After months of packed meetings, traffic studies and design tweaks, Worthington City Council on Monday unanimously signed off on a rezoning that clears the way for a 248 unit housing project on the southeast corner of the former Harding Hospital/Boundless campus. The vote lifts zoning restrictions on roughly 20 acres along East Granville Road and pushes the long running proposal into the permitting phase.
According to The Columbus Dispatch, the change allows a mix of apartments and two single family lots that together total 248 residential units. The Dispatch reports the approval followed recommendations from the city’s planning board and came after extensive public comment. City officials and the developer have framed the rezoning as a way to add housing in a community with very little undeveloped land left.
Plan details and developer commitments
Per the City of Worthington, the planned unit development rezoning covers about 20.4 acres and permits 246 multi family units plus two single family lots. City materials outline a unit mix of roughly 60 percent one bedrooms, 30 percent two bedrooms and 10 percent three bedrooms.
The same documents say the proposal includes about 6.25 acres of open space, 356 parking spaces and an 11 foot multi use path, along with a no build buffer around Rush Run. The plan also commits 74 workforce units at 80 percent of area median income for at least 10 years. Access to the development will be limited to East Granville Road, while Indianola Avenue will remain for emergency use only in an effort to cut down on neighborhood cut through traffic.
Neighbors and public reaction
Local coverage shows the proposal has not exactly flown under the radar. Neighbors turned out in large numbers, raising concerns about density, building height and traffic, while supporters pointed to the community meetings and design changes that have already been made.
Worthington Pulse reported that more than a dozen residents spoke at an early hearing and that planners required additional traffic and stormwater studies before the project advanced. Developers have said they held multiple outreach sessions and adjusted the plans in response, including adding two single family lots and stepping down building heights along nearby streets.
What happens next
Under Worthington’s charter, rezoning ordinances do not take effect for 60 days after publication. During that period, residents can file a referendum petition if they want to challenge council’s decision. The city charter’s referendum rules, outlined in its published materials, spell out that 60 day window for opponents to collect signatures.
In the meantime, the PUD heads back to the Municipal Planning Commission and Architectural Review Board for detailed site and design approvals. Any workforce housing tax abatement connected to the project will be reviewed each year by the Tax Incentive Review Council, according to city documents.
Where this fits
Worthington’s move is part of a broader regional push to turn institutional and under used properties into new housing inside already built out suburbs. Reporting from Columbus Underground and other local outlets highlights several recent Worthington proposals that test how the city balances neighborhood character with pressure for more homes.
For now, the rezoning clears a major hurdle for the Boundless and Elford proposal. Final designs, additional permits and the possibility of a referendum could still shift the timeline before any shovels actually hit the ground.
