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Commission recommends approval of Mentor Heights preliminary plat with conditions; developer to restore open-space elements
Summary
The Planning Commission voted unanimously to approve the preliminary subdivision plat for Mentor Heights, a 47-lot subdivision on Chillicothe Road, with conditions addressing open space, multipurpose path, bench quality and well-plugging; the developer agreed to transplant nursery stock to common areas where practicable.
The Mentor Planning Commission on Jan. 16 approved the preliminary subdivision plat for Mentor Heights (proposed by ProBuilt Homes), creating 47 residential lots at a site along Chillicothe Road, subject to conditions addressing open space, a paved multipurpose path and other engineering and landscape requirements.
George Davis of ProBuilt Homes described changes made since the plan’s initial 2018 approval: lot consolidation, removal of problematic cul-de-sac islands, and efforts to address an on-site gas well by purchasing and plugging the well under state procedures. City staff emphasized the importance of retaining or restoring the open-space area along Chillicothe Road and reiterated that a paved multipurpose path was a condition imposed by city council in the ordinance approving prior phases.
Davis said market preferences have changed since 2018, and he proposed a mix of lot widths to allow varied house plans, including ranch and colonial types. He also committed to pursuing state-required well plugging for an active gas well and said an orphan shallow well on the site has been identified for state-funded plugging. Davis proposed transplanting healthy nursery trees from the existing site into the common open spaces rather than removing them.
Commissioners asked for mounding, year-round screening plantings and commercial-grade benches around the pond; Chair and staff requested that open space along Chillicothe remain as common area under HOA responsibility rather than double-frontage private lots. Planning staff affirmed the paved multipurpose path (required by a prior council condition) must be installed.
A motion to approve the preliminary plat with 13 requirements — with condition number 4 (a proposed requirement about lot-size dispersion) removed after discussion — passed unanimously. The approval will allow the developer to return with final engineering and a subdivision plat, at which time staff will verify compliance with the conditions, including proof of well-plugging and final landscape plans.
