City of Gahanna Planning Commission Meeting – August 20, 2026

The Gahanna Planning Commission met in regular session on August 20, 2026, at City Hall Council Chambers, with all seven members present: Chair Sarah Pollyea, Vice Chair Michael Suriano, Michael Greenberg, Elizabeth Laser, James Mako, Thomas Shapaka, and Michael Tamarkin. Chair Pollyea called the meeting to order at 6:33 p.m.; the meeting adjourned at 7:50 p.m. This was the Commission’s final meeting in the existing building before the move to 825 Tech Center Drive. Assistant City Attorney Matt Roth administered the oath to applicants and speakers.

Note: The agenda, minutes, and transcript supplied with this request state the meeting date as August 12, 2026; the date in the title and this summary follows the instruction provided.

Consent Calendar

• The July 8, 2026 Planning Commission minutes (2026-0162) were approved unanimously on a motion by Tamarkin, seconded by Suriano (7-0).
• No other consent items were presented.

Public Comments & Testimony

• V-0014-2026 (258 James Road): The applicant declined to make a public statement, and no other public comments were offered. Applicant Christina Ramirez later answered Commissioner questions.
• V-0015-2026 (360 Carpenter Road): Four neighboring residents spoke in opposition. Mike Welty (350 Carpenter Road) said the proposed lot would add density, reduce privacy, remove mature trees, worsen drainage, and affect home values. Larry Rumsey (340 Carpenter Road) said the enlarged lot would span the full width of his house, raised privacy and runoff concerns, and noted that a flag-lot proposal nearby was reportedly rejected about 30 years earlier. Sue VanKeuren (341 Carpenter Road) said excavation could worsen existing drainage problems and water that had crested Carpenter Road toward her property. Russ Funk (352 Carpenter Road) opposed another large family home because of backyard privacy, though he acknowledged less flooding at his property and said the applicant had done a good job with the existing house.
• After public comment, applicant Mohanad Zamara responded that he had cleaned the property, planned to widen the shared driveway from about 10 feet to 22 feet, establish a shared access and maintenance agreement, dedicate 10 feet of right-of-way to the city, and build an approximately 3,000-square-foot, two-story house on the new lot.
• Gahanna Flex Park: No public comments were taken because the Commission decided it could not proceed on the noticed applications.

