Commissioner Erica Cwley frames Near East Side redevelopment as restitution, cites protections for residents

Commissioner Erica Cwley of the Franklin County Board of Commissioners used remarks at a Near East Side ceremony to frame the planned demolition of aging public‑housing towers as an effort to restore trust and deliver long‑overdue affordable housing.

"I care about you. We will fix this," Cwley said, recounting the Dec. 25, 2022 emergency when water poured through ceilings, elevators failed and firefighters carried seniors down stairwell after stairwell. She said the crisis forced the county and partner agencies to act immediately and to vet potential developers carefully.

Cwley said the towers — originally built as part of a 1960s urban renewal program that displaced 309 families, 307 of them Black — had long suffered neglect: broken elevators, mold, lack of heat and hot water, and management that ignored court orders, she said. "After what residents experienced here, trust could not simply be handed over to another developer with a presentation and a promise. It had to be earned," she said.

To carry that accountability forward, Cwley said the county worked with the prosecutor's office to rewrite development guidelines so that resident protections "travel with properties if ownership changes hands," and to strengthen health and safety standards, code‑enforcement mechanisms and clawback provisions that can be enforced after a sale.

She described vetting visits to existing properties owned by the development partner named in the remarks and said both she and Commissioner John O'Grady made independent site visits to confirm whether repairs were made and residents felt safe before endorsing the deal.

Cwley said the redevelopment will include 380 affordable apartments, wraparound services and wellness supports intended to help families build financial equity alongside stable housing. She called it "the single largest affordable housing investment in the history of Columbus and Franklin County."

Cwley acknowledged the long history behind the project and the pain caused by earlier policies. "This is not a photo opportunity. It is a record," she said, urging the community to hold public officials and development partners to the protections now encoded in county guidance.

The remarks closed with thanks to county departments and partner organizations — including Job and Family Services, the Office on Aging, legal aid, the community shelter board and others — that responded during the 2022 emergency and supported the multi‑year effort. Cwley said there is more work ahead but described the project as a fulfillment of promises the community had waited decades to see realized.