know it's reckless it's inappropriate so I'd really really hope that at some point we stop

you know pushing it off and pushing it down the road kicking the team further because that's

all we're doing here you know I hope you've heard everybody here and you you listen to them and

tonight you think about it and you you really take it to heart that these are people's lives

you're messing with here this is personal you live in Westerville this is personal to you it

should be personal to you so please thank you reconsider Liz Ryan good evening city council

members I'm obviously going to say many of the same things that everyone has already said tonight

but I have circulated a letter in our neighborhood and throughout neighborhoods of Westerville

I collected some signatures and I feel I owe those people the rating of this letter to you and then

I will send it to council so you have those signatures we it's so we're residents of the

neighborhoods of up up town Westerville the news of a large multi-use development in our community

came as a surprise to us and we are of course doing our best to gather information about the

impact on our neighborhood allow the redevelopment of the property at 64 years while that is

exciting we do have concerns for the character of uptown many of us have lived in this uptown

community for years and have worked up grade and improve our homes and properties our efforts

over these many years have created neighborhoods surrounding the commercial area of uptown

Westerville that are highly desirable in the real estate market people want to live in this area

which feels like a small town where homes are modest and charming and the vibe is easy and assuming

and neighborly we are not a busy loud urban setting nor are we a country club setting we are

just small town as such a boutique hotel feels as if it could fit in with the right set back

from the street and the right building and landscape design a smaller attached restaurant might

also fit in if the design flows with the feel of the neighborhood in addition to parking that to

serve that facility which can add to the uptown public spaces would be expected our objection though

is to the injection of a very large urban feeling disruption to our way of life in this area

we object to the eye sore of an enormous five-story parking garage in our neighborhood

we object to the injection of 240 some new dwellings in the current plan which will overproud our streets

and turn our area into a high turnover not long-term residential area we question the necessity of a

3500 square foot restaurant being squeezed onto the property amidst all of the other facilities

we are concerned for our neighbors especially those on Walnut Street who have so thoughtfully

improved their homes and therefore our neighborhood only to have a city escape pop up in their

living room windows we are concerned about the proximity of this project to Whittier School

and Handby Park we are concerned about traffic considering the school bus flow and especially as

traffic flow into the neighborhood has already been compromised by new on-street parking on state

street overall the compact overprouded supersized buildings and the influx of so many transient

residents will forever change the character of our now desirable and lovely neighborhood please

counsel do not shoot yourselves in the foot we have a great thing going oh my time is up I apologize

I don't think that I was able to state my name which is Liz Ryan and I wanted to be able to do that

all right Terry Stolt thank you for the opportunity with all due respect I really

appreciated having this open house a couple weeks ago but it kind of take your name for us but I'm

sorry Terry Stolti from the vantage point of 200 East Walnut open house seemed a little disorganized

and I really didn't feel like I came away with the information I should have I've gotten a lot

information here tonight but what I would suggest because of this summer could we have a couple

of Q&As and that 915 date be pushed back so that's my comment because I think it would allow us more

time to really get to the bottom of what should really be the appropriate action to take for West

you thank you thank you and I see a rena run straight rena rena if you're here and you've missed it

we'll come back to oh there we are okay good evening my name is rena lunchroom and I have

looped on the last block of high off the avenue for more than 40 years uptown Westerville is charming

and lovely no building is taller than three stories a five-story plain concrete parking garage would

literally overshadow all the existing buildings and homes in the area of light the proposed

apartment complex in hotel would further detract from the charm of uptown the construction itself

would be loud and dirty and disruptive traffic wide it would be a nightmare a hotel staff and patrons

would add at least 100 vehicles 250 apartments with one or two residents per unit could add perhaps

400 more vehicles coming and going each day a restaurant and shop and shops would only add to

traffic issues delivery trucks would amplify traffic problems there are about 10 delivery trucks

daily on my block which only has 16 homes pedestrians and bicyclists on the bike path would be

negatively impacted would our would your elementary school has buses and cars dropping off and

picking up students mid-morning and mid-afternoon morning kindergartners are also picked up mid-day

after which afternoon kindergartners are dropped off linden middle school and westerville south high

school are about to walk away from wouldier different schedules and wouldier more traffic

state street going north has only one lane from speedway up to county line road traffic is already

two congested purposely adding hundreds of vehicles per day is beyond ridiculous thank you for

listening I'm into Joe Deeds my wife padded back here I live at 367 East Romance Street I've

been a resident here for 72 years so here's my proposed plan here's not good turn down that building

or use it for something sensible but before we do that all the employees at 64 East Romance Street

are have to go up to the new city building here's where they're going to park to screw up up town

westerville parking up there the idea here turn down that building giant parking lot people now

doing four-digital high and other events go by my house bicycles wagons with the kids and

wagons were going to go up by walking up town you can that's what we should be doing

the traffic situation I grew up here period all the grades I walked every school every day

mommy daddy didn't come pick me up and take me back before it's a school if you've been on that

street of all during traffic touring of those kids and the parents blocking you on a straight

to get it out have you been there to see that I don't think you have the other situation is we have

a fine fired police department if there happens to be a emergency it will happen it's just time

these people are being blocked in that street and one of the streets is called a 50% of all the

emergency vehicles being down that street every day I live there I know it's a mess something terrible

is going to happen here we do not need what you guys want it's out completely out of the question

the other thing is I think this is being favored on this I know they are we don't deny it

this way it is I think there's a meeting behind our backs these are residents are here as taxpayers

and we are going to stop this project meeting with the other biggest thing in this world today is

power and unity this is what this whole thing is about power and money period I'm not going to pull up with it

