Photo courtesy of the City of Upper Arlington
Upper Arlington has a lot planned for 2017.
Several new construction projects will begin as others are finished in the months ahead. The City is projected to spend more than $100 million on construction activity in 2016, which is a new record.
“We do not see any signs of slowing down at this point,” says Planning Officer Justin Milam.
The upcoming year will likely follow the recent trend in spending with projects and partnerships such as the one the city has with the Kroger Company. Kroger owns the vacant property where Macy’s used to be at Kingsdale Shopping Center.
There is community concern over what will become of the vacant lot. A community center was proposed for the space back in 2002, but a public vote decided against the center two-to-one. No formal plans have been submitted at this point, but the City looks forward to working with Kroger to meet the standards of the Board of Zoning and Planning (BZAP) and the community.
Photo courtesy of the City of Upper Arlington
“We have been told that a mixed-use center including a grocery store will ultimately be proposed,” says Senior Planning Officer Chad Gibson.
OhioHealth will open up a new medical office building in early 2017. The two-story structure occupies 26,600 square feet and is located at 3363 Tremont Rd. The new medical building will provide first floor neuro-rehabilitation, family practice and lab services. The project also includes 110 parking spaces, which will be built on two recently rezoned properties neighboring the main lot.
The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center’s new five-story medical office building will no longer have vacant space. The 105,000-square-foot office building will fill in vacancies with optometry and dentistry offices. This facility has been open, but not full, since this past August.
Upper Arlington Veterinary Hospital is relocating and renovating a two-story office building at 1515 W. Lane Ave. The new center will merge two existing practices – Northstar Animal Care in Grandview and Upper Arlington Veterinary Hospital, currently located on Northstar Road – into one superior facility.
Milam says the City is looking forward to the continued redevelopment of Lane Avenue. Multiple projects in this area will be under way in 2017, including Shops on Lane and Arlington Gateway.
Photo courtesy of the City of Upper Arlington
Shops on Lane, a new outbuilding in front of Whole Foods, will open in 2017. The 6,623- square-foot retail building, located near the intersection of Lane Avenue and Beaumont Road, is just one story and will be home to Mutts & Co. and another future tenant.
Arlington Gateway, a seven-story mixed-use building, was approved earlier this year by the BZAP near the corner of Lane Avenue and North Star Road.
The building includes a 14,000-square-foot ground floor with both retail and restaurant spaces. The second floor will be 18,670 square feet of office space, in addition to 85 condominiums and apartments. The project also includes a 4.5-story, 271-space parking garage.
Upper Arlington spent $94.7 million in 2015 on construction and redevelopment, which it will surpass in 2016 with an expected total coming in at over $100 million.
“This extraordinary level of reinvestment is remarkable for a community of Upper Arlington’s size and character,” says Gibson. “As a landlocked, inner-ring suburb, redevelopment accounts for nearly all of this construction.”
Stay informed and up to date on the City’s future construction projects by visiting www.uaoh.net, where current projects are listed under community development. Some projects include renderings.
Jenny Wise is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at hbealer@cityscenecolumbus.com.
