An exciting river development plan being promoted by a local consulting firm and embraced by city leaders would play a huge part of transforming Warren and our Mahoning Valley.
The river project shared publicly in recent weeks, coupled with a visionary plan to develop Warren’s downtown “Peninsula,” undoubtedly could move the city toward a significantly brighter future. We are thrilled with the proposals and believe residents and potential businesses should be too.
A river development expert from Denver, Colo., working with Youngstown-based MS Consultants, spoke recently at a public presentation about the potential the Mahoning River holds for Warren and the Mahoning Valley.
Previously the butt of jokes due to contaminants and other grime that for years had been dumped there from area steel mills, the Mahoning River today is being re-imagined as an economic catalyst and central point for, yes, improving quality of life.
“People are drawn to rivers,” said Walter Pennington, senior project manager with Denver-based McLaughlin Whitewater. “These rivers can be economic catalysts to draw people in, to help with tourism and keep communities in town instead of moving away.”
That bears repeating: it can help keep young people from moving away.
Pennington said healthy rivers used for recreation also promote pride in a community.
And believe it or not, experts say Mahoning River water quality is healthy and good.
That’s just the start.
Warren also benefits from the fact that so much public property — parks like Perkins, Packard and Burbank — abut the river banks, setting it up nicely for river-based activities like rafting and kayaking. Islands in the stream offer possibilities for added beaches and put-in areas for boats, tubes and other water toys. Also proposed is a “riffle” feature, which speeds stream flow into rapids or rougher waters for the sheer purpose of outdoor enjoyment.
Renderings and aerial drone videos showcased the river in a bright new light.
Coupled with the ongoing planned removal of Mahoning River dams, the project would draw neighbors, visitors and out-and-out tourists to the area for enjoyable summer afternoons. From there, small private business would grow.
Even better, it could attract new residents.
But this is only part of the equation.
Katie Phillips, an urban planner with MS Consultants, said the potential is remarkable.
“That type of development, which could be looking like commercial or retail space, potential restaurants, adjacent to a river park where there are people playing and utilizing it, the opportunities are endless,” she said.
In a separate, but equally important plan, the mayor, business leaders and private developers quietly have been chipping away at a plan to reimagine part of downtown abutting the river and affectionately known as “the peninsula.”
The public-private “Fund for Warren’s Future” organization hopes to foster economic development, including proposed sorely needed modern multi-family properties in the downtown area. Also planned is a $150 million mixed-use project with more than 200 housing units and retail space, according to Dennis Blank, administrator for Fund for Warren’s Future.
The peninsula project would consist of 100,000 square feet of office and retail space; a traditional hotel with meeting space; access to recreational opportunities, including a pedestrian bridge across the river to Perkins Park; as well as a gateway to Warren’s west side and the Tod Avenue corridor.
Eddie Colbert, Warren’s safety / service director said the potential river project combined with other expected local projects could make the city a top destination in the Mahoning Valley.
We disagree. Rather, this project could make the city a top destination in the state!
Frankly, this is the exact type of visionary project we have been calling for when discussing use of American Rescue Plan funds. It’s incredibly unfortunate that so much of these federal and state funds have been allocated or spent on projects that, a decade from now, will have produced little to no lasting impact.
The good news is, it’s not completely too late. Some ARP funds still remain on the books in Warren and Trumbull County.
The Fund for Warren’s Future has requested $2 million in Trumbull County ARP funds. This downtown Warren development project should be a no-brainer for allocation of these funds.
Warren and Trumbull County must back these projects financially for the good of the community as a whole.
And after that, the next step would be for Eastgate Regional Council of Governments to throw its weight behind the project in an effort to help garner a large piece of the hundreds of millions of dollars allocated by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine to assist and transform Ohio’s Appalacian region, which includes our Mahoning Valley.
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