WESTERVILLE — The city held an open house earlier this month for the East of Africa Road development in southeastern Delaware County.

During the two-hour event on Sept. 9, officials such as City Planner David Efland (formerly Delaware’s planner) discussed the project with local residents in the Westerville Community Center. Rendering boards were displayed and resident feedback was solicited.

“In 2023, the city acquired four tracts of land totaling 88 acres east of Africa Road for economic development purposes, with the intent to develop the land for commercial use and job growth,” said Westerville’s website. “The city has initiated East of Africa Land roadway and other infrastructure planning for the site, including utility, stormwater, greenway and park design.”

For reference, the property is below OhioHealth and Polaris Parkway on Africa Road, which ends at County Line Road. It is across from Central Ohio Primary Care Physicians (COPC) to the west, and the Ashton Village and Courtyards at Village Crossing subdivisions to the east. Once built out, Westar Boulevard to the south would be extended across Africa, meeting up with an extended Hoff Road at a roundabout and connecting to the north with Polaris Parkway. Two future traffic signals would go in on Africa Road and one along Polaris Parkway.

“The subject site is adjacent to Westerville’s successful mixed employment center of Westar Place,” the city said. “This area has generated nearly 10,000 jobs and is home to new and growing amenities, as well as multiple companies, including the North American headquarters of DHL Supply Chain and the corporate headquarters of Vertiv, Lancaster Colony and COPC.”

The property also contains the Sharp House, a historic home, which the city would keep for “adaptive reuse.”

Documents provided by the city to The Gazette show the owner of the four parcels (55, 31, 1 and .75 acres) to be Westerville Industry and Commerce Corporation. The existing land use is Agricultural and Residential, and the existing zoning is Planned Development, meaning commercial, office, and industrial uses. The land would also have parks and open space in what the city calls a “mixed employment center/neighborhood.”

According to the city’s timeline, there will be a public hearing at Westerville’s Planning Commission meetings on Sept. 25 and Oct. 23 for the preliminary infrastructure plan and development text. If approved by the commission, the plan would go before City Council with a public hearing in November and December. If approved by council, the project would go out to bid in early 2025, with the infrastructure build starting in the spring and going on until fall 2026.

Future development of the lots or subareas would go through separate planning and city council processes at future dates.

The city used its Comprehensive Community Plan, along with data from FEMA.gov, National Wetlands Inventory and the Delaware County Auditor Website in its master plan for East of Africa Road.

Although unrelated, this action follows the June purchase of 459,000-square-foot Polaris Towne Center (Delaware County) and 501,000-square-foot Easton Market (Franklin County) by Chicago-based Pine Tree (a developer of open-air shopping centers), as evidence of continued growth in the area.

Assistant Editor Gary Budzak covers the eastern half of Delaware County and surrounding areas. He can be reached at 740-413-0906.