Introduction | Summary | Master Plan Document | Annual Reports | Implementation Strategies
2002 Master Plan Annual Report
Introduction
2002 Annual Report | Land Use | Economic Development | Community Appearance | Community Facilities and Services | Housing | Transportation | Implementation
Upper Arlington’s new Master Plan was adopted March 26, 2001, following three years of planning and participation from numerous community members.
Landlocked and fully developed, less than five percent of the City’s land use is dedicated to commercial activities and, of this, only 1.1 percent is in office use. Local income tax is a key revenue source and, as such, infrastructure maintenance and City service demands are outpacing the City’s funding capacity. Wishing to address these issues, Upper Arlington City Council initiated an update to the City’s 1962 Master Plan.
Eight goals helped direct development of the new Master Plan:
· Land Use - Recognize the City’s residential nature while enhancing redevelopment and revitalization.
· Economy - Place emphasis on creating a stronger, more diverse economy.
· Community Appearance - Preserve and enhance neighborhoods, natural surroundings and architectural amenities.
· Community Facilities - Maintain/expand community facilities for recreational, social and cultural opportunities.
· Community Services - Provide high-quality, cost-effective community services.
· Housing - Facilitate provision of a range of well-built housing to accommodate all ages.
· Transportation - Provide a comprehensive, safe and convenient network.
· Implementation - Emphasize accountability, fiscal soundness, monitoring and appropriate regulations, while fostering citizen and business involvement.
From these goals, 184 specific strategies for implementation were developed falling within four key actions the City must undertake to realize the overall goals of the Plan:
· Undertake redevelopment using the Study Areas as the framework - Several key areas are identified for potential redevelopment to create a mix of office, retail, residential, and civic use. These areas are: Kingsdale Shopping Center; Tremont Center; Henderson Road corridor; Lane Avenue corridor; Northwest Boulevard (south of Zollinger); the Mallway; and commercial areas along SR 33.
· Create land use tools - Develop tools to enhance and protect the City’s character while giving guidance and control for redevelopment. Update the City’s Planning and Zoning Code and create a series of development standards and guidelines to permit and encourage mixed-use development.
· Provide incentives to encourage desirable change - To stay competitive in the region and attract desirable development, consider a combination of economic and zoning incentives.
· Improve the City’s fiscal capacity - To ensure the community has adequate, stable funding, redevelopment strategies should encourage intensified land use in existing commercial areas and emphasize office development to generate new revenues.
Methodology in Preparation for the
2002 Master Plan Annual Report
Staff continued to build upon the approach taken to prepare for the 2001 Master Plan Annual Report. At that time, lead departments/areas of expertise were assigned for each strategy, and appropriate members of staff took responsibility for conferring with other involved stakeholders to prepare a summary of achievements from the previous 12 months.
By the very nature of the Master Plan, staff recognizes that significant progress would be and already had been made early on in the implementation phase, and this level of progress would likely trail off over time. In addition, themes will begin to evolve that should be addressed by the community, either in the immediate future or during the 10-year Master Plan update process. As such, staff determined it should take a slightly different approach this year to best facilitate these processes.
While not completed, approximately 40 percent of all strategies are achieved annually as part of the regular course of City business. As others are successfully addressed, they are being identified as such, at this point representing approximately 15 percent of the 184 strategies. Some of these completed strategies will likely not be readdressed in subsequent Master Plan Annual Reports, while others may continue to be monitored to ensure the desired change in the community is occurring successfully as a result of the strategy being completed.
In addition, several strategies are very similar to each other, and staff has begun to identify redundancies and make recommendations for combining them. These redundancies represent approximately nine percent of the 184 strategies.
The City of Upper Arlington Master Plan is the community’s vision for its future therefore the continued involvement of key stakeholders, namely our residents and corporate citizens, is a crucial part of the implementation process. Staff is recommending that some form of community review process be undertaken in 2003. It could involve reconvening the Community Vision Partnership or creating a City Council subcommittee, with opportunities for public participation through town meetings and/or focus groups.
This would provide an appropriate process for:
· Staff to present an overview of progress made to date.
· Staff to highlight any issues it believes should be addressed in the immediate future.
· Offering residents an opportunity to gain a renewed focus and understanding of the overriding goals of the Master Plan.
· Citizens to provide feedback on how well the Master Plan implementation is addressing their desires and needs, and to identify any issues that currently are not incorporated into the Master Plan.
· City Council to provide direction to staff regarding subsequent work to implement the Master Plan goals.
Key Initiatives in 2002
Following adoption of the Master Plan, two major initiatives were triggered to lay the foundation toward achieving many of the goals and strategies within the Plan.
