UA survey asks about connections to new park
Discussions begin on Quarry Trails access
Ohio State University city planning students are helping Upper Arlington officials decide how the city should connect to Quarry Trails Metro Park.
A survey conducted by students from OSU’S Knowlton School of City Planning recently polled 400 residents in and around Upper Arlington to help determine where a shared-use path could be constructed to connect Upper Arlington to the new 226-acre park.
The survey found 37% of respondents favored a connection to the park from Lane Avenue, and another 37% support building a path from Cambridge Boulevard to the park.
Thirty percent of respondents said the city should be connected to the park via a path extending from Fishinger Road.
“Seventy-eight percent of the respondents support the city of Upper Arlington investing in infrastructure enhancements to better connect to the park,” said Alejandro Duque, one of the seven OSU students studying the potential project.
The survey asked if improving Upper Arlington’s connectivity to Quarry Trails Metro Park “is a positive for Upper Arlington,” and 303 of 346 people (87.6%) who responded said “yes.”
“The park is expecting over 1 million (visitors) by the end of 2022,” Duque said. “Upper Arlington has to be prepared to accommodate these visitors, but also provide Upper Arlington residents with a priority access via pedestrian or bike pathways to that park.”
The first portion of Quarry Trails Metro Park opened in December. The park will open in phases northeast of Trabue and Dublin roads and west of the Scioto River and Upper Arlington, and it will extend as far north as the dam at Griggs Reservoir Park and north of Trabue Road.
The survey findings come after Upper Arlington officials said last July they were exploring the potential construction of a 1,800-foot shared-use path on the north side of Lane Avenue from Asbury Drive to Riverside Drive.
No timeline has been set for deciding if or when the path will be built or where it would be located.
Assistant City Manager Jackie Thiel said Upper Arlington will do more community outreach and research before determining if a project will move
“All I have to say is ‘Central Bark’ and she knows where she’s going,” Hoy, 40, said with a laugh.
Opened in in October, the dog park is one of two parks to open in 2021 in Whitehall — marking the first new parks created by the city since the 1970s. City leaders say the new parks are part of a renewed focus on outdoor recreational opportunities in the landlocked community.
Since 2018, the city has spent more than $1.5 million to overhaul five parks and open the two new ones. More than a third of that investment was funded by grants, Whitehall Recreation Superintendent Shannon Werner said.
“Our parks are places to gather, and when you have nice places to gather, you’re more likely to get together as a community,” said Shannon Sorrell, director of Whitehall Parks and Recreation. “It really just lifts overall community morale.”
When Kelley Green opened last May within the city’s new Lofts at Norton Crossing residential development, it became the first public park to be built in Whitehall since Lamby Lane Park some 50 years ago, Werner said. (Whitehall was gifted a private park — since renamed Whitehall Community Park — in 1988 when a Rockwell International plant shut down, but even that was decades ago.)
The developers of Norton Crossing built the 1.7-acre Kelley Green for the city as part of a development agreement for the site, Werner said. Located within the development near the corner of East Broad Street and Hamilton Road, the site includes a pavilion, ample green space, cornhole boards and picnic tables.
Last summer, the city hosted a variety of programming at the park, including outdoor movies and concerts, as well as a farmers market series. Beginning in June, the city has a slate of festivals scheduled there, including: Margarita Festival (June 18), Summer Wine Festival (July 23) and BBQ and Beer Festival
(Aug. 6.)
It wasn’t long after Kelley Green’s debut that Central Bark opened in the fall as Whitehall’s first dog park.
Built on 2.3 acres of land adjacent to Lamby Lane Park, the park offers residents a nearby place to get their pooches some exercise while no longer needing to drive to a neighboring community. The land was obtained at no cost after the city foreclosed on a property that didn’t sell at a sheriff’s auction, according to Thisweek News.
Bree’ana Melick, 31, of Gahanna, said her recent visit to the dog park with her dog, Charlie, will not be her last. She and her boyfriend, Sean Baltimore, 29, who lives in Whitehall, said the park is an invaluable way to socialize their pets and meet other residents.
“A lot of us have been inside for such a long time,” Melick said. “It just builds relationships that we’ve missed.”
When Kim Maggard became Whitehall’s mayor in 2012, she said she made it a priority to invest in the city’s parks and add more programming.
“When I came in as mayor, the parks hadn’t really been upgraded at all,” Maggard said. “People were very frustrated; they felt like there was no programming for their kids, so I knew there had to be changes.”
The makeover of Whitehall’s parks has rejuvenated aging equipment, Maggard said, while giving those on a shoestring budget the opportunity to enjoy free recreational activities.
For residents such as Hoy, having a dog park nearby is a great convenience.
“This is great for (Chloe) because I don’t have a fenced-in backyard,” Hoy said. “I was super excited when it opened . ... It’s very important to the community.”
Whitehall’s parks overhaul began in 2017, when a splash pad opened at John Bishop Memorial Park at 4815 Etna Road. Sorrell said the city began the following year overhauling the playgrounds at the remaining four parks: Lamby Lane Park, located at 701 Lamby Lane but also bordered by Washburn Street and Beechwood Road; Norton Field Park, at San Jose and St. Rita lanes; Robinwood Park, at Robinwood and Elbern avenues; and Whitehall
Community Park, 402 N. Hamilton Road.
Completed in 2019, improvements at Whitehall Community Park provided vehicle access for the first time to the lower level of the park and also included an extensive renaturalization process. Access to Big Walnut Creek was improved, too, for guests who want to fish, kayak or canoe, Sorrell said.
While no additional city parks are planned, smaller improvements are on the way, including multi-use path connections throughout the community.
And a major redevelopment at the former Woodcliff Condos site on the northeast corner of East Broad Street and Hamilton Road will be integrated into Whitehall Community Park, Werner said. That includes a new amphitheater, pedestrian bridges and multi-use paths to connect the park and the development.
The massive parks undertaking overall has resulted in 10 awards in five years from the Ohio Parks and Recreation Association, including a 2020 Governor’s Award, Sorrell said.
More importantly, city leaders say, it has allowed Whitehall to add more regular programming. This year that’s meant starting several youth athletic leagues, including tee-ball and soccer.
On a recent weekday, John Bishop Park buzzed with activity as students played on the school playground after classes let out and moms looked after their young children playing on swings and slides.
Florinzia Zini, who has lived in Whitehall for four years, often comes to the park with her three young children, who range in ages between 1 and 8.
As she watched with her 1-year-old daughter, Victoria, her 4-year-old son, Bruno, came careening down a slide. Zini smiled.
“He likes it here.”
This story is part of the Dispatch’s Mobile Newsroom initiative. Visit our reporters at the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s Whitehall branch library and read their work at dispatch.com/mobilenewsroom, where you also can sign up for The Mobile Newsroom newsletter. elagatta@dispatch.com @Ericlagatta