The latest development in the ongoing saga of the planned retirement community involves a recent proposal by Athens City Councilwoman Debbie Phillips. Her plan would bar any new construction projects along the Hocking River, which would effectively eliminate the retirement home from ever reaching fruition. While The Post has been and continues to be opposed to the retirement facility as currently planned, Phillips' proposal does not represent a palatable solution to the problem.
In a nutshell, the proposal is unnecessary because it seeks to do too much to solve the issue at hand. Effectively preventing anyone from building along the Hocking seems to be an overwrought answer to what appears to be a one-time controversy. Phillips denies the proposal is a direct answer to the retirement community, saying it is rather a pre-emptive strike against potential flooding concerns. But, considering that she is the representative from the Fourth Ward, which would be the place most directly affected by the community, it is unlikely that it did not at least somewhat play into her thinking.
Protecting her constituents from potentially unwanted construction is one thing, but passing an ordinance that would prevent all the unused property along the Hocking from being further developed is a short-sighted solution to a unique controversy.
The leader of the continuous-care retirement community committee, Margaret Topping, wrote that not only is the site, north of Stimson Avenue, not prone to flash flooding, but also that much of the city is already built on a flood plain. Certainly, if O'Bleness Memorial Hospital is built near the river, there is not much concern about flooding. Others have raised concerns that increased construction along the river could displace water during a flood, but it is not as if companies are lining up to develop along the river. OU essentially had to give away the land in question in order to get the project on track.
And therein lies the problem with the big picture story of the retirement home. Whether or not this proposal is accepted, the retirement home plan needs to be stopped, at least in its present constitution. The deal still represents a financial misplay by OU administrators. To simply give away land to National Church Residences, a non-profit organization worth nearly $600 million, remains an overly generous deal for such a facility. Phillips' heart is in the right place, but a new idea must be devised to justify the prevention of OU's giveaway.
Editorials represent the majority opinion of the editorial board. Send comments to posteditorial@ohiou.edu.
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