The city of Canal Winchester is creating a new Community Plan – a long-range guiding policy document that will provide a vision for future development in the city.
The Community Plan will address topics including land use, community character, housing, transportation, natural resources, public services, and economic development.
The plan is being developed through a series of collaborative Community Workshops, at which Canal Winchester residents, business owners, and stakeholders can work together in an open and transparent environment to develop the key ingredients of the plan – including a vision statement, a statement of core values, and a draftfuture land use map.
“Taking a collaborative, workshop-based approach to creating the city’s new Community Plan gives us a unique opportunity to envision an even brighter future for Canal Winchester, helping us to remain ‘The Greatest Little City in Ohio,’ “ said Mayor Mike Ebert.
The first Community Workshop will be Sept. 20-22 at the BrewDog Beer Museum, 96 Gender Road, Canal Winchester. It will feature a series of working sessions, focus groups, and public events that will take place. Public events will be held each evening at 7 p.m. These evening events will be participatory, engaging, and fun for the whole family. During the day, targeted workshops and focus groups will take place, in which the public is also encouraged to participate. The complete workshop schedule is available at https://www.cwgrowingtogether.com/.
Development of the new Canal Winchester Community Plan began in June 2022, guided by an active steering committee composed of residents, officials, and business owners from all areas of the city. The committee, and city staff, are working with McKenna, a planning and design firm specializing in midwestern communities.
Workshop presentations will be recorded and posted on the project website, https://www.cwgrowingtogether.com/. A second Community Workshop will take place on Nov. 9 and 10 in the historic Old Town district, further refining the ideas developed in September and focusing on community character and urban design.
