PERRYSBURG — City council has approved the Perrysburg Tomorrow land use plan that will leave Perrysburg Heights alone.
“We’re excited the entire plan has been approved by council. It sets a good course for the entire community,” Mayor Tom Mackin said. “We also said when we started this process that we wanted to get citizen input and that we wanted to get discussion about certain issues. It’s been a difficult process, but that’s the way democracy is supposed to work.
“People spoke for and about what their interests are, and council took that into consideration. Had that not happened, had we not done the land use plan, had we not included that, which was what was maybe the easier course, we maybe would not have had that discussion,” Mackin said at Tuesday’s council meeting. “I’m very pleased that it has ultimately been resolved in a way that is favorable to everyone involved and that it also recognizes the importance of a diverse community that appreciates the differences.”
The meeting was filled to capacity, with the majority of the crowd interested in the land use plan discussion and possible vote. The resolution accepting the plan was unanimously passed on the first reading. The plan had been more than two years in creation, with the early drafts and discussions done virtually.
Councilman Tim McCarthy pointed out that this draft included the “jagged line plan” agreed on by council during the committee of the whole meeting from May 31.
The Perrysburg Heights community will remain in the city’s land use plan. The current jagged line that separates the city and the township will limit the commercial growth along Ohio 25. Property west of that line will indicate commercial, east of it, residential.
Controversy arose when the future of the Perrysburg Heights community was included in an early draft of the plan. The Heights was founded in Perrysburg Township, but has also had plots annexed to the city at the request of various owners of contiguous land. That land was primarily zoned commercial.
At a previous land use plan meeting, Paul Belazis, president of the Perrysburg Heights Association, said that the community, established 90 years ago by migrant farm workers, is still 40% Latino. Belazis called it a melting pot, representing families who are Appalachian, Irish immigrants and African-American.
Isabella Villarreal, a Perrysburg Heights resident, was pleased with the council vote.
“I’m here to help save our neighborhood and make sure that no one takes our houses and puts commercial (property) in. I like how they are just going to leave us alone and stop messing with us, because they have been doing that for many years now,” Villareal said after the vote accepting the final draft.
The plan covers housing, mobility, green space, infrastructure, quality of life, image and brand. The plan is conceptual and not a guarantee.
Councilwoman Jan Materni said that the plan also refers to the Heights as a legacy or heritage village.
The plan also notes that “As the city grows, the existing Heights neighborhood should remain residential, with improved neighborhood amenities and vehicular and nonmotorized connections. Future commercial related services may be developed around the neighborhood, creating job opportunities and opportunities for neighborhood based services and entertainment to be developed in a mixed-use fashion.”
Councilman Mark Weber was very active in the discussions that led to the committee of the whole meeting.
“I’m thrilled with the outcome, but especially appreciative of all the residents that came forward. I’m glad we were finally able to get their input for this land use plan. I’m also very glad that they were so very diligent in coming to all the meetings they came to, in order to voice their opinions,” Weber said. “Again, it was a full room, even though, I think, they all knew what the outcome was going to be. It was just really refreshing to see them all here, to see it all the way to the end.”
