MANSFIELD — The leader of the area’s largest employer encouraged Mansfield City Council on Tuesday to support the proposed West End Neighborhood Plan.
Vinson Yates, president of OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital and OhioHealth Shelby Hospital, told council members he is excited about the improvement plan for an area whose geographic boundaries are generally Marion Avenue/Park Avenue West to the west and north; South Main Street to the east; and Glessner Avenue to the south.
Council didn’t act on a resolution expressing “approval and support” for the proposal, nor a companion piece of legislation that would allow the city to solicit proposals and enter into a contract for professional consulting projects to begin the work.
That vote is scheduled for the next council meeting on Dec. 15.
OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital, 335 Glessner Ave., anchors the west end of the neighborhood while St. Peter’s Church and School on West First Street occupies the east end.
“This has been an important neighborhood in a Mansfield for a long time,” Yates said. “We are excited about this plan.”
Yates, who said OhioHealth has invested $220 million in capital improvements and building projects at the 326-bed Mansfield campus in the last six years, said the project was essential to continue growing the neighborhood as a healthcare community in the years ahead.
“We would like to see this project go forward,” Yates said, saying it would also enhance the hospital’s ability to recruit physicians to the facility.
According to the Richland Area Chamber & Economic Development website, OhioHealth employs 2,500 people in Richland County.
Jason Crundwell, director of marketing at St. Peter’s, also spoke in favor of the 25-page proposal, created by EDGE Landscape, Architecture, Urban Design and Planning.
He said Glessner Avenue is a “key corridor” for parents and students to and from the school each day and would be a positive step for the parochial school’s enrollment efforts, improving the “outside perception” of the neighborhood’s safety.
Streets in the area include sections of West Second Street, West First Street, Columbia Avenue, Arthur Avenue, Blymyer Avenue, Wood Street, Carpenter Road, Lind Avenue, Vennum Avenue, Poplar Street and Bartley Avenue.
While not specifically outlined in the Mansfield Rising plan, the improvements are in keeping with the principles of the downtown revitalization program now underway. Jodie A. Perry, president and CEO of Richland Area Chamber & Economic Development, spoke in favor of the West End plan on Tuesday evening.
“The Chamber and the Richland County Development Group have come on board and support this plan. It’s really important to see further investment in the West End District. I encourage council to approve it,” Perry said.
The plan focuses specifically on the public right-of-way of the streets within the West End neighborhood, which “will allow the city to align and prioritize potential funding opportunities toward the most impactful improvement projects.”
The West End Neighborhood Plan was initiated in April 2020. An advisory group was established with representatives from the City of Mansfield, the Richland County Land Bank and the Richland County Development Group, as well as private citizens.
Tedd Hardesty, a partner with EDGE, presented the plan during a council public affairs committee.
He said the proposal was divided into two parts — a long-term blueprint on improving each street in the neighborhood and also a specific plan for Glessner Avenue.
The overall plan includes improved roads, sidewalks, street lights, trees and tree lawns, and “road diets,” which will analyze how streets could best serve current traffic patterns as well as pedestrians.
The plan also takes a deep dive into reframing Glessner Avenue, a primary corridor through the city. Officials, noting a “general lack of accessible public space within the neighborhood,” seek to compartmentalize Glessner Avenue into four segments for improvement, including a potential “Glessner Park” for community recreation space.
Hardesty said the neighborhood is underserved in terms of parks or even a community gathering space.
Mansfield Community Development and Housing Director Adrian Ackerman said in August the plan offers a vision.
“This was an idea that was created actually several years ago within our department,” Ackerman said. “Creating a neighborhood that’s safe and secure, that feels comfortable living in, renting in, owning in, walking in, being around the hospital in a safe, secure environment was the ultimate goal.”
She urged council on Tuesday to approve the resolution and the accompanying legislation, adding 2021 block grant funds could be used to help fund the project.
“We want to solicit bids and get this project off the ground. We would like to continue moving forward,” Ackerman said.
No members of council expressed opposition to the plan during the committee meeting.
Councilman Jon Van Harlingen, whose 3rd Ward includes the neighborhood, said the proposal had been “well received and is gaining traction.” At-Large Councilman David Falquette said he also supported the plan, adding he hopes plans for any “Glessner Park” could be included in the city’s master parks plan.
