The City of Hilliard Sustainability Plan

Hilliard Sustainability Planthe City’s economic diversity. Though a mix of economic incentives andlocal organizations play important roles in continuing Hilliard businesses’success, tax incentives available to large companies such as BMW are notavailable to small businesses.To become a vibrant, lifelong city, HilliadHilliard must broaden its portfolioof jobsof jobs and housing to make the city attractive to more groupsof people. The median value of a home in Hilliard is $209,300, while theaverage for the state of Ohio is $136,400. The homeownership rate inHilliard is 78%, which is above the Ohio average of 69.2%, and the medianhousehold income for Hilliard residents is $81,933, compared to the stateaverage of $47,358. These and other statistics indicate that Hilliard’s currentresidential base in better off financially than the average Ohio household,which has resulted in a lack of affordable housing in the City.Children and adults in their 50s constitute important demographiccomponents of the Hilliard population. Approximately 60% of Hilliardhouseholds include children, and the City is home to 30 full- and part-timelicensed childcare centers. Sixteen of those centers are licensed to providepublicly funded childcare. According to the 2010 Census, over 5,000 Hilliardresidents are over the age of 55. Already seven facilities in the City offernursing home or assisted living care, and their current capacity would notsupport the current municipal population’s needs in 10 years.Destination Hilliard is a local promotional organization that provides freeadvertising for community events or events that offer catering. Last year 75events were part of its catalogue of promotions. Despite this past success,the Destination Hilliard and City of Hilliard websites contain no informationabout advertising upcoming events.Land Use & Urban Ecology RecommendationsAddressing citywide development is one of the principal waysHilliard can become a more sustainable community. The land useplan within the Hilliard Comprehensive Plan recommends smallernodes of activity that are located to serve existing residentialneighborhoods, and changing the City’s zoning regulationsto encourage neighborhood-centered development will helpaccomplish this goal. The first recommendation contains municipalcode changes, based on ease of implementation over an extendedperiod of time, that have the potential to move the measurementsof all four proposed Land Use and Urban Ecology indicators(retail access, park access, pathway connectivity, and pedestrianinfrastructure inventory) in a positive direction.The second recommendation complements the first by creatingzoning tools and provisions that will promote the development ofdense, mixed-use development in the Comprehensive Plan’s fourfocus areas.The third recommendation entails increasing the amount ofparkland and public space for residents, and providing moreamenities in each of these places of public gathering. Neighborhoodprogramming pocket parks are two ways to increase the amount ofpark space for residents, and planning and appropriating funds foradditional seating, gardens, and climbing structures will accomplishthe latter half of this goal.Because Hilliard is part of the environmentally sensitive Big DarbyWatershed, the fourth recommendation involves strengtheningconservation elements of residential, commercial, and parklands development. Creating temporary design guidelines in theCONCLUSIONECON. EXECUTIVE DEV.113