I knew these people are not going to pull up with it and this is just the beginning as far as I'm concerned

whatever their name is can they take and do their bills to another city not reptile period

they're in it I grew up where I've lived it so far they haven't had a desk on the

only street that I know of but believe me there's some wrecks out there I could live where I live

on a corner near a dancing woman sit out there on my swing watch it goes on every day

the city emergency slots fly by my house they made me people get the hell of the road they need to

slow up and the beta rules you people are just completely out of character what you want to do

here but I think having a nice parking lot there would be beautiful that would solve a lot of

parking problems immediately instead of adding to more problems that we don't need thank you your time

is expired that's fine

Nico troop yeah I've looked around uptown Westerville for most of my life I go to one of the elementary

schools close to Hanby Park every day I walk or bike on this trail and cross Walnut Street after

school I go to the library and hang out at the park with my friends if the hotel is booked there

I would not feel safe and I don't think my friends would either this community does not

or want a hotel by park the park the library and especially in the schools thank you for listening to me

I hope you don't approve this and I hope you wish I hope that you will listen to your community

name is Lindsay Bob and I live near county line in Audubine as an almost 40 year resident of

this city I have seen city council and city management make numerous development decisions that

infuriated the residents of Westerville but this proposed plan is the pinnacle of poor decision

making no one in the right mind or with any experience living in Westerville could look at this

plan and think this is a great decision or this is exactly what Westerville residents want

trust and Westerville's leadership has been waning for many years thanks to Gary Gardner's excellent

reporting the information we have learned regarding the behind the scenes decisions being made on

this proposal have decimated our trust and city leadership's ability to operate in our best

interests the fact this city has been in discussions about this property with developers for the

last two years without any input or notice the community is outrageous the fact that no formal

requests for for proposals were issued as a disservice to the residents and potential developers

who want to do business here let's call it for what it is this was a suspicious and disingenuous

deal by city leadership the people responsible for taking this proposal this far need to be held

accountable Rachel Ray obviously does not hold the same values or interests as a residents of

Westerville her history with continental raises many concerns and her vision of bringing

bridge park like development to Westerville does not belong here if we wanted if we wanted that we

would move to Dublin this is a pivotal moment for city council the decision you made tonight

and will make on the sale of this building will determine your future on council the only acceptable

action was to table the sale until the city has taken earnest effort to gather community input and

gather additional proposals for future development the pathetic and last minute attempts to hold the

open house was nothing but insulting and showed just how little you value our input the next steps for

you all to take to attempt to save face with our community is one to table any future action which

you've done congratulations to remove Rachel Ray and anyone else involved in this process up to

this point including our city manager if she was encouraging the decision and three seek genuine

involvement from the community not chase every available stream of income at the cost of our beautiful

and charming city in its residents we will be closely watching every decision you make and I'm

confident that anyone who votes to move forward on the sale as the proposal stands will not remain

on city council so vote wisely and maybe if you keep telling yourself that you value community

input involvement you'll start out from like it thank you Angela Troutsman Elizabeth Bouton thank you

for tabling the proposal could you state your name my name is Elizabeth Bouton

thank you for listening tonight I really appreciate all of the work that the council does genuinely

this is coming from my heart I'm a 25 year resident of Westerville I've raised kids here with my husband

we live off of walnut on su drive I think many of the things I've been thinking and feeling have

been said but I want to make sure that you take a moment to think about the loss of trust

among the residents tonight not specifically for city council but for staff

I think that you're also inspiring us to get a lot more involved so that that's a good thing

I'm going to read the city charter I'm going to investigate what I need to do to continue to show

out for my fellow residents and make sure that we're heard I'm a little concerned that

business has a great voice business development at Westerville but not so much it seems the

residents currently that seems a little bit out of whack I'm going to be paying income tax I voted

for that I'm happy to pay property taxes I vote and I just want to be heard we want to be heard

so thank you

also a little bit su drive I didn't know I was going to be showing up on my work first but

hey clearly there's been a lot of great comments tonight and I think based on those comments it seems

that the developer selected for 64 Eastwall and it's not a match for Westerville's community

priorities or culture and I question whether the city is even ready for more community meetings where

planners present conceptual designs rather than simply seek input from citizens for their own ideas

and conceptual for conceptual redevelopment or reuse at this point I think leadership should

needs to drop this cookie cutter developer and go back to square one on a using a community

different process for the planning process so just as important is the need for a policy update

ordinance to ensure development and planning processes are community driven and not just a

placebo for community involvement I spoke in a meeting earlier this year about the lack of

neighborhood input will review a final draft plans for redevelopment at Walnut Ridge Park and also

heard the same problem happen at Mezner Park and now this complete lack of community input for 64 East

wall and I realize that with surveys and strategies help frame community priorities and needs however

those are not substitute for community input on specific projects or redevelopment and feedback

must happen in the conceptual phase and before plans are final and not after designation for sale

to a developer or before going to the zoning board from a broader view more meaningful

community input and government feedback needs to happen across Westwall planning and development

from parks to economic development Westerville government leadership must seek meaningful

meaningful input from the community and most importantly the entire local neighborhood and

continue involvement and continue to involve not just properties that touch the development

for property but the entire neighborhood and just as important is the whole missing piece of

coming back to the same neighborhood to seek feedback on a final draft of the development plan

and that's part of a community's rather process and if you don't do that you're not achieving that

goal okay it's a pretty plan so what's happening right now is your doctor gives you an examination

offers you advice as for your input prescribed to treatment but never talks to you about how to

best manage the treatment and we know how poorly management treatment usually turns out

from a medical perspective we have citizen boards and they're great they're extremely useful

