Business & Development

Business & Development / Business Guide

Introduction | Economic Development Insight | Business Survey

Economic Development Insight

Master Plan

- Master Plan Introduction
- Community Process in Creating the Master Plan
- Conceptual Plan
- Zoning and Building Codes Explained
- Link to Master Plan section

Community Process in Creating the Master Plan

In February 1998 and at City Council’s request, the City initiated a process to update the community’s Master Plan. Upper Arlington’s previous planning document, the Comprehensive Master Plan which was adopted in 1962, was very much out of date and not representative of the community’s current makeup and needs.

From the conception of this process, primary goals were to identify the means to preserve and enhance the community’s overall quality of life and to provide a clear decision-making framework for a broad-range of City issues.

For this document to become a successful and comprehensive set of guidelines for the community, it was recognized that the review and update process should be open to any and all stakeholders in Upper Arlington.

The City’s commitment to engaging in a community-based process began with the formation of a 35-member steering committee – the Community Vision Partnership. This group was comprised of residents, business leaders, representatives of civic and neighborhood organizations, and elected and appointed officials of the community.

The Community Vision Partnership (CVP) was charged with leading and overseeing the planning process – which entailed a review and update of the outdated plan, and the integration of new elements – to ensure that the new Master Plan reflected the needs and desires of the community as a whole.

The Community Vision Partnership hosted a series of public meetings beginning April 1999. Through these meetings, hundreds of Upper Arlington residents and business citizens participated in extensive visioning activities. They generated numerous ideas on what they wanted to see in Upper Arlington’s future, helped combine these ideas into groupings of community goals, and identified realistic strategies for achieving those goals.

Following a three-year review and update process, the Master Plan was adopted by Upper Arlington City Council March 2001.

The City continues to seek community input on the Master Plan and its implementation.

In the summer of 2003, the City undertook an extensive Community Survey, with a series of questions dedicated to the Master Plan, economic development and community goals for the limited commercial space. Here’s what emerged from this survey:
- A majority of residents surveyed agree the City should expand its commercial tax base.
- They believe the Kingsdale Shopping Center should be redeveloped as a town center with a variety of use, and the City should take an aggressive role in facilitating this redevelopment.
- They agree the City should use tools like Tax Increment Financing to attract businesses, as other communities do.

In the fall of 2003, a series of Public Forums focused on Master Plan progress, regionalism, the issues facing older, landlocked first-suburbs like Upper Arlington, and new urbanism principles developed to create successful town center with a sense of place. Again, the message from participants was to place continued emphasis on economic development and a reinvention of our commercial districts.

Matt Shad
Deputy City Manager-Economic Development
City Manager's Office
City of Upper Arlington
3600 Tremont Road
Upper Arlington, Ohio 43221
Phone: 614-583-5046
www.ua-ohio.net