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    New Website Centralizes Information on Columbus Area Commissions

    A new website launched by the Department of Neighborhoods is centralizing information about the city’s 21 Area Commissions.

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    Created at the recommendation of the commissions, the website provides general information about Area Commissions, details on how to establish a new Commission, the appointment process and an interactive map. Links to each of the 21 commissions provide residents with specific information on meeting agendas, dates and locations, membership, committees, bylaws, events and more.

    “In order to have vibrant and diverse neighborhoods, we need residents to be engaged, to be the voice for their communities at City Hall,” said Mayor Andrew J. Ginther. “Area Commissions recommended a website to help with the establishment and management of commissions, and we listened. This should be a great tool for greater resident involvement.”

    Designed to act as a liaison between neighborhood groups, property owners, residents, developers and City officials, the first area commissions were established in the 1970s and continued to be created throughout the city.

    “This new website is an important next step to boost awareness and ensure even more residents are at the table when Commissions make recommendations” said Carla Williams-Scott, Director of the Department of Neighborhoods.

    Current Area Commissions include:

    “Being able to share their meeting times, minutes, bylaws, and contact information on one convenient website will benefit all those interested in staying up to date about issues affecting their neighborhood,” said City Council Member Rob Dorans, Chair of the Neighborhoods Committee. “I applaud the Department of Neighborhoods and all 21 of the Area Commissions in their effort to improve engagement between the residents, the Commissions and the City while expanding the opportunities to participate at the grassroots level.”

    Several neighborhoods and commissions are absent from the new website. Commissions like the Brewery District, Downtown, German Village, Italian Village, Victorian Village and the East Franklinton Review Board fall under Historic Preservation District, Design Review Area, or Zoning District locations.

    According to the city’s website, “Property owners and developers that are making changes to their property within these areas may be required to obtain a Certificate of Appropriateness or Certificate of Approval (COA). Changes that may require review by a board or commission within these areas include all exterior changes, changes of use, signs/graphics, landscaping, or lot combinations.”

    Find the new website at www.cbusareacommissions.org.

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    Susan Post
    Susan Post
    Susan is the editor of The Metropreneur and associate editor of Columbus Underground, and also covers small business and entrepreneurial news and the food scene in Central Ohio.Susan holds a degree in Communication with a minor in Professional Writing from The Ohio State University. She sits on the board of the Central Ohio Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and loves coffee, whiskey, cooking and spending time with friends and family.
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