STOW: City officials and the owners of the Stow-Kent Plaza have struggled for more than a decade to figure out what to do with an aging shopping center that lost its luster long ago.
Now they say they have the answer.
This week, the city’s planning commission approved a site plan that would give new life to the property on Kent Road, demolishing part of the retail area to make room for a community of cottage apartments and townhouses, and renovating the stores that remain.
“We’re transforming a very worn site that’s been through its useful life many times over,” said Ron Lloyd, an architect on the project.
The Stow-Kent Plaza was a major shopping destination for local residents from its construction some 55 years ago and into the 1990s. But the growth of modern retail around it and the fact that much of the complex is far from the street has conspired against efforts to rejuvenate it.
Mayor Sarah Drew said when she was on the city council three years ago, she was part of a committee that recommended a mixed residential and retail use for the 37-acre property, but those plans went nowhere.
Revisiting that vision was among her priorities when she moved into the mayor’s office, she said, and plaza owner Rob Risman eagerly joined her. The plans and artist renderings presented to the Planning Commission on Tuesday were a year in the making.
The project now goes to the City Council planning committee for recommendation, and then to council as a whole for final approval, likely this month.
Risman said the project hasn’t been “costed out” yet so he couldn’t estimate what his investment would be, but if there are no delays, ground could be broken next year.
New road
The plans call for the city to build a new road off Lake Run Boulevard using a narrow strip of land the city already owns directly across from Woodbury Oval.
That road and another off Fishcreek Road to the complex’s east would be the main entrances to the residential rental community, which would feature 80 cottage-style flats with two bedrooms, two baths, front porches and hidden attached garages; and 72 more urban-style town houses.
The units will average about 1,200 square feet and be rented at regular market rates, Risman said. He expects the complex to appeal to empty-nesters.
Shade trees will line the streets, evergreens will be used to buffer the property to the west and north, and residents will be served by a clubhouse with a swimming pool.
About 90,000 feet of commercial space — including the building that had been a Stambaugh’s home improvement store and lumberyard for years — will be demolished to make room for some of the apartments.
Plaza renovations
The plaza area still in use by Big Lots, Fitness Works and other tenants will be renovated. A new facade will feature narrow towers that soar above the roof top and light up at night. A color palette that includes red, orange, yellow and beige would also be used in the residential area.
The barren parking lot will be given green islands with trees and lights, and new landscaping would be added to some separate retail units that face Kent Road.
The Macy’s department store, which frames the complex to the east, will be untouched.
Risman said Macy’s was consulted on the changes, as required by their long-term lease, and is supportive of the project, but did not want to participate in the renovation.
The complex would also be given a new name. The commercial area would be Plaza 59 (named for the adjacent state Route 59) and the residential area would be called Highland Row.
Traffic concerns
A couple of residents who live off of Lake Run Boulevard to the north told the commission they were concerned about traffic issues — specifically, that people will use the new road leading through the apartment complex as a shortcut to the plaza.
A map demonstrated how tempting it would be for motorists to leave Graham Road and take the more direct route of Lake Run, rather than make the U-shaped journey to Fishcreek and then Kent Road.
Risman acknowledged that it was a potential problem that should be considered, and the Planning Commission added a stipulation to its site plan approval that stop signs, speed bumps and other measures be used if post-construction traffic surveys show cut-throughs to be a problem.
Paula Schleis can be reached at 330-996-3741 or pschleis@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/paulaschleis.