but they you know but you know neighbors are not familiar with the development process or

able to monitor monitor board agendas and attend meetings and boards are probably not

aware of unique neighborhood needs so thank you thank you Tracy Albert thank you Mayor Grimes

little city council members and city manager for allowing us the residents to give you our feedback

on this proposal my name is Tracy Albert I reside at 114 south summit street my house faces the park

what are yours in my backyard I just want to express my opposition to this plan

of selling this property to be developed into a five-story hotel and the permit complex

the traffic congestion that would result from this plan will negatively impact this area

any expansion of widening the street will result in loss of private property

additionally the vertical expansion of these buildings will infringe on our views and our

property values and the security of our neighborhood as a property owner in this neighborhood I'm

distressed to calculate the loss of value to our properties many of us have invested our

hearts and our finances to maintain and improve our properties in the spirit of uptown's charm

if the city needs to sell this property please consider more appropriate scale design that

I want to prove our neighborhood and not detract from it we the residents have entrusted you

the council to protect the charm of uptown if you vote in favor of this plan you'll be

caching in our equity and the investment that we the residents have made to preserve it

I encourage you to consider the welfare of our neighborhood and not to sell out to this

developer please entertain other prospects that will keep uptown green and friendly and please

don't pay for a paradise and put up a parking garage thank you billet stalter for to address

the one that I developed in plan it would be perplexing at best for child safety concerns be it

around an unsafe influx in traffic or increase in transient guests not to have already

disquated all present from moving forward with this plan to build in such close proximity to a

library three elementary schools and neighborhood parks we all understand the importance of revenue

but make no mistake it benefits no one in hopes of a quick sale to alienate or incite the community

through support of this alarming endeavor seemingly where child safety and welfare are no longer

top of mind passing the motion to postpone was a start please consider any efforts that might

result in an alternative plan which aligns with the values of west rural residents thank you

uh 116 east park I live right across from uh handy um so I want to express my concern as well

to the proposed hotel apartment complex development the issue is not about the opposing growth

of the investment in our town it is about ensuring development is appropriate for his location

and compatible with the surrounding community a hotel apartment complex brings significantly

different impacts than residential housing including increased traffic late night activity

lighting parking demand and pressure on local infrastructure our neighborhood was was designed

as a residential area and many families chose to live here because of its quiet small town

character I'm also concerned about the president at proving a commercial hospitality project in

the middle of a residential neighborhood could open the door for additional incompatible development

in the future I urge the council to consider whether this proposal truly aligns with the town's

long-term planning vision infrastructure capacity and commitment to protecting established neighborhoods

thank you very much thank you thank you next to that and Dickerson just as the initial end

and then Katie Downs Jenny Morgan hi Jenny Morgan Knox Street well I'll tell you this is

bum for the soul the civic engagement this is what is it is about it really is I say hats off

to all of us and also just an observation um you know do you have a business in the middle

cause people to leave I thought that was kind of an interesting choice um so I have a couple

points well another observation now let me go into the points I want to make one is I've been working

for 13 years to clean up the industrial site at 270 and route three uh started citizen

pollution watch and I tried to get a conversation with a city manager for like seven years and

haven't been able to so that's the first point secondly the lack of transparency is a pattern

this isn't just the first time it's happened this is a pattern this lack of transparency

case and point is the densifier that was going to go into my neighborhood which was going to

burn styrofoam or melt styrofoam and the citizens got organized much like this on a smaller

level and they stopped it what did we do to the attention of the staff that didn't do

their job and we brought to the attention micro plastics and then he was decided to shut that down

and it didn't happen because of civic engagement later was fired was he fired because of that I think

so it wasn't but he got fired and I don't think that's right but uh so also many years ago

rest of it went into township the joint development committee put together a 60 page development plan

to redo that industrial site to put in a hotel down there at 270 and route three where's that

it's said not a shelf why doesn't the hotel been down there to recite westerville that's just an idea

so these are my comments and I think it's really vocal and I really want to be the

feelings because now you find me listening I think that's rich you should have listened a long time

to go it's a pattern so fix it would you just fix it um silo Sean Turner my name is Sean

Turner with 423 Hickory Lane um I moved to your nine months ago I moved to your from Bexley

one of the reasons I moved out of Bexley is that I didn't like the direction of their main streets

and for eight years I was you guys I sat on the Bexley building zoning and planning work for eight years

I oversaw the Fitzgerald and I oversaw Frank Cass's other building which is the grammar scene downtown Bexley

there were promises and aid during hearings that were never done

they were supposed to be an underground parking garage of the grammar see they were supposed to be

public parking at the grammar see none of that was ever done and he talked about bringing a Fitzgerald

they talked about high end restaurants they talked about this you knew who's coming in the Fitzgerald

a camera Mitchell restaurant and Vivima you need to watch who you're working with

and when you look at his projects you look at the Fitzgerald you look at the entry to Arlington

they're big cubes there's nothing spectacular about them um so you just really need to watch

who you're working with when it comes to those um if it comes to this project parking

in design is wearable people are talking about a hundred hotel rooms I mean I do commercial

real estate for living generally we develop a hotel they look at six to eight

park trips a day per room this hotel is going to have almost 90 rooms so you're talking

almost what is that four hundred park trips a day from those cars you're going to block away

from the schools and with little kids the density is just too much for where you're trying to put it

and then if the city needs a hotel there's there's two sites for sale right now

on the south end of town there are both five acres or bigger if the city needs a hotel there's

other lots to develop you don't have to put it right on the edge of out town that makes no sense

and the last thing I'd say is I beg that you open this for RFP I've been parts of projects

that have been open for RFP for a lot of different companies you will be amazed at some of the

