On Columbus’ Northeast Side, a usually quiet stretch of Central College Road has turned into a full‑blown zoning battleground, as neighbors push back against a roughly 10‑acre apartment project that would bring close to 200 rental homes to the area. Residents say the planned three‑story buildings, tighter setbacks and extra traffic would crowd their backyards, upend the street’s low‑key feel and clog already stressed intersections.
The proposal appears in city records as rezoning application Z25‑019, which would convert about 10.1 acres on the south side of Central College Road into a limited apartment residential district, according to the City of Columbus. The city’s permit portal lists Preferred Living as the applicant and outlines the parcel and proposed multi‑unit residential use; the case is listed as active in the system, per the City of Columbus.
The Northland Community Council’s development committee notes that the original submission called for nine three‑story buildings with a total of 216 units, or about 21.6 dwelling units per acre. In a unanimous 16–0 vote, the committee recommended disapproval, citing the project’s height, density and setbacks. According to the council’s May 28, 2025 report, roughly 75 neighbors showed up for the committee hearing to air concerns over traffic and how the plan squares with the area’s Northland Plan II guidance.
Where the plan stands
The rezoning has been looping through public review since mid‑2025, surfacing on Development Commission agendas and City Council zoning calendars as the applicant revised plans and fielded questions from staff and community groups. City meeting records and public notices show the case appearing before the Development Commission and City Council through late 2025 and into 2026. Columbus Legistar lists the application and its docket history.
Neighbors say it’s out of scale
Residents speaking at neighborhood meetings told officials they worry the complex will loom over backyards, wipe out tree buffers and funnel hundreds of extra car trips into nearby intersections every day. That pushback has been visible in local coverage and in a video report that captured the mood in the room as the rezoning request drew criticism from the surrounding streets. The Columbus Dispatch documented neighbors’ comments and the tone of public testimony.
Representatives for the applicant have told city panels they have tweaked the blueprint in response to that feedback, saying they added screening, adjusted setbacks and reduced the unit count in later filings. They have framed the project as one piece of a larger effort to expand housing options in the region. Summaries of the hearings describe a steady back‑and‑forth between the development team and neighborhood groups as the case advanced through review, with revisions logged along the way. CitizenPortal captures some of those exchanges.
Next steps
The rezoning appeared on City Council’s zoning committee docket in late March 2026, and council action is required before any final approvals and building permits can move forward. If council signs off on the ordinance, any conditions it tacks on, along with later permitting requirements, will shape the final site plan and construction timeline. The city’s official council agenda lists the Central College rezoning on the March 23, 2026 zoning calendar, with the item and its ordinance number detailed on Columbus Legistar.
The Central College fight is playing out against a backdrop of similar suburban apartment proposals circling Columbus, particularly outside I‑270. Those projects have sparked the same arguments over how much density is too much, what good design looks like next to single‑family homes and whether local roads and utilities can keep up. Across the outerbelt, residents are raising comparable alarms as more multi‑family plans roll into city hall. ColumbusUnderground lays out that broader trend.
