COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Members of a Harrison West homeowners association fear an unexpected apartment building proposal could harm their neighborhood.

Once a Battelle parking lot, developers have completed 95% of a 21-acre transformation in Harrison West. Dubbed Founders Park, the mixed-use development came from a decade of conversations between residents and the developers behind the site, which sits along the Olentangy River just west of the Short North.

Thrive Companies is behind the final construction, proposed as one townhouse building and a 20-unit condo around 531 W. 5th Ave. Now, financial concerns have led Thrive to file a zoning request to replace those family homes with a 60-unit apartment building, a change some Harrison West residents oppose.

“This shift undermines the trust we, as residents, placed in the original development plan, which was intended to promote long-term stability and homeownership in our neighborhood and balance apartments with townhomes and single-family homes in the development,” the homeowners association told NBC4.

But Thrive Principal and EVP of Development Steve Bollinger said the company has no other choice. He said the townhomes Thrive has already constructed in Harrison West are not selling, and the developers felt their best option was to abandon the hundreds of thousands invested in the initial architectural plans. 

“We don’t make changes like this because we want to. We make them when we have to,” Bollinger said. “This is a situation where we have to make this change.”

The new proposal would have required 90 parking spaces, but Thrive is requesting just 15 spots, supplemented by parking throughout Founders Park. Bollinger said the occupancy between plans differed by fewer than one dozen people, and most apartment residents could be served by a surface lot.

Harrison West residents said they worry this would exacerbate parking concerns in the urban neighborhood, where street parking is rarely free and extremely limited. The Columbus Division of Fire said it did not support the parking changes, citing fears of unauthorized parking that could block emergency vehicles.

Bollinger said he was disappointed to learn community members felt they weren’t being listened to, citing initiatives Thrive has to prioritize the neighborhoods they develop in. He said Thrive designs its developments to reflect community sources of pride and markets neighborhoods based on how residents want their community presented. 

Bollinger said he was disappointed to hear residents are opposing the new building, especially after taking part in many conversations with neighbors. From exclusive local business deals to intentional architectural design, he said Thrive has a lot of initiatives that prioritize the neighborhoods they work in.

“We don’t want to be the developers that puts up fences and be like, ‘Oh, look at this exclusive thing that nobody else gets to be a part of.’ That’s not us, that’s not who we are at the core of our values and our missions,” Bollinger said. “And so that’s why it’s upsetting that we’re having this discussion.”

Homeowner association members said they understand developers need to make money, but they feel the change undermines their original agreement.

“Because the existing residents don’t want the revised development plan, it would seem that Thrive wants the late-stage zoning variance simply to help their bottom line, and is not concerned about the investments existing residents already made based on Thrive’s original commitments,” homeowners association member Bruce Pecci said.

The zoning change was submitted to the city in January and is currently being processed, after which it needs to be reviewed and approved by various city boards, including one from Harrison West.