projects that come in that when they take into account what the citizens want what they can do

with the developers are going to do it's a totally different thing than getting it to one person

look at Pizuti's project down at Jordan Village where he read about Johnny it was going to be tall

he listening to the citizens it's not townhouses it's still dense for the market but it fits

in neighborhood he did a great job and what I know I got 20 seconds so the last thing I would say

is I think you guys are looking at this one you guys are looking at this one there hasn't been a

single citizen here that said this is a good project even with the Fitzgerald there are people

who haven't liked it I didn't but there are people who haven't liked it you guys are listening

you're an opportunity this is it this is a piece of property in downtown in Westerville that you

guys control and this can be your legacy you can put it in art center you can put a parking lot you

can do something that all the citizens want and then me you fire yeah obviously I'm sorry I cannot

speak tonight come on down Rob you need counsel thank you for your patience and sitting around

tonight to wait for all of us to to speak my name is Robert Schemney I live artichoke

here for you all by in cemetery if you want to wait for where this proposal is placed I'm not

here to oppose the development in Westerville I love the community and I want a tons of thrive

I'm here to reiterate your motion from earlier that the that the verse reading deserves harder

questions than what it received first the process of Westerville company champion companies spent

two years developing it was a proposal for a site and the cities at the city's invitation they

designed in the very hotel and garage components city officials requested they learned that the city

had moved continental from a new or sorry they had learned that the city had moved to continental

from a news article the city's own economic development director said that the rollout could have

been handled better on a public asset that is not good enough my question for counsel was a

formal RFP issued if not what legal review supported bypassing the competitive bidding to the

sale of public land second the financial story the city's community affairs director director told

the Columbus dispatch that this sale fulfills a promise to offset the cost of the justice center

as a direct quote but the justice center bowened totaled 17.1 million the city also spent 21

million renovating city hall as a prerequisite to even making this a sale possible and the city's

own staff reported report published alongside that statement confirmed the proceeds go into the

general fund not a bond retirement account the city of simultaneously claiming an offset and

admitting there is none at ask counsel clarify which is accurate residents deserve an honest accounting

of total public investment in this property before transfers to a private developer without the

competitive bidding third schools many people are very spoken about this our district passes

an emergency income tax levy last November after a current over 30 positions when a prior levy

failed the district had prepared a plan or prepared a plan to cut 44 elementary positions and

eliminate all day kindergarten that that levy failed to it passed barely according to the national

association home builders study using US census data rental occupied multi-family units generate

roughly point one three public school children per unit at 250 units you've got about 35 students

entering an already strange school district that has no margins for expansion a mask and

that a school capacity and fiscal impact study coordinated with western city schools be required

before the second reading fourth and finally traffic the city's own FAQ acknowledges traffic

as a top concern and commits to a third party study I do appreciate that piece but that study is

planned for after the sales approved one that street has two lanes the one that the state

street intersection is ready experiencing significant congestion at s council to require the traffic

study specifically studying that intersection at peak hours before the second reading not after

residents should be asked to accept a sale based on a trip generation manual averages when you

know what the actual intersection is like it's just down the street west of old calls itself a city

in the park time is expired thank you all right actually on Edgar uh Jay Graham

Dan Hessler oh no don't he's coming up oh sorry I didn't see him go there killer my name is

Dan Hessler I live at 53 church and roads so I'm just out spitting my age of where this is going in at

I want to make a couple of observations we want to appreciate the council

great uh taking action tonight getting it passed making good suggestions that was very good

on you know short notice like that um but we know city council is coming up city manager states

I think you got a what I've seen over my lifetime is that bureaucracies do control the people

coming and going I've seen it at the federal level and I've seen it here locally where

there's because smart people they have agendas and you guys need to control that and be

after the citizen right here thank you next here Kyle Lemieux Kyle Lemieux

is Kyle Lemieux I live on 46 Hyawatha Avenue um so just a couple streets south of

walnut here um what I have seen is kind of a prelude to what I think will happen if this

development goes in um Hyawatha is basically at the point where frustrated drivers get upset with

the changes that went on state street and they will speed down my street go up nox street

down west street just to avoid uptown when I first saw this development my first thought was that

I I couldn't even believe it was being considered what sort of gridlock would happen

now east and west and north and south it's already backed up from walnut street

and where would all those cars go um they're already going through the neighborhoods to avoid state

street um I'm sure that would go even further from there on out and these are frustrated drivers

that go speeding Hyawatha is also home to a long fellow elementary so there's that danger as well

with the elementary schools around uptown I fear for the students that walk from home to school

and from school to uptown and then from there on please look into if parents don't feel safe

with their kids walking would there be increased traffic from parents dropping their kids off

they already get backed up far down walnut with Hanby and Whittier there as well please do not take

for granted the walkability of west River I I'm a transplant here I grew up in a city where

it was more common to see a cross or memorial on the side of the road because of frustrated

and speeding drivers so reckless driving is something that is in the forefront of my mind

and one of my favorite parts about living here is being able to leave my house and not get in my car

thank you all of the names that I have on my list so at this time if there's anyone additional

who wants to speak even if you do not sign up you are welcome to come on down my name is Jackie

Keller I live at 30 east walnut street so this is obviously very concerning to me I'm already

very concerned with the rollout we were not given letters or told anything about it I found out

from a social media post screenshot from a friend that's how I found out about it I feel very

manipulated by the process I feel like just like when you take a flight you're told you get there at

