West Chester wants a mixed-use district near I-75. So officials are buying land for it
West Chester Township will spend $18.3 million to buy 75 acres of land officials hope will become a vibrant mixed-use area.
Located at the northeast corner of I-75 and Union Centre Boulevard, township officials anticipate the area will combine future office, retail, research, restaurants and community projects, they announced Oct. 30.
The area will be called the Mill Creek District, named after the Mill Creek that runs through the property.”This concept envisions a lively, walkable town center with restaurants, shops, apartments, and beautiful outdoor spaces where people can gather and spend time,” said West Chester Township Trustee Ann Becker.
No final design plans have been approved. Mockups included townhomes, retail space, a grocery store, open-air amphitheater and large suspended pedestrian bridge.
The announcement is the latest in a series of I-75 corridor redesigns. It follows Liberty Township preparations and Middletown’s developments further north.
Of the 75 acres to be bought, West Chester Township said 40 acres are suitable for commercial development. The area is meant to include green spaces.
Trustee Mark Welch, who is up for re-election, said he anticipated the area to bring in $600-700 million in development.
The township is only using money from the Union Centre Boulevard tax increment financing district to buy the site. This is a pool of money created decades ago that is funded by redirected property tax dollars within the area and used for new projects or infrastructure improvements.
Money would be not used from the general fund, said Township Administrator Lisa Brown.
Woodard Development acted as the township’s agent in the deal. The property’s seller paid them a fee for the service. The amount of the fee was not disclosed,
The four parcels of land are owned by three LLCs: Hamilton County Regional Business Park LLC, Union Centre 47 LLC and Brooks Creek Development LLC, according to Butler County property records. One family owns all three LLCs, said Todd Duplain, a principal with Woodard. Duplain and the township refused to disclose the seller’s name.
Duplain called the purchase a “no-brainer” for the township. “We believe that this 75 acres represents an extraordinary opportunity for the township. So, when we got the call to help them with this, we were happy to help them out.”
Because Woodard worked as a broker in the deal, Brown said it won’t be working on the property as a developer due to a conflict of interest.