"Merion Village ponders conservation plan" ThisWeek Community Newspapers

Link: Merion Village ponders conservation plan
David J. Cross
ThisWeek Community Newspapers
February 21, 2008

Merion Village is hoping to be among three neighborhoods chosen to pilot a new Columbus conservation program.

Late last month, Columbus City Council unanimously passed neighborhood conservation district legislation, which will allow neighborhoods to identify what qualities make the area unique, and hopefully preserve these traits.

Bob Leighty, Merion Village Association president, said his association is interested in the program, but wouldn't like to see the strict standards of a historic preservation district imposed on the area...

"Council approves South Side amendment" ThisWeek Community Newspapers

Link: Council approves South Side amendment
David J. Cross
ThisWeek Community Newspapers
February 14, 2008

Columbus City Council unanimously voted Monday to amend the city's South Side Plan to include the remaining portion of Merion Village and Schumacher Place.

The initial plan, completed in 2002, included the southern part of Merion Village. With council's vote, the remainder of Merion Village and Schumacher Place were brought into the fold, and as such can benefit from future plans for the South Side...

"Merion Village wants 'welcome' sign" ThisWeek Community Newspapers

Link: Merion Village wants 'welcome' sign
Sue Hagan
ThisWeek Community Newspapers
November 15, 2007

Merion Village Association members delayed voting to support a Starbucks proposed for the southeast corner of Front Street and Greenlawn Avenue. Instead, they put the recommendation in the hands of member Ken Fultz, who will discuss the matter further with Starbucks representatives.

The proposal was discussed at the Nov. 7 MVA meeting.

Starbucks plans a 1,750-square-foot coffee shop with a drive-up lane and a 100-square-foot patio. The main entrance would be off Greenlawn...

"Amended South Side plan ready for review" ThisWeek Community Newspapers

Link: Amended South Side plan ready for review
Sue Hagan
ThisWeek Community Newspapers
November 1, 2007

Merion Village and Schumacher Place residents can peek into the possible future of their neighborhoods during presentations of the Amended South Side plan tonight and next week.

They will hear about a lot of ideas in the areas of zoning and development, transportation and open space, based on input they have provided to city planners over the past year...

"The Launch of Merion Village" Urban In-Fill

Link: The Launch of Merion Village
Jeff
Urban In-Fill
October 29, 2007

...Tonight while attending Kyle Ezell’s discussion on transforming the University District into the a national model for urban redevelopment, various presenters discussed ways of creating greater dialogue, bringing more ideas and concepts to the table, and of course, one of those was via neighborhood blogs.

Having rolled around Walker’s idea for several months, I’ve now launched a blog site for Merion Village. It’s where I live. It’s a place I care about. I love it here, and when I think about living in another part of the city, well, I always return home thinking about how good I’ve got it...

Visit the Merion Village Blog

"Developer pulls the plug on RaceQuip condos" ThisWeek Community Newspapers

Link: Developer pulls the plug on RaceQuip condos
Sue Hagan
ThisWeek Community Newspapers
October 18, 2007

A year after the Merion Village Association approved the project, real estate developer Doug Tenenbaum has decided against converting the old RaceQuip Safety Systems building into condominiums.

Tenenbaum said his decision is based on zoning and variance issues, construction costs and potential sales prices.

"Even though we obtained parking variances, we would have needed to come back for additional parking variances," he wrote in an e-mail. "The result of the current variances essentially forced us into one-bedroom units that had limited marketability resulting in lower sales price (per square foot) and desirability."...

"Garage break-ins plaguing the village" ThisWeek Community Newspapers

Link: Garage break-ins plaguing the village
SUE HAGAN
ThisWeek Community Newspapers
September 6, 2007

Residents in German Village, Schumacher Place and Merion Village have been experiencing a rash of break-ins and thefts from garages, with the thieves prying open or kicking in doors.

For the month of August, according to reports listed on the Columbus Division of Police Web site, at least 40 garages were broken into. Items stolen ranged from tools or a few dollars worth of change to bicycles and electric scooters.

On Aug. 22 and 23 alone, seven such break-ins were reported. All of those were within blocks of each other and some took place in broad daylight...

"South Side plant could be revived" The Columbus Dispatch

Link: South Side plant could be revived
Former Techneglas building center of redevelopment plan
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Debbie Gebolys
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

A South Side neighborhood that’s taken its share of hard knocks could be poised to return to better economic days.

City officials say they’re willing to do whatever it takes to help the former Techneglas plant, empty since 2004, become home to hundreds of workers.

It’s the latest of three sizable developments announced for the Parsons Avenue corridor between Children’s Hospital and Rt. 104...

"Merion Village, Schumacher working on development plan" ThisWeek Community Newspapers

Link: Merion Village, Schumacher working on development plan.
By SUE HAGAN
ThisWeek Community Newspapers
Thursday, February 22, 2007

Schumacher Place and Merion Village have a lot going for them, residents say, including charm, walkability, historic buildings and a diverse population.

