The city has rezoned riverfront property for possible future development.
Columbus City Council recently approved the second reading of an ordinance rezoning 3.52 acres of property from Public and Semi-Public Facilities to Commercial: Downtown.
The land is located at the intersection of Brown and Water streets, south of the Louisville &Indiana Railroad spur, and adjacent to the White River, according to a memo from City/County Planning Director Jeff Bergman. The property in question is owned by the Columbus Redevelopment Commission, which seeks to rezone it for possible future development “consistent with its setting in downtown Columbus.”
Redevelopment Project Coordinator Mikala Brown said at a previous city meeting that while there are no concrete plans for development or redevelopment on the property, the department wants to ensure that the opportunity is available.
The ordinance rezoning the property contains commitments for any future projects, stating that “as part of, or prior to, the development of the property, and prior to any occupancy of that development,” the following actions must be completed: right-of-way dedication for Brown and Water Streets across the subject property; improvement of both streets, between the intersection with First Street and the southern/easternmost line of the property; and construction of a shared-use path connection between the Riverfront and 1821 Trails.
Previous requests to rezone the property were denied by city council in 2003 and 2015.
“The site hasn’t changed since 2015, but the interest in downtown real estate has changed,” said Mayor Jim Leinhoop at the council’s Feb. 1 meeting. “We’re putting in the apartment complex and the urban grocer. We’re building the court services building, and it’s our hope that the desire to develop this ground would follow along.”
