Hilliard OKs service resolutions for two annexation petitions as Fisher Homes presents conservation plan; residents urge caution over Big Darby Accord
Loading...
Summary
Council approved two service resolutions (covering roughly 64.8 and 19.136 acres) that communicate what city services would be provided if the properties are annexed; Fisher Homes presented its Heritage Preserve conservation concept and nearby residents raised concerns that Big Darby Accord revisions and sewer allocation issues remain unresolved.
Hilliard City Council on Nov. 10 adopted two services resolutions that state what municipal services the city would provide if two parcels in Brown Township are annexed: one for approximately 64.8 acres tied to a developer application and one for about 19.136 acres requested by Hilliard City Schools.
Hillary Laffin, planning entitlements manager for Grand Communities (the development arm affiliated with Fisher Homes), presented the Heritage Preserve proposal associated with the ~64.8‑acre annexation. She said the full site measures about 79 acres and that the developer proposes a conservation design at roughly one dwelling unit per acre under the Big Darby Accord, with measures to reestablish a riparian corridor along Clover Guff Run (wetland/stream evaluation performed by EnviroScience), invasive‑species removal, replanting and two years of monitoring. Laffin said Fisher Homes believes sanitary sewer reservations have been secured and that the company will meet lot‑coverage and impervious‑surface code requirements; she said the developer would not seek concessions from the city associated with the riparian work.
Resident Melissa Brinkerhoff, who said she lives in the watershed, urged council to remember the Big Darby Accord’s science‑based limits and warned the accord’s current plan does not allow further development in the watershed without a revision. Brinkerhoff said the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) is still conducting studies and asked that nothing move forward until the accord revision is complete and results are available. She noted that more than $6 million has gone into the watershed master plan and its implementation.
City staff explained the services resolution is the municipality’s formal notice to Franklin County commissioners describing what services would be provided; staff stressed the resolution is not final annexation approval. Staff said the sanitary sewer flows from the developer’s plan would route north through the Hayden Run subtrunk (and therefore would not be counted against the Darby‑area sanitary sewer tap limitation) and that the city’s studies show additional capacity in the Roberts Milliken subtrunk. Staff said draft revisions to the Big Darby Accord are in progress with a draft expected for review by the end of the year and final adoption likely next year; zoning or rezoning would be required before construction and would be processed later if annexation proceeds.
Council voted 5–0 to adopt Resolution 25 R 91 (the ~64.8‑acre services resolution) and Resolution 25 R 92 (the ~19.136‑acre school district petition) following presentations and staff remarks. Staff noted that annexation petitions will proceed with county review and return to the city for subsequent actions including zoning, planning commission review and final council decisions.