230 in the airline get you there at 210 and you think hey they got me there early and they already

knew they were gonna get you there at 210 I feel like we were shown this monstrous insane

building that anyone with common sense would think was not good in the hopes that will choke down

maybe a three story one later in the process and I would just like to say none of that fits either

so I just really would like to all of you to think about the impact of our community I like to

guard in I already don't like to go out front much anymore because there's a whole line of cars

just staring at me while I work out there and I don't even know how this could handle all this

traffic and we see the kids walking to and from the schools every day and I just don't know how they

could safely even cross the streets anymore so thank you for your time and I'm just praying that

you will really pause this process and do it right because we've all lived there for many years

I lived there 25 years and it's just as heartening to think this is how we've been treated

with this process thank you my name is Eric Nagard I load 73 East Park Street my guard backs onto

this project and I'm really concerned about the size and scale of this thing we've got we've got

just 250 apartments and 81 rental spaces that's an awful lot of traffic stay straight and

wrongless street just can't handle that and I'm disappointed that the city staff doesn't seem to

see that earlier this evening the city manager enumerated a number of good development projects

that have happened around the city every one of those was relatively small scale and appropriate to

the site and the infrastructure that we have around them I'm just hoping that this one can be done

the same way thank you thank you thank you for being willing to stay here again take the

time to listen to us all um yesterday I got into the city's name oh sorry Mindy Nelson

sorry yesterday I got into the city's website and watched a video that was produced by the city called

city within a park and one of the comment or one of the um in the in the discussion of it it said

public engagement is the heart of everything that we do we want that to be true still I appreciate

pausing the readings um to give some time however at this point probably the biggest thing we need to do

is to start developing trust again amongst our leaders um uh for the city um I'd like to outline

some ways that they can that we can do that first of all do not consider continental at all they

need to be off the table there is no one in Westerville who now will trust that they have the best

interest of Westerville at heart there are 88 apartments currently available on department.com

for West in Westerville I don't know how we was up there are too many apartments available at this

point and we're and that would not be low income or affordable housing anyway which is what a common

problem um Westerville citizens say secondly start from ground zero even consider a town a square green

space we don't have to sell the property necessarily we can invest in what makes Westerville unique

we could have a cute little gazebo like they do in our in these little country towns

how for Friday activities at there we could make Westerville something to be really really unique

and preserve to me that is progress to understand the health and the and the physical well-being

of our citizens we should also do RFPs I don't know how that was again not part of the process

if rezoning needs to happen to be able to make RFPs as I was explained to that um

that uh to make sure that we don't get something industrial that's too large then let's consider

what zoning measures we need to take before we start that process finally create a community team

to truly partner with in this in this process the greatest group that you can partner with

is not a big developer but the community that is deeply rooted and invested in this community

that is where you will get the best ideas and the best support and the best preservation

of what truly makes uptown Westerville a joy it is the heart of our community

please let the heart of your community come be the heart amongst your decisions um we have a thousand

uh Westervilleans who have now signed a petition hoping that you would stop this sale

and they just wanted to let you know that so since not all of them could be here tonight obviously

that this is where it's going and it will continue to go until we get a real answer thank you

my name is Jessica Fushemi I live on one sweeper lane so right off Knox and Bishop area um

everybody has already said I think a lot of the huge points so I just want to say a couple things

thank you for staying and listening and actively engaging with us thank you to democracy this is

really cool thank you to Gary Gardner for informing us because literally no one will know what was

going on so thank you Gary you got a lot of shout out tonight but also also fiber that sounds

really cool and we're really excited about that seriously like I'm very very excited about the

fiber I don't think we gave enough time up here um but that's really cool maybe that building at

Walnut Street could be used for that thank you for your time it is dear justice and we live on

plain street almost on state street I've lived there for 42 years by choice I have lots of steps

and I think they should stay in there but I love the live but and I can't feel the look

themselves to live that I like them I want to tell you uh this is very personal I don't have all

the numbers about apartments and all that but when your star went in I thought lots of nice

restaurants but the parking lot you know they keep going to squeeze this but in the morning

I had the trash trucks and in the morning I had the delivered trucks they wake me up at five and

six every day so I can imagine what the people who live on Walnut and park and the streets around

there are going in here because this seems to be better than your star the other thing too is traffic

um I used to be able to just pull out of my street now I get to the end of the poem and I sometimes

have to wait five or eight minutes to even turn right to go south a left turn is totally out of

the question if I want to go more I have to go down my street across Knox and up Walnut to get

to a lot to get more and that's the way it is right now what's going to happen when all the

apartments and hotels go through I was very upset when um state street was reduced to one lane

I mean it was bad enough before but now it's really bad and I understand you have to have

excellent parking places for a facility and I'm wondering how many parking places you're going to

have to have for this restaurant and hotel uh right now I was told a long time ago that you know

with CVS and North Star and all that stuff there wouldn't be any parking or my street or my neighborhood

we can hardly get in out of our driveways because the people park so close when they're going to

North Star now this is personal and this is not right where the hotel's going to be but I am

anticipating that the people who live around there are going to have the same issues that I'm

dealing with right now and I feel bad for them the the homes on Walnut have really picked up they

look nice it's at part of the city that you know they restore the own homes as I have and

I just think it's disgraceful to consider putting what you are proposing there thank you.

