As Columbus booms in all parts of the city, city leaders are working to fix up parts of the city that already exist, such as the Hilltop neighborhood.
On Wednesday night, a meeting was held at the Mid-Ohio Farm to discuss the progress that has been made and the work that still needs to be done.
“The best days of the Hilltop are still ahead of us,” said Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther.
A number of city leaders spoke during the event, including city councilmembers.
“In any community, including this one, progress isn’t promised. It has to be planned for,” said Columbus City Councilmember Melissa Green.
Envision Hilltop — it’s progress that has been in the works since 2020. Some of the improvements so far include work such as new street lights, traffic signals and signage on Sullivant Avenue. Ginther said they’re already starting to see changes for the better.
“Crashes are down 50% on Sullivant Avenue. Extreme speeding is down 92%,” Ginther said.
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Ginther said $180 million has already been invested into the Hilltop, but there’s still more to come, like the Bus Rapid Transit line planned for West Broad Street.
“Bus rapid transit is gonna be transformative for the neighborhood,” said Nick Plouck, the neighborhood program specialist for the Columbus Department of Neighborhoods.
The Central Ohio Transit Authority plans to have the project completed by 2028. It will reduce the road to one lane in each direction to make room for the rapid transit system in the middle of the street.
“It’ll be improved sidewalks. It’ll be protected bike lanes, and it’ll mean a lot for the businesses along that corridor as well,” Plouck said.
Many of the people advocating for these advancements also share a vested interest.
“I felt really called to this community after working on the west side for four years,” said Ashley Montana, vice chair of the Greater Hilltop Area Commission.
That is why Montana said she and her husband bought their first house in the Hilltop neighborhood five years ago.
“Really seeing the fruits of our labor as a resident has been really rewarding,” Montana said.
The city also plans to bring a new police substation to Sullivant Avenue. Another initiative is supporting a home repair program to make necessary external improvements to about 15 projects throughout the neighborhood.
“It could be gutters. It could be roof replacement. It could be balcony, siding, anything that kind of touches the external part of the house,” Plouck said.
These improvements are happening in a part of the city where it’s most needed to keep the community as a whole a place where people can thrive.
“It’s our promise to this community that we will continue to stand beside the people that have never stopped fighting for this neighborhood,” Green said.
Mayor Ginther added as he finalizes the capital budget, additional investments will be made into the Hilltop neighborhood.
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