Columbus Board of Public Works and Safety has accepted the donation of 1.59 acres of land that will be used by the city’s parks and recreation department.
The land is being donated by Hill Properties, developer of the new Discount Tire location at 2760 25th St., immediately east of Burger King off Old National Road.
Hill Properties approached the parks department in 2018 about donating the acreage and an access easement to the city, said Mark Jones, city parks director.
The property is just north of 26th Street and was not needed for the tire shop development.
Jones said the donation provides an excellent opportunity for the neighborhood and the city to gain easier access to Everroad Park and the Columbus People Trail system. The land is in a 100-year flood plain that was severely flooded in 2008.
Discount Tire deemed that area of property unusable for its purposes.
Jones said he anticipates the property being developed as a small park with a trailhead to the People Trail, along with a small parking lot if necessary. This is only a concept, Jones said. No time table is available for any potential development.
Columbus City Council approved a request in March to rezone the acreage for a potential trailhead in the future. The rezoning request changed the land from a commercial community center zone to a residential single family 2 zone — the necessary zoning to establish the trailhead.