My name is Candy Priestess I live off of Bishop I'm Royal Court I live there for 40 plus years

I drove a bus for Westerville I can tell you the noise and the traffic is awful we can't get

well I am retired now but the one I was driving we could hardly get in and out I can't imagine

building a hotel and apartments there with the beep beep beep for morning to night it's not a

morning it's not an afternoon it's morning afternoon and evening the noise um the apartments how do

you realize that they are right by a high school and middle school stadium where you have activities

going on day and night I still on my porch I can hear them I'm not complaining because it's school

but I can hear the football the track the soccer the baseball we um I don't mind growth two years

ago we were told when they took the parking on state street it made it a nightmare we couldn't

get up and down our street we couldn't get off our court so the Westerville did do us a favor

and they did make it one way parking it hasn't been a problem yet but it will be now that the

weather started again it it is very hard to get in and out um state street is a nightmare you cannot

move on the morning in the afternoon the school the walnut street with kids parking and going in

out um the school the time you can't move on walnut street I volunteer a lot I've had a lot of

volunteer jobs one of them was a friend of mine made a hotel in Westerville and ask if there was

any way I could possibly help clean some rooms for them because they couldn't get people to work

without how hard could it be to clean a room I've never seen such disgusting dirty rooms in my life

and the activities that go on in that hotel was unbelievable it's not family coming on vacation

and going to go to their room it's been the night it's not that they're coming um they're using that

for other things it it's not what we need the apartments how are they going to the traffic and

getting in and out how are they going to get in and out the library is a beautiful best facility

I've raised my kids they graduated from school here in Westerville I take my grandkids or did

until they're over now to the to the library it will not be safe it will not be what we want in

Westerville please consider it you didn't want it in your backyard I'm all four groups I'm

for the parking I think we could definitely benefit from the parking lot it could be a two-story

parking lot like say the ends parking lot we don't need five stories we don't need more apartments

and we definitely do not need it another hotel we have two of them already thank you for listening

to the chat to public comment or for the door madam chair respectfully can I ask anyone that spoke

that was not on the list to see deputy clerk kitchen at the back and make sure that you are

added to the list if you spoke but weren't on the list earlier thank you um my name's Nicole

Harvilla I live at 768 glacier pass in River Trace but I had a child who was looking to go to

handy and you can't hear me it's not better okay um and I I guess I just want to say there's

might seem small but I'm really I'm worried about everything I agree with every one thing that

everyone has said here but having a large parking garage right next to handy park will definitely

change I mean the library in the park if you have small kids which I've had two and then a

surprise third many years later it's not a separate area I can't tell you how many mornings and

afternoons you go to the library which one thing I love about the library is for everyone you have

books English and Somali and Spanish and Korean and all those kids meet and play and then we walk

to our cars which are in one of the two parking lots usually depending how full it is and they

getting you sure there's cars and they share snacks and they talk and then we move on to the park

I cannot imagine a five-story building right next to that park and having right now as a mom who

is raising future citizens of Westerville one thing that's special about it is when you're forced

to be moving slowly on a child's pace you notice we have a wide open blue sky we have the clouds

you feel like you are in a cradle with your children and of course I worry about parking and

why this bid is the surprise and all of that but I just want to like that one young child who

talked about going to school after going to the park after school I don't want to change that

or confine those kids to a really small area where they also might be in danger don't see anyone

surprising am I missing anyone okay no one's been on the post I'm just checking I'm giving a

there's anyone on the fence this is your moment okay seeing no one else all right this closes

citizens comments we are gonna move on to additional business is there any additional business by

staff nothing further thank you is there any additional business from council all right we are

going to go to council comments at this time miss back at your first um I didn't have any

comments prefer for tonight because I just wanted to be able to listen to all of you talk and just

take it in I do want to say thank you for speaking up thank you for your emails I've been trying to

reply to all the emails as passes I can it takes me a couple of days sometimes but I'm reading them

and seeing them and we're taking it in consideration there's a few things that I do want to I

as we said it counts how I do want to apologize by the way that this was rolled out I have heard

the disappointment and we are learning from those mistakes everybody all of us is that we're all

humans will make mistakes I know you guys feel like you have lost trust in the city but just

not that the person behind is a human that can make mistakes and we're there and we're learning

so I'm taking this moment to apologize for the way that it was rolled out take the ownership on

that but just also say like we're working on those mistakes we're working on the solutions we're

working in bringing the transparency that you guys want I do want to address the public process

because I did heard that a lot today and this is how you guys get involved when we're talking out

that we haven't listened to you guys or that we're not taking your comments into consideration

and the process has already started this is the first stage of the process we're at the beginning of

it nothing has been voted not decision has been made we're listening to you guys so your emails

you guys coming here for your city comments that's how you guys engage in this kind of process

also we do have to survey that we send yearly and you guys fill out and that's how we get guidance

see the stuff get guidance of what you guys are looking wanting care from the community care for

the city so that's how you guys getting both feeling that survey is how you guys getting both

and truly we live in a democracy when you guys vote us in you're voting someone that is representing

you our platforms when we run our election where our values our list that's what my values were

so when you guys elect your elected officials does a person that is going to represent you

and make sure that your voice is being heard all right things going to go based on what

every single person says probably not because we also taking consideration what the stuff comes with

our stuff and I understand that you guys have lost trust our stuff works day by day for this city

there is no one that knows the city better than the person that works for this city because day by day

care and they do their best for the city so we do trust on them to come for what is best for all of us

we have got give them guidance we have listened to a surveys so I just want to bring like

a moment of like let's take a moment of this breathe in I know that we're reading the emails

we're listening to your comments we're seeing the Facebook but also

let's don't go with attacks let's don't go with threats let's don't attack people

or bully our stuff just because I know you're passionate but we're all few months and I know

we're passionate about the mistakes that I'm highlighting the mistakes but please understand that

we're all few months we're all going to make mistakes we're doing our best and we do care about

the city and with Carol at Westerville that's it thank you Sir Washburn um you know I had a

couple people ask me today and a couple people I grew up with the route and the overflow

asked me if I was dreading coming tonight and I said no I signed up for this you know we're all

