Planning commission backs rezoning recommendation for Deepwood site after residents press traffic, runoff concerns

The Mentor Planning Commission on May 22, 2025 voted unanimously to recommend that city council approve a rezoning application for property identified as 8245 Deepwood Boulevard, from an R4 single-family district toward an R10 multifamily district. The commission’s recommendation, made after a public hearing and applicant presentation, moves the proposal to city council—and, because the rezoning would create an R10 district, the change is subject to voter referendum and could appear on the November ballot.

The applicant, represented by David Novak of Barrington Consulting Group, told the commission the rezoning would allow about 10 units per acre under R10 rules and that his team proposes 110 dwelling units for the site. Novak said the project would provide two-car attached garages plus two driveway spaces per unit and include roughly 1.39 acres (about 10%) of on-site recreation area. He also said the site would be laid out as fee-simple townhome lots, and that the design includes a stormwater pond and outlet control intended to hold and slow runoff so the net rate of discharge to downstream facilities matches current conditions.

Why it matters: the rezone would permit multifamily development near existing residential communities and is expressly subject to voter approval. Neighbors said the project could change traffic patterns, increase peak-hour congestion near Ridge Elementary School and aggravate existing runoff problems in the Deepwood…