Unified Development Ordinance
Following a major review of the City’s Planning and Zoning Code in 2001, coordinated by the Development Department, Upper Arlington City Council adopted the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) on April 22, 2002, making Upper Arlington one of the first communities in the Midwest to implement this form of Zoning Code.
A UDO merges the zoning, subdivision and related development provisions into a single ordinance. The end result is a simplified development approval process, streamlined administrative procedures and practices, and a more user-friendly process for developers. Since its adoption and the ensuing implementation, the UDO has been well received by both staff and customers alike.
Upper Arlington’s UDO addresses all development regulation strategies recommended in the Master Plan, including:
· The creation of overlay zoning districts for the City’s commercial areas, known as Planned Mixed-Use Developments, setting the stage for future redevelopment to better serve the community as a whole and maximize the tax base potential.
· Residential conservation guidelines.
· Street and walkway connectivity and pedestrian orientation.
· Commercial design standards and guidelines.
· Zoning incentives.
· Multi-family design standards.
· Increased landscaping and screening standards for commercial development.
As the 2002 Master Plan Annual Report document will show, completion and subsequent implementation of the UDO has successfully addressed numerous strategies and goals of the Master Plan. However, the Development Department continues to monitor progress made within these strategies, as many are dependent upon the occurrence of redevelopment in the community, in particular the City’s commercial districts. It is anticipated that minor amendments to the UDO may be necessary over time, or more significant recommendations for change could evolve leading up to the 10-year Master Plan update.
Capital Improvements Program
The City continued its commitment to improving its aging infrastructure in 2002. The Financial Review Committee was able to identify additional funds, extending the Capital Improvements Program through at least 2009. As a result, approximately five million dollars per year will be dedicated to such improvements, placing continued emphasis on enhancing the City’s roads, sewers, waterlines and streetlights.
At the close of 2001, City Council directed Staff to dedicate unanticipated revenues toward road improvements, with the City undergoing its busiest construction season in its history in 2002. More than 100 streets received improvements totaling $4.8 million. This emphasis on road improvements is set to continue again in 2003.
Kingsdale Shopping Center
At its September 9, 2002 meeting, City Council authorized the City Manager to enter into a Letter of Understanding with Regency Centers, LLC for the purchase of 14.248 acres of land at the Kingsdale Shopping Center for $12.65 million. The parcel of land included Goodyear, Swan Cleaners and Steinmart, running north to immediately south of Lazarus, including parking lots on both sides (east and west).
As is standard in the real estate industry, the purchase agreement included a due diligence phase, enabling the City to review information it could not otherwise have accessed, such as tenant leases, environmental studies, infrastructure, and structural integrity. In December, the due diligence phase was extended to January 31, 2003 in order to complete the necessary research.
On January 27, 2003 and based on Staff’s recommendation, City Council terminated the purchase agreement. Through the due diligence period, it became apparent that certain parameters or requirements within some tenant leases reduced the amount of control the City would have had over the piece of land being purchased. While these issues could likely be resolved given the right set of circumstances, it was not feasible within the due diligence timeframe, which could not be extended further. A situation such as this is not unusual for a commercial real estate transaction of such complexity.
Had the City completed the purchase, this short-term investment would have represented a significant milestone in realizing the Master Plan vision of creating a thriving town center at Kingsdale, valued for its central location within a strong residential community, intensifying land use, and maximizing commercial tax base potential. While not the only scenario suggested, the Master Plan recognizes that land acquisition is an effective means to stimulate investment and redevelopment. As the property owner, the City would then have competitively selected a development team to meet its redevelopment goals.
In the coming months, the City and Regency Centers, LLC will continue to review and discuss options assuring that the Kingsdale redevelopment remains a primary goal for Upper Arlington.
Proposed Community Center
At the request of many members of the community, the City continued to investigate the feasibility of building a community center.
Following the original work in 2000 by members of the Community Center Task Force (CCTF) which recommended the City should pursue the development of a community center, and the work of the CCTF successor group in 2001 during which time a telephone survey and private fundraising feasibility study were undertaken, 2002 was the year to bring this issue to resolution.
Several issues were addressed in 2002 to prepare for the November ballot issue:
- Facilities – City Council took the CCTF recommendation to pursue extensive facilities, including two swimming pools, a gymnasium, running/walking track, fitness area, aerobics/dance studio, senior center, community hall, meeting space, and support facilities such as a kitchen, lobby and locker rooms.
- Cost – Ruscilli Construction applied real construction costs to the proposed facility, estimating it would cost approximately $27 million, plus the cost for land.
- Funding – the private fundraising feasibility study had indicated that $10 million in donations could be achieved therefore $17 million in public funds, plus approximately $500,000 annually to subsidize operating and maintenance costs, would be required.
