Group to receive ideas on future look of township

Market Street and its intersection with U.S. Route 224 are in the study plan.
By DENISE DICK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
BOARDMAN -- A group aimed at planning the future look of the township expects recommendations within 10 days about how the Urban Design Center of Northeast Ohio can help develop that plan.
Trustees and members of the group met Tuesday with representatives of the center, which is affiliated with Kent State University's architecture school.
The center participated in Youngstown 2010, Youngstown State University's centennial master plan and Warren Redevelopment and Planning's plan for that city's downtown.
Wish list
"My wish list is to do a community comprehensive plan," said Trustee Kathy Miller. "All of us have a sense that our community got planned without us."
David Reed, center project manager, and Terry Schwartz, a senior planner, will look at the Market Street-U.S. Route 224 intersection and both the Market and Route 224 corridors to make recommendations.
Such planning often begins with a three-day session, called a charrette, with representatives of the public, the business community and other groups.
"It starts to get a lot of people excited about the project," Reed said.
Charrettes conducted by KSU graduates students are done at no charge, but those must fit with the academic year and communities have lined up for those sessions.
The meetings also could be done by the center's professional staff for a fee.
Community tour
Miller and group member Bob Mastriana drove the two representatives of the center around the community Tuesday afternoon showing them both corridors, some neighborhoods and Boardman Park, which group members list as a community asset.
Robyn Gallitto, trustees' chairwoman, said one problem is that there's no community center. Boardman Park is surrounded by retail areas, she said.
"We have good schools and good neighborhoods, but you can't see those if you're driving through the corridor," she said. "There's also a lot of overhead wires."
After completing the community tour, Miller said Schwartz and Reed expect to present recommendations to the committee in a week to 10 days.
"They said they can make a contribution and help us with looking toward the future and maximizing our potential," Miller said.