Westside Messenger - February 10th, 2019

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City gives aid to recovery club
February 10, 2019 - WESTSIDE MESSENGER - PAGE 3
By Josh Jordan
Staff Writer
Aid is coming from the city of Columbus
for a pillar of addiction services in the
Hilltop.
The Desert Island Club is an addiction
recovery center located in the Hilltop that
holds addiction meetings seven days per
week and serves about 30,000 people per
year.
Leaders from the Desert Island Club
approached councilman Michael Stinziano
about funding for the final phase of repairs
from a fire in August 2015.
Following the request for funding,
Stinziano reached out to councilwoman
Priscilla Tyson to help get the social services
organization to move through the correct
channels to apply for funding.
In the end, the Desert Island Club
secured a grant for $35,500 to repair the
PRAIRIE
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plex on Galloway Road,” Peters said. “I
also was interested in the economic development
with Broad Street and the new I-
270 interchange project.”
The former director of economic development
for the city of Streetsboro, Peters is
interested in using those skills to continue
grow the township.
“Once I get settled and complete some of
these projects that are already in progress,
I will start evaluating other opportunities
for economic development in the community,”
Peters said. “I also will look at what
the community needs are and projects that
will meet those needs.”
Currently, the township has several
projects under way. Among these projects
is the Galloway Road Sports Complex. This
111-acre complex will feature baseball
fields, soccer fields, a walking trail, a fishing
pond and a concession’s stand.
“If we have a good growing season, we
anticipate some of the fields will be open
for limited use in late summer 2019,”
Peters said. “Phase two also is currently
under way, which includes working on
traffic improvements.”
The township is continuing to explore
the idea of creating a community garden
on township-owned property at 161 Cole
Road.
“I have seen a preliminary design of the
proposed facility, but nothing has been
finalized,” Peters said. “We are still evaluating
what the best use is for this property.”
The 20-acre property offers plenty of
space to develop a community garden, but
there is limited parking, as well as water
access issues. One solution for accessing
water could be having a water tank on the
property that gardeners can use to water
the plants.
Organizers have discussed keeping the
roof of their facility near the corner of
Sullivant Avenue and South Wilson Road.
“The Desert Island Club is vital for the
Hilltop,” said Stinziano, former state house
representative of the district which houses
the social services organization. “They
don’t brag about what they do. They have
the Hilltop blue collar mentality.”
The fire, which was the result of a
break-in, caused tens of thousands of dollars
in damage. The last item needing
repair to fully restore the building to its
pre-fire condition is the roof.
“We hope that this grant can help them
focus on helping people instead of worrying
about money,” said Stinziano. “The Desert
Island Club is immensely important. I
don’t know where else westside residents
would go. No other place has that community
trust.”
Any one in need of assistance can call
614-826-0437 or visit the club at 501
Josephine Avenue.
garden small at first and then growing the
garden as more residents become involved.
They also discussed selling plots to residents
and eventually having classes where
they use township plots to teach participants
how to grow their own produce.
The township trustees had discussed
having a community garden at Evergreen
Terrace and Carl Frye Park, but because of
zoning and restrictions in these neighborhoods,
these locations did not work.
At the same property, township leadership
have also discussed creating a dog
park and natural play area. However,
according to Prairie Township Community
Center Director James Gant, the township
would need grants to create these new
recreation locations.
The township also has made progress
with their partners on the I-270 interchange
project related to the maintenance
of the interchange.
“We have made progress in terms of
maintenance on this project and are moving
forward with bidding out this project,”
Peters said. “We are looking forward to
working with Franklin Township,
Franklin County and our other partners.”
The new West Broad Street and I-270
interchange project would improve the
landscaping around the West Broad Street
and I-270 interchange. The project is a collaboration
between Franklin Township,
Prairie Township, Franklin County,
Hollywood Casino, Columbus, Weston
Vision and Haydocy.
The project will include adding landscaping,
LED lighting over the underpass
and sculptures to the interchange. The
annual maintenance of the interchange
will cost between $30,000 and $60,000 a
year and organizers are looking for eight
partners to pay approximately $4,500 to
$7,500 each per year for the next 20 years.