- Joint Recreation District - the City and the Schools agreed to form a Joint Recreation District, allowing for a one-time property tax Operating Levy of 1.5 mills, to provide long-term funding for construction, operation and maintenance of the facility.
- Location – Kingsdale Shopping Center was the CCTF’s recommended location, and the City’s announcement in September 2002 that it intended to purchase the Kingsdale core, would have enabled the community center to serve as the civic use within the mixed-use redevelopment.
Ultimately, the majority of residents chose not to support an increase in their property taxes to facilitate construction of an Upper Arlington community center.
Transportation Plan
Reviewing the City’s short- and long-term transportation and infrastructure needs is another Master Plan priority. Following extensive work in 2001, coordinated by the Public Services Department, City Council accepted the updated Transportation Plan to serve as the guiding document for the City’s infrastructure needs in the coming decades.
The plan addresses key desires that arose from community meetings during the update phase:
· Slow down traffic
· Divert through traffic
· Build safe crosswalks for pedestrians
· Build sidewalks and bike paths
· Mix land uses and plant more trees
The updated Transportation Plan focuses on moving motorists, bicyclists, pedestrians and public transportation efficiently through the City, while supporting a healthy community.
Proposed treatments for the City’s primary streets would incorporate various traffic calming elements such as roundabouts, separate bike and walking paths, raised middle lanes at turns/intersections and more. Combined, the proposed improvements have been proven in other communities to reduce speeds, maintain steady traffic, reduce noise and provide more pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly thoroughfares.
Determining the possible implementation of the proposed treatments laid out within the Transportation Plan is pending. In some instances, implementation may be triggered as opportunities for redevelopment in the City’s commercial districts occur, especially Kingsdale. In other cases, opportunities for implementation will arise for consideration as arterial streets undergo significant rehabilitation work.
Outdoor Pools
As the City investigated options for creating new recreational facilities through the proposed community center in 2002, work began to address the needs of some existing but aging facilities – the City’s three outdoor pools.
Following many months of work to determine the best way forward between the City and the Schools, ownership of the three outdoor pools was transferred to the City in February 2003. The City has managed and maintained the pools for several years but was somewhat limited in what it could do with regard to necessary upgrades for these aging facilities. Assuming ownership has enabled the City to take a long-range look at the pools and their role in the community’s recreation and leisure facilities.
At the beginning of 2003, staff presented to City Council an overview of recommended steps to develop a Pools Master Plan. As part of this plan, the community will be invited to participate in a series of public meetings to receive input, ideas and to discuss options for the three pools.
Ideas to be considered during this process include the creation of three unique aquatic environments, with a different recreational emphasis at each location. Aquatic features might include lap lanes, a pool geared for competition, diving boards, a diving well, waterslide and other play features, a lazy river, spray-ground, and more.
The ideas and key wishes generated by the public meetings will evolve into more concrete plans for the pools, with cost estimates assigned. Under City Council guidance, work will be undertaken to explore how to fund these improvements, and to prioritize implementation of the Pools Master Plan, most likely over a period of several years.
Conclusion
Significant progress has been and continues to be made toward realizing the 184 strategies and overall goals of the Upper Arlington Master Plan. Approximately 40 percent of all strategies are addressed annually as part of the regular course of City business. Nearly 15 percent of the strategies are considered complete, with recommendations to monitor several on an ongoing basis to determine if any adjustments are necessary over time. With an additional nine percent of strategies identified as duplicates, more than half of the Master Plan document has been addressed in a meaningful way in just two years.
The Master Plan primary goal to preserve and enhance the community’s overall quality of life while assuring fiscal stability over the long term is an easy concept to embrace, however finding the means to realize this goal is the challenge that the community currently faces.
Major Master Plan initiatives are reliant on market forces and the occurrence of redevelopment opportunities. In addition, the needs and desires of our citizenry will evolve over time. Not every avenue explored will be accepted by the community or advantageous for implementation by the City, but we should continue to embrace new and innovative approaches to any given issue or strategy in order to identify what will be a good fit for Upper Arlington.
Just as it took many decades for the City to grow and prosper since its inception at the turn of the last Century, the interpretation and implementation of the Master Plan will take many decades. Preparing an annual report, a strategy identified within the Master Plan, provides a convenient means to monitor progress over the short-term, and to identify unexpected issues and developments that may trigger Master Plan adjustments, as a prelude to a complete review and update in 2011.
City Manager's Office
City of Upper Arlington
3600 Tremont Road
Upper Arlington, OH 43221
Phone: 614-583-5040
Fax: 457-6620
www.ua-ohio.net
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