The pieces of the Beulah Park site’s future are coming together as a new development nears completion and residents begin to move in.
When completed, Beulah Park Living will feature 900-plus dwellings, including townhomes, apartments, custom homes, senior living, 58 acres of green space and some commercial space. The development is among the latest to follow a national trend, and brings new urbanism to central Ohio.
“The Beulah design of a community neighborhood emphasizing quality of life and wellness for its residents is as important now as ever,” says Pat Kelley of Falco, Smith & Kelley Ltd. and the project’s developer. “The private, diverse living options strategically oriented to the passive Central Park and nature paths is aesthetically appealing and inviting. It’s all about enjoying where you live.”
Beulah Park has a rich history going back to the late 19th century and was known for its thoroughbred and greyhound races.
A rendering of a memorial sculpture for the Beulah Park Living development and honor the site’s horse racing past.
“Beulah Park is a central component of our community’s history and success. We realized any plan for the site must respect and honor its historical significance while accommodating our community’s growing needs,” says Grove City Mayor Richard L. “Ike” Stage. “The new mixed-use development is truly something special and unique. The urbanist design elements were creatively blended with historical features preserving its early 1900s thoroughbred racing and entertainment history.”
Adam Grant created Beulah Park in 1889 as a community gathering place, according to the Southwest Franklin County Historical Society. He named the park after his daughter. The park was once home to the Franklin County Fair and the Grove City Fair.
Thoroughbred horse racing at the Beulah Park race track had been a major form of entertainment in Grove City for nearly a century. The last race at the track was on May 3, 2014, bringing a conclusion to the area’s past. Its future, however, began on May 3, 2019, with the groundbreaking of the Beulah Park development.
The groundbreaking of the development occurred on May 3, 2019, exactly five years after the final horse race. From left to right, Dr. Bill Wise, superintendent of South-Western City Schools, then-Council President Steve Robinette, city administrator Chuck Boso, council member Ted Berry, Mayor Ike Stage, developer Pat Kelley and council member Roby Schottke.
The project is similar to the Evans Farm and Bridge Park developments in Lewis Center and Dublin respectively, as Beulah Park embraces the concept of new urbanism and walkable communities. Unlike Evans Farm, Beulah Park won’t have to wait for its town center as the 220-acre site is adjacent to Grove City’s historic one, already filled with dining, retail and entertainment. Development residents will be able to walk the extended Columbus Street to get a cup of coffee, lunch or visit regular events such as the Grove City Area Chamber Farmers’ Market and Summer Sizzle Concert Series.
“That’s an incredible opportunity that you don’t find very often,” says Sarah Backiewicz, Beulah Park director. “There’s such a desire to live somewhere with walkability.”
Based on a master plan, the development is divided into six communities: the Paddock, Beulah Place, the Courtyards, the Grove, the Townhomes and retirement community Danbury.
“The developer and all parties are sticking strongly to that plan, which gives residents a good sense of security,” Backiewicz says.
Progress has been made for all communities with infrastructure completed and landscaping in progress, she adds.
Club houses for some of the communities will be completed this year and others are breaking ground for new home builds. The Townhomes will start accepting residents next year.
“One of our future residents called (the development) an urban oasis,” Backiewicz says.
In addition, the green space will include a 32-acre central park open to the public. Plans are in place to install a memorial to pay homage to Beulah Park’s racing heritage. The memorial’s unveiling is tentatively scheduled for September.
The development will also be home to the new Brookpark Middle School, a planned amphitheater to be known as the Southwest Franklin County Performing Arts Center and a commercial corridor along Southwest Boulevard.
More rooftops means increased foot traffic for Grove City’s historic town center, Backiewicz says.
She notes that whenever she talks with Grove City residents they always bring up that the town center is their favorite thing about the city – second to the people who live in the area.
“Our culture is starved for walkable places that have an incredible sense of place. Beulah Park allows residents a vast amount of walkable space with parks and sidewalks and is an extension of the existing historic downtown which creates one intact entity that is connected,” says Francis Pompey of Keller Williams Premier Realty, the listing agent for 84 custom homes at the Paddock.
“Beulah Park works because it’s an extension of an existing historic town center,” he adds. “This new urbanism works because it mimics the old urbanism nearby, and ends up expanding upon a cluster of walkable, bikeable destinations within a confined radius. This is truly the idea of new urbanism at its best.”
Brandon Klein is the editor. Feedback welcome at bklein@cityscenemediagroup.com.