residents of Westerville you know we all love our city this is why we do it um and we do listen

to you and I will do my best to reply to all the emails I can we all have you know full-time

jobs and and we do rely on staff for a lot of information but we also rely on citizen input

and I would love to see more people here all the time I'm not going to say much else but thank you

all for coming but I will give one little plug to the sunrise rotary does the field of heroes this

weekend I hope to see you all out there thank you mr. Wright thank you I want to thank the

residents who have sent emails I will do my best to respond to everyone that has sent an email to

me um this is the second year of my second term and by far this has been the most memorable

and I want to thank each and every one of you that has come out and voiced your opinion

this is why I ran this is why I served to be responsive to the residents of this wonderful city

you have given me a shot in the arm which is what I needed thank you thank you

to those who have said that they want to get more involved please do come to the meetings if you

can't come to the meetings watch Westerville TV get involved the city manager invited you to

partake in the citizens academy do it it's a great way to get involved this is your city

only please there are plans that you can read that previous councils and previous residents were

involved in some of them were referenced tonight like advanced Westerville economic development

strategy and the exploration and discovery summary that were a part of the 64 Walnut

project read it you know dive into it the uptown plan dive into it the attainable housing study

dive into it the community plan dive into it the resident survey from this year the advocacy

um all the plans that residents like yourselves have been a part of familiarize yourself with

it read it civic engagement is important you know for those of you that I've been

watching council for the past couple of years no one passionate about a certain issue

um and it's not just my issue but it's an issue that's been brought up by previous councils

and previous residents and when I've been asked what do I want I don't have an answer because it's

not what I want it's what the residents have said that they wanted and that's what I always say

it's what's in the plan that's what I refer to so I'm inviting you to read those plans

and you know exactly what I want is what the residents have said that they want so thank you again

for giving me a shout in the arm I can smile again thank you that's all I have for tonight

thank you vice mayor stocker um yes I'm a few things tonight uh so first of all in the spirit

of engagement and I'm so glad so many people are here we are embarking on a new prose plan

prose stands for parks and recreation parks and recreational outdoor spaces plan so it's the future

plan priorities programming for parks and rec if you go to the western parks and rec website you

will see wander westerville and there's a further explanation about this plan there are opportunities

for public engagement um we will have an open house Thursday six to eight at the rec center they will

also have a booth at fourth Friday and a booth at the farmers market um there will be a survey

for people who can't make it out in person as well as additional pop-up opportunities and you'll

find all of that information on the website so I wanted to alert everybody about that if um

you're looking for other ways to get engaged um and then I also want to thank our economic

development director Rachel Ray and her team I know it can be difficult to see faces behind

the staff that works hard for our city every day but I've been working for the last five months

meeting those faces and I know that a lot of care and commitment to our community goes into any

proposal they bring to council uh Gary Gardner of the westernville news published an article today

that does an excellent job of detailing the process um laid out for the proposal as well as

um what has transpired so far I know there's a lot of Gary Gardner fans in the room so if you

haven't had a chance to read today's article um I highly recommend it it's very informative um I

want to share one particular quote from his article though um that illustrates the challenges

our economic development team face uh including housing and parking um he said uptown has limited

open land established historic charm and development constraints that leave few obvious locations

for a large parking structure um I share this quote only to illustrate the unique challenges our

economic development team face when trying to solve some of our development problems uh such as

parking particularly um in uptown uh I think Gary's article did a great job of illustrating the method

behind what understandably seems like madness that being said I would now like to turn to an

apology and a thank you for our community first I want to apologize to our residents for the way in

which you were informed about this proposal especially to those directly adjacent to the property

and therefore most impacting this experience does not rise to the standard of excellence we expect

of service and communication here in westerville that is our fault and for that I apologize

and for those of you who could make it here tonight who might be watching the recording because you

couldn't make it who emailed who attended an open house or council meet up who scheduled coffee with

me I want to thank you thank you for caring about your community so passionately thank you for

engaging even though there are a million other things that could probably use your attention

this week communities are stronger when residents are informed and engaged one of my favorite things

about westerville has always been the level of civic engagement that we enjoy and that's because

of people like you um thank you for making westerville the community that it is um lastly for those

that may not be aware I host a meet up once a month um I had an illness earlier this month and

I'm wrapping up the the year at school uh in the chaos of the last week I realized I never scheduled

maize meet up so I will be at marb coffee tomorrow from four to five um that's on shrock road

I know it's um late notice uh if you're available please feel free to stop by we can talk about

walnut any other city issues or you can just have a cup of coffee with one of your council members

if you can't make it but would still like to grab coffee send me an email and I will get some

things set up I'm not too keen on the reason for it but one of the things I have enjoyed the last

week is getting to know more of our residents and interacting personally with all of you this is

just the beginning of a conversation that I hope continues well into the future please continue to

use your voice reach out and give me the opportunity to listen to you and to know more of you

that's all thank you my friends it is nice going later because I I'm just going to echo what's been said

I am really excited this it was it was beautiful to see the engagement and everybody coming out

I agree with council member right um it was energizing although not always pleasant on this end but

we as mr. washburn said we signed up for it we're we're supposed to be the face the buck stops

with us so I would reiterate what member becket said please address everything to us you might be

frustrated with staff but the buck stops with us let us address staff I was really really really

pleased with the number of people that did that that voice their concerns without naming staff without

personal attacks on staff that was the overwhelming majority but I would ask is this process continues

because we are going to encourage you to continue and engage in the process with us that that staff

continues to stay out of your remarks it's on us to address it and we will address where where

things need to be because the buck stops with us were the ones that ran were the ones that are

supposed to be out in the public eye under your scrutiny because we report to you so please

allow us the time to do what needs to be done there as well um to to member right's point

before I ran I followed the west street process I attended all the planning commission meetings

and then the council meetings after that and it was amazing to see how the neighborhood organized

how they came and there were 10 people speaking and they all addressed their different points

it was an incredible amount of organization communication it brought the neighborhood together

and I was wondering what was going to come of that what were they going to do next and it's sad

to see every time there's a neighborhood that gets organized that momentum ends up stopping

