DELAWARE — The Ohio AAA Blue Jackets’ project will no longer include an amphitheater and outdoor ice rink onsite, but the amphitheater is still being considered for elsewhere on the Maridel site.
The Delaware Planning Commission approved the minor modification to the project’s development plan at the southwest corner of Sawmill Parkway and U.S. Route 42 during its Wednesday meeting.
The approval marked the end of this piece of legislation’s journey, as a development plan modification does not require further approval from Delaware City Council.
The AAA hockey team’s facility will now expand to have four indoor ice rinks, as opposed to the originally planned three indoor rinks, one outdoor rink and amphitheater venue.
However, when the commission asked Archall Architects’ Dave Kaldy if the amphitheater piece was permanently on hold or planned for somewhere else on the site, Kaldy said it’s still being “kicked around.”
“I don’t think anybody is really in a position to talk details on that at the moment,” he said.
The 140,530-square-foot building, an increase from the original 127,000-square-foot plan, will sit on 12.96 of the almost 258-acre Maridel development. It is officially Phase 1 of Subarea A.
Delaware City Council established the Maridel Planned-Use Development (PUD) for the project in March 2025, passed the original development plan in June 2025, and established a tax increment financing district in July 2026.
Access to the site remains unchanged, according to Planning and Zoning Administrator Anna Kelsey. City staff’s report about the projects states that visitors would enter off of Sawmill Parkway, “with planned connections to future development to the west of [Subarea A] as development expands.”
A proposed 452 parking spaces are also included in the development plan.
Mayor Carolyn Kay Riggle asked Kaldy how soon can construction start.
“As soon as possible,” Kaldy replied. “The plan right now is to break ground early next year.”
