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Plain City council approves preliminary plans for two developments with donated 8.8‑acre park
Summary
Council approved preliminary development plans for Pulte’s Alder Oaks and Arbor Homes’ Converse Crossing, which include a donated 8.8‑acre Converse Huff Park with a pavilion, playground and walking path; developers asked the Village to consider waiving park impact fees estimated to equal about one‑third of park cost.
Plain City’s council on March 9 approved preliminary development plans for two adjacent subdivisions — Pulte Group’s Alder Oaks and Arbor Homes’ Converse Crossing — that include donation of an 8.8‑acre park and a developer‑funded package of park improvements.
Village Planner Derek Hutchinson and consultant Gary Smith of G2 Planning and Design presented the revised plans, which consolidate two smaller park parcels into a single municipal park tentatively named Converse Huff Park. Smith said the developers intend to donate the land and construct major improvements, estimating the park construction cost at “approximately $1.1 million to $1.3 million.” The proposed amenities include a pavilion with restrooms and parking, a playground, walking path, retention ponds, extensive landscaping and utility extensions; the homeowner associations would maintain the retention ponds, Smith said.
The developers asked Council to consider waiving the park impact fee to help fund the higher‑quality improvements; Smith said the fee would equal roughly one‑third of the park construction cost. Mayor Jody Carney and several council members said they support building a robust park and prefer including amenities such as a fishing dock, basketball and pickleball courts, but expressed reluctance to waive park impact fees without further review. Smith said the developers are open to Council direction and will provide additional detail in the near future.
Council members also raised infrastructure and connectivity concerns. President T. Harriman asked that developers consider traffic calming and the potential for future road widening on Converse Huff Road; consultants from Mannik and Smith Group recommended preserving connectivity for emergency‑vehicle access while using traffic calming where appropriate. Mr. Smith said the developers increased the Converse Huff right‑of‑way width by about 10 feet to accommodate potential future widening.
Council voted to approve the two preliminary development plans on motions by Michael Terry, seconded by Jamey Sintz; the motions carried "all in favor." The approvals move the projects forward to final plan and engineering review, and staff indicated the developers will return with final materials, specifications and any requested divergence applications related to lot setbacks and density.
