Pike with a Purpose Update

In December, The Congress for the New Urbanism awarded four grants to Cincinnati communities, including Pierce and Batavia Townships.

The funding is being used for a planning project called Pike with a Purpose, which will guide the future development of Ohio Pike between Church Street and Amelia-Olive Branch Road (formerly the village of Amelia).

A crucial piece of the project is public input, so the townships held three community meetings to discuss development in the area.

“We want to make sure that what we do in the future represents what residents desire for their community,” said Eddie McCarthy, Pierce Township’s Director of Community Development & Planning.

Members of the community provided feedback on everything from land-use to building height, and potential plans were presented during the final meeting.

The consulting firm ZoneCo has been tasked with putting together final development recommendations.

“We want to encourage a high quality of life in this area, linking up the various assets that once made up [Amelia],” said Sean Suder, Founder and Lead Principal of ZoneCo. “We want to create a vision with the people of this community for a new neighborhood.”

ZoneCo is expected to release a report in May, which will face public and governmental review.