Darby Creek Advocate Volume 9, Issue 3  November 2001

In an election with enormous implications for Darby preservation, Plain City voters soundly defeated three recent rezonings that would have greatly expanded the population of this small village on the banks of Big Darby.
Voters also strongly supported a provision mandating that the village pursue a comprehensive planning process.
The referenda were put on the ballot by a grassroots group, Citizens Caring About Our Town, or CCAT. The group has been promoting smart growth.
The election results were a repudiation of Plain City Mayor L.H. Murphy’s goal of making the village a new suburban mecca. Murphy has argued that the town needs to grow swiftly to finance a new sewage plant and provide a tax base for other projects, including hoped for industrial develpment.
CCAT believes that rapid growth threatens the small town character of the village. Such growth would also inevitably degrade Darby Creek, especially given the town’s past indifference to environmental concerns.
In fact, one of the projects voters rejected called for 140 one-bedroom apartments to be built in a filled portion of the Big Darby floodplain. The village council had approved the project despite concerns voiced by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
The other rejected rezonings were for Dominion Homes developments on the southwest corner of the village.
Town politics have been contentious for some time, largely due to the influence of powerful development interests. Sources report that village administrators have been pressured by certain developers to approve their projects or face being swamped by the city of Columbus. Unfortunately such
scare tactics are typical from many central Ohio developers. In reality, Columbus currently has no plans, or even the ability, to expand into the Plain City area.
Sources also believe developers are pressuring Plain City in an effort to bypass tougher restrictions from Madison County. By annexing to Plain City developers can transfer zoning control from the county to the village council, where they hope to have greater influence.
That the citizens of Plain City have refused to give in to scare tactics is a testament to the strength of their community. That they have chosen to spend money on professional planning is a testament to their wisdom.

by John Tetzloff