Meeting the market: smart district design catalyzes commercial development

Conveniently located in Delaware County, Westar Place is a 60-acre mixed-use district that has become a desirable location for commercial and office development. The City of Westerville purchased the land from a private developer to meet market pressures for additional office space and to fill a gap in their commercial corridor along Polaris Parkway.

Big-picture planning, detailed development

EDGE worked with the city in preparing several development alternatives to meet the current needs of the community while planning for future demands. In addition, EDGE assisted the city with overall branding and signage, community character, and planning studies based on user-specific programming for individual parcels.

The project’s centerpiece, the Renaissance Hotel and Conference Center, has served as a catalyst for additional development, helping to attract regional and national offices. Complementing on-going master planning work on the development, EDGE has served as landscape architect for the hotel as well as various district projects, including community streetscapes and the new DHL headquarters.