Seville Village Council Approves Warehouse; Residents Fight Continues

SEVILLE - Monday night, the Village Council of Seville, Ohio, continued their effort to turn 90-plus acres of farmland into a Flint Development project with a three warehouse facility totaling over 1.3 million square feet. It would have more than 750 parking spaces and over 220 dock doors. The plans show the access roads just 50 feet away from the home's property line that sits on the massive project's border, bringing concern to the village's citizens. In June, the Seville Village Council approved changes to the village's ordinance that would make it possible to complete the project on this farmland. Residents have been vocal about their stance against the warehouses, but those complaints have fallen on deaf ears as the village council approved the project on Monday.

Seville residents have continued to fight since the last update from Seville, going as far as starting a fundraiser to afford legal representation. You can see the fundraiser and learn more about the resident's battle here. 

Missy Rieg organized the fundraiser and lives in the Royal Crest Neighborhood that the warehouses would directly impact. On the map below, you can see the plans and how they would affect the Royal Crest Neighborhood.

Joseph Jorge, a Project Manager from CESO, gave the final project recap and pointed out that 2 of the three warehouses are speculation buildings, meaning there are no tenants selected at this time. The project would make significant changes to route 3 to complete the project. Eric Watts, Vice President of Development for Flint Development, agreed to place an 8-foot sound wall along the residential property line. The sound barrier would cover where the houses are located, not the entire property. Joseph Jorge acknowledged that the traffic impact studies are incomplete because both the Village of Seville and ODOT are still looking into the research. However, Flint Development is ready to make changes suggested by ODOT and the village. The residents in attendance could not see the final proposal as they were not on display for the residents to view during the meeting. But Village Council members could view the final project plans during the presentation.

The residents did have legal representation; Attorney Jeffery Witschey of Witschey Witschey and Firestine CO., LPA spoke on behalf of residents Missy Reig and Scott Wrangler. Witschey brought with him a 5-page document that showed 32 ordinance violations of the Mixed-Used Overlay in Seville's Zoning Code section 611.

WTAM spoke to Missy Rieg, who said the neighborhood has tried to reach out to Village Officials and asked about possible project proposal changes, but the village would not listen or respond to the residents. Rieg felt she had no choice but to seek legal representation.

WTAM spoke to Jeffery Witschey, who said The changes made by the Village Council back in June might not be legal, and it almost acts as a zoning handout. I asked Jeffery Witschey what WTAM listeners should know about these residents' fight ahead. Witschey responded, We should know that the residents of Seville "have a lot of energy and will continue to press forward for justice in this case, which means they will probably go to court."

This is a developing story. WTAM will have the latest as it becomes available.

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