Discussion Items

• V-0014-2026 – Breezeway variance, 258 James Road: City Planner Maddie Capka presented the request for a 195-square-foot enclosed breezeway connecting the house to the detached garage. The Estate Residential (ER) code requires a 20-foot side-yard setback, but the breezeway would sit 13 feet 4 inches from the north property line, matching the existing house and garage built in the 1960s and replacing an existing paved sidewalk. Staff recommended approval. In answer to Commissioner Shapaka, Ramirez said the breezeway would be enclosed, match the house materials, and provide winter access to the garage exercise area. Staff confirmed the existing structures are nonconforming. A motion by Greenberg, seconded by Tamarkin, was approved 7-0.
• V-0015-2026 – Frontage variance, 360 Carpenter Road: Staff explained that the existing flag lot has about 27.5 feet of frontage on Carpenter Road and already does not meet the R-1 requirement of 100 feet of frontage on a public right-of-way. The proposed lot split would create a 1.46-acre northern parcel and a 0.72-acre southern parcel with zero frontage; the southern parcel was enlarged from the 0.52-acre parcel denied in March 2026 by about 0.2 acres and about 39.5 feet wider. Staff recommended approval, noting the proposed parcel meets the R-1 minimum lot size (20,000 square feet; the proposed lot is about 31,000 square feet), a shared access agreement was submitted, and future setbacks would be reviewed through building permits. Commissioner Shapaka asked whether the Commission could impose larger setbacks as conditions; staff confirmed it could. Commissioner Mako asked whether the Commission had previously approved zero-frontage lots; staff said no recent approvals, though Director Blackford recalled possibly one or two around 2016–2017, possibly on James Road. Commissioner Suriano and Chair Pollyea pressed the applicant on hardship/practical difficulty. The applicant cited the lack of 100 feet of frontage and said the new lot would have about 140 feet along the shared access. Zamara said he could sell or retain the existing and proposed homes, but any use would remain single-family residential. The Commission also discussed drainage review; Director Blackford explained that residential permitting includes drainage review and a final grading inspection, and that current requirements require a project not to increase runoff. A motion to approve by Tamarkin, seconded by Mako, failed 1-6. Voting no were Mako, Pollyea, Suriano, Shapaka, Greenberg, and Laser. Reasons included lack of demonstrated hardship, the precedent of creating a zero-frontage lot, changes to the neighborhood’s character, and long-term enforcement concerns with shared access.
• Gahanna Flex Park – V-0016-2026 and DP-0005-2026: Staff presented a Major Development Plan and variance request for an undeveloped four-acre IM-zoned site on Eastgate Parkway. The proposal includes three 12,000-square-foot flex/light industrial buildings, each with eight 1,500-square-foot tenant spaces (24 tenant spaces total); 49 parking spaces on a code requirement of 8; 12,000 square feet of outdoor storage screened by a 10-foot chain-link fence with privacy screen; 4,879 square feet of parking lot landscaping on a code requirement of 244 square feet; 7 proposed parking-area trees versus 21 required; and preservation of 772 caliper inches of existing trees. Staff initially presented three variances, then corrected to four. Staff recommended approval of all four variances.
• The four variances concern: one parking space partially extending beyond the front façade; a drive aisle 6 feet 11 inches from the north property line, inside the required 10-foot parking setback; railroad buffer/screening requirements (the 10-foot buffer is met, but the six-foot screen and one-tree-per-40-feet requirements are not, partly because the railroad sits more than six feet above the site with mature trees present); and the reduction from 21 to 7 parking-area trees.
• The Commission discovered that the application’s front page listed only three variances even though the full application requested four. Because the fourth variance – the parking-area tree requirement – may not have been included in the public notice, the Commission determined it could not hear the applications that evening or approve the development plan without addressing all variances. Director Blackford apologized for the omission. The applicant stated he preferred a special meeting because the property closing was scheduled for September 10, 2026, but the Commission ultimately postponed the matter to its September 9, 2026 regular meeting.
• Commissioners offered preliminary comments after confirming it was permissible. Shapaka leaned toward support, Suriano praised the site layout, Laser supported the variances but asked about the tree reduction, Greenberg stated support but said he would be absent in September, Tamarkin had no blocking concerns, and Pollyea was impressed with the design on the constrained, irregular site. A motion by Shapaka, seconded by Laser, to postpone both the variance and the development plan to the September 9, 2026 Planning Commission meeting carried 7-0.

Official Reports

• Director of Planning Blackford apologized for the public advertisement omission, said similar errors had occurred more often in the past, and reflected on the Commission’s last meeting in the existing building.
• Council Liaison Laser congratulated Deputy Clerk Sophia McGuire on earning her Certified Municipal Clerk certification and reported that all 10 City Charter amendment resolutions were submitted and received by the Board of Elections.
• Mayor Jadwin reported the move to 825 Tech Center Drive was underway, invited the Commission to the August 25, 2026 Dedication and Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony (5:00 p.m., program about 5:30 p.m., followed by an open house), noted the final Council meeting in the existing chambers, and said the first Council meeting in the new building would be September 8, 2026.
• Chair Pollyea reflected on the final meeting in the existing building and recalled a teenage Mayor’s Court experience at the old facility. Several members commented on touring the new Civic Center and thanked staff.

Key Outcomes

• Minutes (2026-0162) approved 7-0.
• V-0014-2026 approved 7-0.
• V-0015-2026 denied 1-6; only Tamarkin voted yes.
• V-0016-2026 and DP-0005-2026 postponed to date certain, September 9, 2026, by unanimous 7-0 votes.
• No unfinished business or new business was reported.