The Kroger Marketplace: West Chester Trustees say no
What is expected out of politicians? Well West Chester, Ohio is becoming the epitome of good government and correct management. Traditionally, local politicians eat out of the hand of power players, developers, and social-climbing national politicians—but not this time when one of the most financially solid communities in all of Ohio rejected a developer submission for a Kroger Marketplace.
“The problem was not Kroger, it was the developer,” Trustee President George Lang said. Strong words more reminiscent of a fiscal manager than a political pet sent shock waves through the development community where a clear message of quality emanated beyond the business as usual approach many have come to expect over the years. Lang knows that West Chester is a lucrative spot for any business to locate, and if they wish to, they have expectations to live up to—and if they don’t—they will be turned away.
Late in January, the township zoning commission had recommended approval of a zone change to allow a 133,000-square-foot Kroger Marketplace store, along with a gas station and space for retail, offices and restaurants. That was expected as zoning commission officials are often corrupted with Agenda 21 type training, and are willing to bend over backwards for any type of development plan that reflects their world view. Those same zoning officials denied the development last year after neighbors voiced concerns about safety and traffic issues.
Developer Silverman and Company Inc., of Blue Ash, resubmitted the plan, scaling back some out lots and adding a five-acre green-space buffer in an effort to appease residents. But without firm promises related to the buffer, commissioners wouldn’t sign on. This was reported here at Overmanwarrior’s Wisdom with the following article. CLICK HERE TO VIEW.
“They wouldn’t give us a timetable on the buffer — or even if one would ever be built,” said West Chester Trustee George Lang. “The property will eventually develop. It may even be a Kroger Marketplace, but this was not the right plan.”
Lang called the bluff on the developer who did exactly what always happens, they found major resistance to their development plans by local residents–the developer marked up their drawings to show a “compromise” then re-submitted expecting weak-kneed politicians to yield ultimately dejecting the protesters. In this case a buffer zone was needed between the residents and the development and the developer ignored those needs. Most trustees would salivate all over themselves to have a shot at a development like what the Kroger Marketplace would bring to West Chester and could pat themselves on the back for years at luring such a thing during their tenures. But what often gets left out of these types of discussions is a sense of quality that becomes part of the neighborhood instead of an imposition upon it. The West Chester trustees led by Lang are insisting on a standard that is high, but the results will yield a much higher quality community in the long run. It is to Kroger’s advantage to build a marketplace in West Chester—but it is up to the management of the area to make sure that when it is built, it is something the community can be proud of for decades instead of being outdated and useless 15 years from now.
Developers are often good people who bring a lot of good things to the table. Without them, nothing would happen. But often, because they are more interested in passing their projects through a maze of regulations, financial pitfalls, and political haggling, they are short-sighted by their very nature. They don’t see very far down the road or consider the philosophical impact of their projects—only the economic ones—and at that, only a few years beyond completion. However, proper management dictates having the long view in mind as well as the short, and in the case of this Kroger Marketplace the developer was only looking at the short–a nice new grocery store with all the bells and whistles, but without a buffer zone to protect real-estate investment 10 years and 20 years down the road, the negative impact of the development would be detrimental to residents.
It is refreshing to see that George Lang and his trustees are doing the job as good if not better than any community in America currently. West Chester, Ohio is the model of how every community across The United States and world should strive to mimic. The lifestyle of West Chester is robust, the personal wealth is extraordinary, the access to goods and services, job creation, and proximity to everything is as good as it gets, and Lang knows it. What is different is that the West Chester Trustees are not willing to compromise that quality to make developers happy for the sake of favors down the road. And for that, the people of West Chester have a lot to be thankful for. If Kroger wants to build a Marketplace in West Chester and enjoy the profile of the community which perfectly suits their business plan, they need to listen to the management of the community–the trustees like George Lang. They will find that if they do, they will profit as well as the residents he is protecting, and West Chester will become that much better. But the other options are simply not on the table, and that is something to be grateful for.
Rich Hoffman
