The proposed development at 18th and Oak. All renderings by Archall, courtesy of Metropolitan Holdings.

A proposal to build a mixed-use development at the northeast corner of 18th and Oak streets in Olde Towne East is beginning to work its way through the approval process.

The plan, from Metropolitan Holdings, calls for a five-story building containing 117 apartments over about 4,600 square feet of ground-floor retail. A total of 278 parking spots would be provided; 146 of them in a first-floor garage, the others in adjacent parking lots.

Currently occupying the site is the Central Seventh Day Adventist Church, a parking lot, and an empty field. The church building, most of which dates to the mid-nineties, would be demolished to make way for the new development. An existing single family home at 946 Oak St. is not part of the project and would remain.

Representatives of the developer presented the proposal to the zoning committee of the Near East Area Commission (NEAC) last night.

Andrew Wappner, Senior Development Project Manager for Metropolitan Holdings, called the meeting “a good first insight into the opinions of the [committee] and the community as they pertain to the project.”

“We certainly learned a lot and received some constructive feedback that we will need to respond to,” he said, adding that the plan is to return to the zoning committee next month with revisions to the proposal. “[We] have high hopes of a successful project.”

Over half of the 2.4-acre site is currently owned by the Columbus-area chapter of the American Red Cross – which uses it as parking for its office at 995 E. Broad St. – while the rest is controlled by the Seventh Day Adventist Church.

Metropolitan Holdings will be seeking a vote of approval from NEAC on the rezoning of the property. Currently split into several parcels and zoned for a mix of residential and apartment uses, the site would need to be rezoned to allow for a mixed-use development with some first-floor residential units.

After the area commission vote, the proposal would then move on to the Development Commission and City Council for approval.