News

Athens residents worry about the potential changes from new zoning

By: Charlie Ihlenfeld
Posted on: Thursday, June 5, 2025

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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) – Several Athens residents are raising concerns about the city’s plans to allow an apartment complex to be built in their neighborhood.

The City Council is considering an ordinance that would change the zoning of more than 5 acres on Hooper Street from single-family or duplex housing to multifamily.

Nottingham Street residents who live close to the property told the council at Monday’s meeting they are worried about potential environmental impacts, increased noise, driving dangers at the intersection between Hooper and Nottingham, and how an apartment complex could change the neighborhood.

“It’s a question about changing something that has been established, that new residents in the community like myself and residents that have been there 20, 30 years have come to expect,” said Diana Marvel, a resident of Nottingham Street.

Change was a major theme for residents who raised concerns about the potential rezoning of the property.

Chris Hitchcock, while not a resident of that neighborhood, also spoke against the measure. He asked the council to not “pull the rug out from under” the people living in the area. Hitchcock said this would change the community in the area, and it would be inappropriate for the city to build in areas not already zoned for this use.

Some council and community members spoke about the need for affordable housing in the city.

“Yes, community is important. One of the difficulties in our communities is a lack of housing,” said Athens resident Rob Delach.

Councilmember Alan Swank, who introduced the ordinance, backed up Delach’s comments.

“You drive around Athens right now, you would see just a handful of houses being constructed,” said Swank. He emphasized this project differed from the previous rezoning effort on Pomeroy Road that was tabled four months ago. The Pomeroy Road project came under intense public scrutiny from the nearby residents, and the construction company withdrew its bid.

Swank outlined the contrast:

“This particular one is not on a busy street. It’s a little closer to town. It appears to be a good site,” said Swank. As for the environmental and traffic concerns, Swank noted the project needs to go through a Title 41 process. This allows the city to conduct environmental, traffic and other necessary research to reduce the impact to the people living in the area.

While the bidding process has not begun, Swank said there is one developer, Hill Tide Partners, expressing interest in developing the Hooper property into affordable housing apartments. Hill Tide representatives were present at the council meeting but did not speak during the public hearing.

The ordinance will have a third reading at Monday’s special session of the council.