I was convinced somebody from that neighborhood was going to run for council and there hasn't

been someone they just the momentum has stopped and I hope that you all as you discuss and talk

with your neighbors and continue to engage step into all those spaces the pros plan is being

redone there will be opportunities for the new comp plan um and continuing to engage in every

process a lot of discussion has been about the cultural arts center we've been having the

western ball for so long trying to fundraise for a cultural art not council as in the arts council

hosting the western ball for years Melissa and I that's one of our favorite events to attend

there's even a committee that's currently organized with different partners trying to work out

a cultural arts center performing arts space it's a ton of capital that's needed as a

news paying member of the arts council and a participant of many things I encourage everyone to come

out engage with the arts council volunteer perhaps become a do's paying member and engage in

that process of getting a cultural arts center it a lot of people are saying I want it

I want it too but there's a lot more legwork that has to go into something like that than what's

being asked um so continue to engage sign up we hope to continue to see here and all the open

houses as well it was really energizing to to hear from you all so thank you very much

thank you nice mayor glass bill nice mayor nice it's been a long night it has been a long night

I appreciate you all staying here to the to the very end I'm going to try and stick to the three

minutes restriction that you all were subject to as well so tonight is about your views as citizens

I want to thank as other members here did thank you for all the emails and the comments tonight

which have been thoughtful and reasonable and we're listening because it's about your views tonight

I'm not going to get into how or why we got here or to defend council or the city I really feel

when you get down to it people you all people that have been here tonight just want to feel like

this process will go on a different trajectory that we're hearing you and this process are going

on a different trajectory I hope to the vote tonight and what we do after this we'll show you that

we will we're set on a different trajectory than what was announced I have a practice

of sitting out in front of city hall as much as I can and the weather's nice so I'll put

lawn chairs out and just listen to anybody that will come talk to me chair bring cider has done

this with me other council members have done I'm sorry have done this with me I will be trying

to commit to do that twice a month at least every other week basically just sit out for anybody

to come talk to I would absolutely love to see everybody out here come talk to me we'll talk about

anything including this as somebody up here said were your representatives this is what we're

voted for so please please feel free to approach me and I think everybody else here fourth

Fridays markets wherever wherever you see us we're open to talk about this or anything else thank

you I'll keep my brief tonight as well I do want to reiterate what's been said about staff and

and I also like to maybe offer a little defense of my fellow council members and I know that we

all sit up here we my fellow council members genuinely care about the city they may not agree

or may not have the same ideas as you but they do care I love the resident engagement this is

fantastic and also to ever who stayed gold star a plus but I would love to see this on a more

consistent basis because there are some areas where we absolutely need to improve our communication

without a doubt but there are some areas where we talk about these things every other Tuesday we're

here but people are not engaging with us until it's an issue that they care about which I get

but sometimes it doesn't mean we're not transparent it just means no one was really watching

so I guess back to my council members we all care this project and sometimes we get things

that are proposed to us it's not fully baked it's an idea it's a hey we have heard a lot of

resident feedback want a parking deck and up down you want housing so let's see what that might

look like and when the feedback is nope that's not good that's okay these are legitimate concerns that

people are bringing to us and I think we all are very open to that but it's not we're not proposing

something and the staff is not proposing something to hurt anyone we are trying to be responsive

to what we've heard and maybe we missed the mark on that maybe that needs some changing that's fine

we'll listen and we'll do that but it's not from a place of trying to get any money or power I

mean I think we all sit up here we all have two jobs I don't know where the money or the power is

but it's not here these people I sit up here with they do this because they love it and they

care about the city and we do want to hear your feedback but it is hard to hear the negative comments

especially about staff I won't dwell on that too much but I do know that we have an excellent staff

they care about this city they work very hard and in regards to Rachel and Monica so many things

that you guys love about this city are a direct result of their efforts and their work

so it is very hard to sit up here and listen to those personal attacks knowing what we know about

their work ethic and their work output this project we hear you might not be the right fit in the

iteration that we have seen and that is okay but that does not mean that our staff are bad people

don't care about the city and I just want to lay that on the table in terms of citizen engagement

there's been a lot of things offered here tonight I'm glad the pros plan meeting was brought up

I think those are great I would love to see you all at more council meetings send us your emails

and part of this process for me has illustrated that we do hear a lot of requests for housing

we get a lot of requests from mixed use development we get a lot of requests for these things in

uptown what I'm hearing tonight is those voices are very different voices than these voices in the

room but we need to hear your voices as well because if we don't then the only voices we're hearing

are saying why don't we have a parking ticket uptown why is them more housing so we're like okay we'll

try to be responsive to that we need you guys to show we to share your voices too so that we can

say but actually we're hearing more on this area as well that's helpful for us moving forward

uh I think I'll keep that at that tonight our next meeting is June 2nd at 7 p.m. right here

there's plenty of space for everyone we will always take all the time to listen to everyone's

comments feel free to come back uh with that I will entertain a motion to adjourn some moves

cycle take it it's called a roll mr. washburn yeah mayor grimes yes vice mayor stalker yes mr.

right yes vice chair glass go yes miss Beckett yes madam chair say yes we are adjourned