But they also have inconsistent zoning regulations, lack of protection for historic structures, and "strip center" development along Parsons Avenue, to name just three of dozens of issues that affect quality...

"Children’s fields gripes over expansion plans" The Columbus Dispatch

Link: Children’s fields gripes over expansion plans
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Kevin Kidder and Mark Ferenchik
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Children’s Hospital officials got a polite earful last night, as they presented their plans to relocate the 2-year-old Ronald McDonald House, which would mean knocking down several old homes in the process.

The relocation is part of a $740 million hospital expansion that will begin in 2008 and will include a new entrance on Parsons Avenue, hospital administrators said...

...She said it would be difficult to incorporate the homes into the new Ronald McDonald House because the city plans to widen Ann Street to accommodate more traffic, and the homes would be too close to the road.

"There are not plans to save those buildings at this time."...

"Neighbors Voice Opinions on Demolishing Historic Buildings" WBNS-10TV

Link: Neighbors Voice Opinions on Demolishing Historic Buildings.
Laura Cole
WBNS-10TV
February 20th, 2007

Controversy is swirling around Children's Hospital and its plan to tear down part of a neighborhood.

The project in question would knock down some historic homes along East Livingston Avenue.

Hospital officials admit they could have handled the situation better about informing neighbors of the new changes. On Tuesday night, residents got to voice their opinions at a "good neighbor" meeting with the hospital...

"Children’s building plans rile neighbors" The Columbus Dispatch

Link: Children’s building plans rile neighbors
Community will get to air concerns on razing homes for new Ronald McDonald House
Monday, February 19, 2007
Mark Ferenchik
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

..."My big issue is (Children’s leaders) need to get with the neighborhood and listen to their issues and respond accordingly," O’Shaughnessy said.

"As the information has percolated through the neighborhood, it’s gotten acrimonious."...

...Hospital officials are inviting community leaders to meet with them about the changes at 5 p.m. Tuesday at Children’s...

"Big bother: Neighborhood security cameras look like fakes" The Columbus Dispatch

Link: Big bother: Neighborhood security cameras look like fakes
Sunday, January 07, 2007
Bill Bush
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

...Whatever they are, or aren’t, the cameras, which are on a stretch of Stewart in German and Merion villages, are coming down. The city will remove them within days because they are illegally attached to city telephone poles, utilities spokesman Rick Tilton said.

Moore said yesterday that she won’t reveal who put up the units, because that person could be subject to 60 days in jail and a $500 fine for tampering with city property.

"Mysterious cameras will be removed" The Columbus Dispatch

Link: Mysterious cameras will be removed
Saturday, January 06, 2007
Mark Ferenchik
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

...Sometime before Christmas, someone mounted security cameras on three city utility poles along the street in the German Village and Merion Village neighborhoods...

...The neighborhood near Schiller Park also was the scene of three home invasions, in which residents were bound and robbed, that shook the area in 2005...

...Attaching the cameras to the poles without permission could be construed as criminal mischief, a third-degree misdemeanor punishable by 60 days in jail and a $500 fine, City Attorney Richard C. Pfeiffer Jr. said...

Interesting Realtor Collaboration: Red Brick Realtors

Here is an interesting collaborative effort between Realtors from a few different brokerages that have joined forces to promote their individual home listings.

What I like about the concept that they are implementing is the fact that they have created a planned tour of their urban properties, in this case mostly in German Village, which is a great way for interested buyers to check out not only the homes but to also get a feel for the neighborhood all at once. I like the concept:

Link: Red Brick Realtors

They have an "Open House Extravaganza" scheduled for January 29th that tours 8 homes in German Village, Merion Village and Schumacher Place:

Link: red Brick Realtors Open House Extravaganza

ThisWeek Newspapers

Merion and Hungarian Village have received zoning changes that restict development to single family and duplexes only. I won't be expecting much from this area in the ways of urban evolution any time soon:

Link: Rezoning limits apartments in Merion, Hungarian villages
Thursday, January 20, 2005
DAN EATON
ThisWeek Staff Writer

"People looking for new apartments will not be able to find them in either Merion Village or Hungarian Village.

On Monday, Columbus City Council unanimously approved rezoning the area for single-family home and duplex use only, eliminating both apartments and commercial space as possible uses..."

"Merion, Hungarian villages ask city to zone out new apartments" Dispatch Reports

Some neighborhoods just outside of Downtown want to maintain their lower population densities and restrict the development of any apartment complexes. I've been keeping an eye out for Merion & Hungarian Villages to see what directions things were heading over the past few months. There hasn't been much activity but there was other news regarding the restriction of zoning in those neighborhoods about a month ago:

Link: Merion, Hungarian villages ask city to zone out new apartments
Sunday, January 09, 2005
Jodi Andes
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

"Neighborhood leaders who want it to stay that way are asking Columbus City Council to rule out apartment buildings. A proposal that will go before the council on Monday would limit new homes there to one- and two-family houses"