Council approves plan for complex near Rose Music Center
Counilman who cast no vote says area not right for residences.
HUBER HEIGHTS — City council gave a developer the green light to construct a 530-apartment complex on land that also includes 13 acres for commercial development at 7125 Executive Blvd. near the Rose Music Center.
The city has been working with Horizon Line Development for the past year to create the project plan, according to interim City Manager Bryan Chodkowski. A first draft of plans was voted down unanimously by council earlier this year, but an altered version was approved last week.
The new plans include an increase in residential space, from around 230 units to the newly-approved 530 apartments. Chodkowski said the higher density appeals to more prospective restaurant businesses.
“We’re trying to drive more retail and restaurant activity in that area, as opposed to just quick service (fast food) establishments,” he said. “We’re looking for sit-down, full-service restaurants, and in our conversations with several of these types of restaurants, we found that one of the (preferences) was to have a higher population in the surrounding service area.”
Councilman Richard Shaw said in April he did not support the project and that he would like to see the location — situated across the street from Rose Music Center and Meijer — remain more of a business-oriented entertainment district rather than a residential area. Shaw said he also had concerns about traffic.
“I can see a lot of congestion (happening) there, and that’s not what I’m looking to have done in a very highly populated area,” he said.
Chodkowski said a traffic study will be conducted as part of the project agreement and any issues will be addressed at that stage.
The newest set of plans were approved by a 5-3 majority of council, with Councilwoman Anita Kitchen, Councilman Glenn Otto, and Shaw
voting no.
The project will be completed in phases, Chodkowski said, with the first phase involving Horizon Line’s purchase of around 17 acres of the approximately 50 total acres of city-owned land, located across from Meijer, near the intersection of Executive Boulevard and Brandt Pike, for an estimated $119,300 per acre. Horizon Line will then have the option to purchase additional acreage at $90,000 per acre.
Horizon Line will present and seek approval from Planning Commission for a more detailed site plan in the coming months. According to Chodkowski, the project as currently planned will result in over $90 million in taxable value for the city.
No end users have been named for the proposed commercial spaces, but as of now, no gas stations or similar operations will be permitted, Chodkowski said, with establishments like taverns/bars, restaurants, and similar retail businesses preferred.