The plans are merely conceptual at this point and may not develop for several years, although at least four land owners between Liberty Way and Bethany Road — where the Cox Road extension could be built — have agreed to allow the township to market their properties to potential developers.
“The vision is that it could be a medical or medical office corridor,” said Caroline McKinney, the township’s economic development director. “But it’s all development-driven.”
There’s one major exception, though, that could prevent the extension — at least its first phase — from ever becoming a reality.
Jason Harter and his family, who have operated the Green Crest Golf Course off Bethany Road since 1975, say their land isn’t for sale.
In addition to the 110 acres that make up Green Crest, Harter said his family owns nearly 100 more acres north of Bethany and “not one acre is for sale.”
“We fully intend to be here,” Harter said about the future of the course.
Nearly a year ago, plans for the $225 million Liberty Town Square fell victim to the economy and were shelved indefinitely.
Initial ideas submitted to the township in May 2008 included retail shops, restaurants, bars, two hotels, a movie theater, offices, “pocket parks” and more than 250 luxury apartments, according to developers Columbus-based Steiner + Associates.
But McKinney said the township hasn’t lost sight of the possibilities of their new interchange.
“At this point, it’s all about marketing the properties and letting the developers know,” McKinney said. “It’s a way of saying ‘Liberty Way is open for business.’”
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