![]() Investments from Intel, Honda, and others confirm what we already know: this is a great place to call home. Together we’ve built a growing region vibrant with opportunities, one that’s attracting new people and businesses and enticing our children and graduates to stay. This is an exciting time for Central Ohio. “The movement of people and goods in an efficient manner is always good.”Īlan Miller writes for, the nonprofit news organization of Denison University’s journalism program, which is funded in part by the Mellon Foundation.Published in the Columbus Dispatch, January 31, 2023 “I’m sure that a creative solution is needed,” she said. 62 and 37 in Johnstown, in particular - is beyond capacity. She said that traffic on existing main routes in the Johnstown area - the intersection of Rts. “That came up several months ago, but I’m not aware of a formal request,” she said. He encouraged local residents who might be concerned about growth and development to attend meetings of local government officials and talk with their state representatives.Īlexis Fitzsimmons, executive director of Grow Licking County, an economic development organization, said she is aware of a consultant’s work to study the feasibility of an outer-outerbelt. “It depends on who you talk with about whether that’s positive or negative,” Lenner said. … It would change the character of the area. “With a major transportation corridor, it would only bring more development. “There is so much development heading our way - that would only exacerbate it,” he said. If a connector road were built between I-71 and I-70 around Johnstown, it could be the start of another ring freeway around Columbus and its suburbs.Īnd with it, Lenner said, would come more development. 33.”Īn “outer-outerbelt” around the Columbus metropolitan area has been discussed for decades. “I’ve seen maps conceptually showing a connector continuing south of I-70 to connect with Rt. He said that he is aware of “discussions of concepts” of a connector, but it is unclear at this point whether it would be a new road or the widening of existing roads. Jim Lenner, former Johnstown city manager and now president of Neighborhood Strategies consulting, is working with some communities in western Licking County. She said she is very concerned about the changes a connector road would bring to the area. “I know this: If New Albany Company is behind it, it will be done,” said Stephanie Taylor, an Alexandria resident who is helping lead a grassroots campaign against placing two asphalt manufacturing plants along Raccoon Creek and Route 37 on the edges of the village. 161 to four lanes from I-270 to Granville and the interchanges at Beech and Mink roads that serve the New Albany International Business Park. has a successful track record when it comes to road projects, including the widening of Rt. “New Albany Company is an advocate of comprehensive regional planning that will accommodate the continued growth and economic investment in the region, which is expected to grow from 2 million to 4 million people in the next 20-30 years,” he said. ![]() In an emailed statement, Tom Rubey, Director of Development for The New Albany Company, said that “public infrastructure enhancement and investment is being analyzed by numerous public entities including the state of Ohio, ODOT, Franklin, Licking and Delaware counties, and a multitude of cities and municipalities. “There’s no specific plan and no timeframe for it,” he said. Hawthorne said the path shown for a connector came from informal conversations and “was not based on information from any agency or plans currently in process.”īut the concept is being discussed, Hill said. While the web page on which the map was displayed cited numerous local government sources and other specific resources for details on the map, it also included a disclaimer that said, “This map depicts road improvements that are not guaranteed, and this map should not be used as a reference for what projects are happening, but instead what projects could happen going forward, based on local government planning documents. “From the Soil and Water standpoint, it (the path depicted for a connector road) is not accurate and there is no meat behind it,” Hawthorne said, after fielding calls from property owners in western Licking County who were concerned about how close to their homes such a road might run. More: A second outerbelt? Intel growth forcing Ohio transportation execs to think bigĪ red line on the map showing a possible connector road running from the north of Johnstown toward Newark but then curving southeast just outside of Johnstown near where Intel is building the world’s largest computer-chip factory, and then traveling south between Alexandria and Granville toward I-70 in the vicinity of Etna or Kirkersville. Johnstown, shown here April 10, is a city experiencing rapid growth as the Intel chip manufacturing plant is being built just south of the city.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |