Frequently Asked Questions

• Planning is a tool that communities use to make decisions about land use, infrastructure, development, and other aspects of the built and natural environments. By learning from the past and observing the present, plans include frameworks and strategies that guide future change. Conducting studies, analyzing data, and collecting community input are elements of planning. Planning is not about forcing change, but being prepared for change by having a unified vision for a common goal. Good planning prioritizes the wellbeing of residents in the community.

• Planning encompasses the entirety of the built environment, including streets, sidewalks, paths, parking, utilities, public spaces and parks, buildings, zoning, setbacks, design guidelines, street trees/landscaping, and, of course, people!

• The First & Grandview District has been the heart of our community for nearly 100 years. As technology, culture, and work models evolve, downtown areas across the country are being challenged to retain their vibrancy in the face of change; our own city is no exception. Impending infrastructure repairs, findings from the 2019 Spaces and Places Plan (which defined an area of First Avenue as the Education and Community Hub), desires for more greenspace and varied ways to get around town, and questions regarding land uses are some of the relevant factors behind a need for a vision for the First & Grandview District.

Yes, the City of Grandview Heights has conducted several plans for our community.

1. The 2019 Community Plan is a comprehensive plan that outlines high level goals for land use, connectivity, and character across the entire city. This plan was developed as part of the “Growing on Tradition” community planning process.
2. The 2019 Spaces and Places Plan identifies aspirations for our municipal and public gathering places, focusing on our three main community centers—the Education and Community Hub (around the middle and high schools and the Library), the Municipal Hub (the current and future sites of City Hall and the Parks & Recreation Building), and the Emerging Hub (Stevenson Elementary School, surrounding parks, and nearby businesses).
3. The 2016 Bikeway Plan proposes a framework for the future development of bike infrastructure in Grandview Heights.
4. The 2013 Character for Community Development Plan and the 2016 Traffic Advisory Plan evaluate multi-modal traffic patterns and infrastructure in Grandview Heights and provide tools to improve them in the future.
5. The Goodale West Area Plan examines the segment of Goodale Boulevard bordered by Grandview Crossing, the AEP facility, and the City’s new municipal building, all set within our parks district.
6. Better known today as Grandview Yard, the Grandview Commerce Mixed Use District Plan envisioned a 125-acre development on the eastern side of Grandview Heights that replaced an outdated and obsolete manufacturing district.
7. The Plan for Grandview Crossing originated from a cross-jurisdictional planning study conducted by MORPC, called The Grandview Avenue Dublin Road Target Area Plan.

Plans are visionary, developing guiding principles for the overall goals of the community. Because plans are enacted over a period of time, realization evolves with changing conditions and opportunities that are presented at the time that projects come forward.

Make sure you are registered on GrowingTogether! You can do this on the homepage. To stay up to date on the First & Grandview District Plan, follow the project, which you can do at the bottom of this page.

A Community Engagement Group was formed this spring to provide the planning team with early input that would guide the first initiatives. If you are interested in joining this group and would like to be a volunteer for events and ambassador for the project, email Allex Smith at asmith@grandviewheights.gov to state your interest.