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The Creekside Story:
West Gahanna Gateway
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Creating a New Entrance for Olde Gahanna
As the Creekside Redevelopment Project got underway to enhance Olde Gahanna, Gahanna put together a plan to create an enhanced, welcoming entrance along US Route 62. As the main access point for those coming to and from Gahanna throughout Franklin County, this entranceway offered poor aesthetic quality and unsafe pedestrian access. City leaders and residents worked to create a new "gateway" into Gahanna.
The West Gahanna Gateway Plan consisted of five specific goals and objectives for implementation: visually enhance the US 62 entrance with a new landscape and streetscape plan; link West Gahanna with the Olde Gahanna District; encourage pedestrian activity and a safer environment; reduce the "scale" of the major intersections to human size; and, enhance the existing recreational amenities to further benefit the West Gahanna residents.
The improvement began in late 1999. New wings and hand railings were added on the side of the bridge to provide safe pedestrian crossing. The 65-foot, $100,000 Gahanna archway was hoisted above the bridge on February 27, 2000. Designed with a large "G" in the center, the archway has become a recognizable symbol of Gahanna throughout the region. Landscaping has also been added along the roadside improving the entire visual enhancement of the corridor.
Instead of a high-speed arterial that quickly moves travelers though Olde Gahanna, the addition of a landscaped median and an archway over the bridge encourages drivers to slow down and take notice of the special neighborhood that they are entering.
Another project objective was to improve the pedestrian walkways along the bridge. These walkways provide pedestrian linkages between Olde Gahanna and West Gahanna neighborhoods. The City invested $1,875,000 in the implementation of the Gateway Plan. In 2003, these connections grew stronger with the opening of a pedestrian bridge and boardwalk connecting the Gahanna Municipal Golf Course with Creekside Park and Olde Gahanna.
Click Here to continue the Creekside story.
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Current Project
Overall Revitalization Project
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Publications
Central Park Brochure
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