Open Source: What will happen to Powell’s Village Green splash pad and amphitheater?

POWELL — Big changes loom for downtown Powell’s Village Green area.

The current space that hosts a lawn, joint city hall and police station, and large parking lot could eventually become a mixed-use space for retail, a market hall, apartments, additional parking and more.

Any potential changes are still years away, City Manager Andy White said — and there is not an officially set and approved plan for what will become of Village Green.

In fact, the city is only in phase two of the planning process for the Village Green Master Plan, which involves exploring potential development concepts and incorporating community feedback. 

Pizzuti Solutions, a consulting firm that helps manage public redevelopment projects, was hired by the city to guide the planning process and collect community input.

During three public listening sessions, the firm presented two possible redevelopment concepts and asked residents for feedback that could shape future revisions.

Last week, Powell residents sounded off about the plan, questioning what development could mean for beloved Village Green amenities like the splash pad, amphitheater, green space and the annual Powell Fest festival.

What will happen to Village Green amenities?

White said the future is ultimately uncertain for Village Green, but no immediate changes are planned.

“Nothing is gonna happen to Powell Fest in the meantime. It will go on next month and the two years to follow,” he said.

Beyond that, White said the long-term future of the festival and other Village Green amenities remains uncertain because the city has not finalized a redevelopment plan.

He added that even without redevelopment, several amenities — including the splash pad and amphitheater — are nearing the end of their useful lifespan and would likely need upgrades or replacement.

“Even if everything stays the same, people aren’t understanding this stuff needs to be upgraded as it stands,” he said.

“That’s gonna have to be reimagined regardless. It could be where it’s at now or somewhere else, but with where the concepts are right now, we don’t have answers because there is no definitive path to change anything.”

Powell city manager Andy white

The splash pad experienced multiple breakdowns last year and in previous seasons, causing delayed openings and temporary closures.

Because the splash pad is 30 years old, the replacement parts aren’t easily accessible, and sometimes no longer exist, White said.

The same is true for the amphitheater, which only has two electrical outlets on the stage and lacks lighting and other features, requiring the city to use trucks and drive in extra equipment for shows and events.

“If this didn’t exist today, we probably wouldn’t have put in a splash pad and amphitheater,” he said.

He added that the city is separately evaluating the future placement of amenities like the splash pad and amphitheater as part of its broader Parks Master Plan.

Village Green changes are community-informed

White said residents, and lots of nonresidents, have reached out to the city with their concerns, with many believing the proposed developments are final and others sharing they had never heard of the concepts until now.

“Everything people are worried about is important and should be considered,” White said. “Whatever development happens on Village Green, we will take these concerns into consideration.”

Phase two of the planning process incorporated feedback from 658 survey responses about what residents would like to see at Village Green. Pizzuti Solutions distributed the survey to Powell residents in January 2025.

The consulting firm used those responses — along with market trend analysis and city capacity research — to develop two potential redevelopment concepts.

White said resident feedback has remained central throughout the planning process and will continue shaping future revisions to the proposals.

He encouraged residents who feel strongly about the splash pad, amphitheater or any other features to email those concerns to city staff at info@cityofpowell.us and specifically ask the staff forward the email to Pizzuti Solutions.

White also pointed out the city cannot gather comments from third-party platforms, such as Facebook comments.

The city will host a fourth community listening session in the evening after hearing complaints from residents about not being able to attend daytime sessions held over the last few weeks.

White anticipates announcing a date, time and location for that listening session at the May 19 city council meeting.

Other concerns

In addition, White addressed four other concerns he has heard from residents about the proposed development of Village Green:

1. There will still be some degree of green space on Village Green. White also said people largely utilize the green space for city events and other outside entities that organize events on the space.
2. No, there will not be 200 apartment units occupying Village Green. That number comes from a capacity study that found the entire city of Powell could have 200 occupied apartments. The study merely looked at capacity and the market need for apartments; it does not mean the city will get 200 and it does not outline specific locations for apartment buildings.
3. Village Green will not become the next Bridge Park, as seen in Dublin. Considering that Powell does not have a body of water to build a bridge over, White said it’s safe to say it’s not going to be another Bridge Park. “Powell is always going to be Powell and Dublin is always going to be Dublin,” White said. However, the two proposed plans do feature similar mixed-used spaces.
4. There are no tax abatement applications in place, and there is no plan for the city to grant a tax abatement to every potential developer who wants to bring business or housing to the Village Green. There is not a program for residential tax abatements anymore after city council scrapped the program at the end of last year. Commercial abatements are available, but council evaluates each on a case-by-case basis.