Local residents crowded into the FairOaks Mall Thursday to give their input on how the nearly vacant property should be redeveloped.
Led by representatives from MKSK and one of its consultants, Perkins+Will, about 220 people heard information about the project and offered feedback to city officials.
About 220 people attended the session and city officials brought in additional seating and an industrial-sized fan to accommodate the larger-than-anticipated crowd.
The session featured five interactive stations designed to elicit input from the audience and a 45-minute presentation that covered the overall scope of the project and the approach the firm will take.
“What we’ve been asked to do is really unique,” said Eric Lucas, principal at MKSK. “Not only is this collaboration between the city and Columbus Regional Hospital unique, but the scope of this project is unique. …We’re building a strategy for this mall. These aren’t final construction documents. We’re also looking at the area around (the mall) and devising a strategy for future land use. We’re looking at how to improve and promote connectivity through trails and sidewalks and other types of facilities to connect (the mall) to other places. We’re looking to optimize the use of Donner Park and Donner Center. We’ll be establishing goals and priorities and policies, and we’ll be making strategic recommendations for how to move the project forward.”
For more on this story, see Saturday’s Republic.
