The development committee for the Northland Community Council (NCC) in Columbus, Ohio, rejected a proposed 124-room hotel and self-storage project last week because members believed the zoning request was too broad. However, the landowner may consider a revised request for both an extended-stay hotel and self-storage facility, according to Jeffrey L. Brown, an attorney with Smith and Hale LLC, which represented the potential developer Ellis Co. Ltd.

During a presentation to the committee, Brown said the NCC had previously approved zoning for self-storage on the 13.5-acre site, but that plans for an earlier project had fallen through. The latest request would have changed the zoning from commercial-planned development to limited manufacturing.

"The committee ultimately decided unanimously to recommend disapproval on that application," Chairman Dave Paul said. "The reasoning was not that they were opposed to the hotel there ... or even so much that they were opposed to outdoor storage, but they felt that the zoning that was being requested, limited manufacturing, was overbroad."

Paul said individual projects for a hotel or self-storage facility may have been approved. The committee would like to see more exclusions listed on the zoning request to better define what could be developed on the site.

In addition to objections from the NCC, a resident of the nearby Strawberry Farms subdivision also voiced disapproval for the project, fearing a drop in property values and an increase in safety issues.

"That site has always been very difficult to develop due to the number of utility easements that run through the property," Brown said.

Sources: