WESTERVILLE, Ohio (WCMH) — The city of Westerville announced on Wednesday plans to merge with Harlem Township as the area looks to combat development fueled by Intel’s semiconductor plant under construction in Licking County.

The proposed merger would allow Harlem Township to preserve the community’s rural quality of life, which Carl Richison, a Harlem Township trustee, said is at risk given growing pressure for development. Richison said a merger would alleviate threat of annexation and is necessary to give residents more power to control future growth.

“The risk is that land for farms and families become warehouses. Ohio law doesn’t give townships the power to prevent it,” Richison said. “Only cities can do that, which is why the committee has recommended that the Harlem Township Trustees move forward with an intent to merge with Westerville.”

While Westerville’s and Harlem Township’s borders do not touch, Ohio law provides multiple avenues for local governments to merge as long as their councils and voters approve. That process will begin on Thursday with an informational meeting for Harlem Township residents at 6:30 p.m. at Harlem Road Church.

Westerville, with an estimated population of 38,466 in 2022, straddles the Franklin-Delaware county line, and its closest point, Harlem Township is about 1 1/2 miles east in Delaware County. Separating the two is Hoover Reservoir, with Smothers Road crossing over it to connect the two. About 4,629 people are in Harlem Township.

Westerville City Council will also be engaging with residents on the issue during a 7 p.m. introduction meeting on March 6 at Westerville City Hall. Additional public meetings will be posted on the proposal’s new site, westervilleharlem.org.

The two communities will make the case to residents that growth in central Ohio lead by Intel’s multi-billion dollar investment means local governments must be increasingly thoughtful about planning for future traffic, water and sewer, police and fire, recreation and other amenities that make their quality of life distinct.

Intel’s semiconductor chip manufacturing campus, named Ohio One, broke ground in September of 2022 and has already spurred a mixed-use district proposed to be built on more than 400 acres north of Intel’s campus. Amazon also announced in 2023 plans to substantially build out its data center presence in central Ohio through an estimated multi-billion dollar investment by the end of the decade.

Monica Dupee, Westerville city manager, said the investments show the two communities need to take an active role in helping manage growth. The partnership is a natural fit, Dupee said, given Harlem Township shares many of the same concerns Westerville residents have about what she calls unrestrained growth.

“Partnering with Harlem Township would give us both the tools we need to better manage the development around us and the power to take control of our future instead of having it taken from us,” said Dupee. “There are still factors to consider but the upside for both communities looks significant.”

The local governments noted the merger will not impact either communities’ schools, since those are controlled by separate, independent school boards. Westerville students attend Westerville City Schools, and those in Harlem Township attend Big Walnut schools. The two communities have yet to decide whether combining police and fire, parks and other city services would be a benefit to residents.

A formal merger agreement would have to be approved by each legislative body by August in order to be submitted to voters for the November general election.