(COLUMBUS BUSINESS FIRST)–Jim Lenner is a man with a plan. Or several of them, if needed.

The former Johnstown city manager left that position in December to focus on Neighborhood Strategies, his local government consulting business, full time. And, with the incoming Intel semiconductor plant that will send shockwaves across all aspects of the region, Lenner said it couldn’t have come at a better time.

“(It’s) taking the 17 years of local government knowledge I have and trying to help other small communities with whatever needs they have,” Lenner, who founded the firm in 2016 as a part-time venture, told Columbus Business First.

Intel’s project will bring massive growth to the area, Lenner said. But that growth has to be handled with a plan — especially in smaller towns that may not have the resources large cities do to prepare for the incoming growth.

Central Ohio leaders are aware of the infrastructure strains that may come with the plant. The city of Columbus, for example, is considering another affordable housing bond, while Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission leaders say Central Ohio will need to continue to focus on improving transit and the area’s main thoroughfares to accommodate new residents lured by Intel.

Jersey Township, the locality annexing the Intel plant’s site to New Albany, is partnering with Crossroads Community Planning to develop Jersey 2050, a comprehensive plan that will include “a series of goals, objectives, recommendations and actions steps that will help guide land use, housing, infrastructure, and policy decisions over the next few decades, according to an announcement from the township. (Trustees weren’t available for further comment on the effort.)

Lenner said townships need to be ready to handle the impacts of the Intel project, expected to create thousands of jobs and likely bring more talent and investment to Central Ohio.

Perhaps most notably, that means localities will need housing to meet the upcoming surge in population, Lenner said. In a market where inventory is already low, workers will need a place to live, and if a community doesn’t have a plan, Lenner said it is possible a developer can propose projects that the community doesn’t want.

“Right now, communities have the opportunity to plan for and control the growth that’s going to happen,” Lenner said. “As a township or city official, you have the opportunity to harness the benefits that will come forth with a development of this nature. Ignoring it and pretending nothing’s going to happen is going to potentially ruin communities.”

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