The 2022 Greater Ohio Summit will offer attendees fresh, new perspectives on comprehensive and sustainable growth for Ohio’s cities by bringing together experts, policymakers, and local leaders from Ohio and beyond. Information on the panels at the 2022 Greater Ohio Summit are below.

New for 2022: The 2022 Greater Ohio Summit will offer an optional two-tract structure, which attendees may choose to follow: one focused on issues of Equitable Development, and a second tract focused on Legacy City Innovations. Panels in each tract are labeled below.

Continuing Education Credits Available to Summit Attendees

Attendees of the 2022 Greater Ohio Summit have the opportunity to receive continuing education credits for the day.

The Supreme Court of Ohio

The Supreme Court of Ohio Commission on Continuing Legal Education (CLE) has approved this event for 5 CLE Credit Hours. The Activity Code will be provided to attendees during the event. 

American Planning Association (Ohio)

The American Planning Association Ohio Chapter has approved the Greater Ohio Summit for APA accreditation. Attendees will receive CE Credit for attendance. The Activity Code will be provided to attendees during the event.

In 2020, Ohio Department of Transportation released a first-of-its-kind plan focused on walking and biking, which timed well with the pandemic-related increased demand for outside space. Several communities across the state are addressing infrastructure needs while maintaining a focus on often forgotten roadway users.

This panel will feature thoughtful discussion from regional leaders on how to plan and execute local transportation policies and designs that accommodate and encourage multiple roadway users.

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Developing trust across grasstops groups is a precondition of a successful partnership. Establishing and maintaining trust with residents is critical to a well-designed, durable initiative.

This panel discussion will cover a variety of deliberate trust-building efforts. Panelists will talk about why developing trust was important, the nuts and bolts of how it was achieved, and lessons learned for future efforts.

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Land use zoning may be the most powerful tool in a municipality’s tool belt, yet it is perennially criticized for what it does and doesn’t do. Does zoning discourage new development, or does it preserve neighborhood character? Does it limit affordability, or does it ensure that a community grows in concert with the desires of its residents? Communities around Ohio are starting to ask how they can improve local zoning to better meet the needs of today’s residents while accommodating tomorrow’s neighbors?

This panel will feature cities that have recently tweaked, or completely rewritten, their zoning codes to increase productivity, provide a diverse range of development choices, and better align with their communities’ overall goals for growth.

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Collaboration is often critical for mission-driven projects, especially to ensure complex ones succeed in weak-market areas. Partnerships expand a project team’s capacity, expertise, and resources; they demonstrate credibility and can attract additional capital and community support for a project. Get inspired as you hear first-hand how collaboration helped these changemakers execute their mission-driven projects for more significant, equitable impacts in Ohio.

Panelists will include grass-tops to grass-roots leaders promoting inclusive economic growth, planning for success, and advocating for positive change on a neighborhood to statewide scale.

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The old adage goes “You can’t go home again.” But these “boomerangs”, individuals who return to their hometowns after leaving for school or work, are proving that not only is that wrong, but returning home does not mean accepting that things cannot be changed for the positive by going back from where you are from.

Utilizing the PechaKucha method of sharing a story, using 20 slides for 20 seconds of commentary each, this fun and innovative panel will feature five panelists who have one thing in common: each has “boomeranged” back home and is making a positive impact on their community. A facilitated discussion will follow the presentations.

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One of the greatest underutilized assets in many Ohio cities is a large supply of existing, non-subsidized housing units. Yet extensive neighborhood rehab of these units is admittedly complicated and often difficult to implement.

Panelists will share strategies that incrementally target existing stock to achieve neighborhood preservation, renovation, and affordability. Attendees will hear from a CDC, community foundation, and private developer.

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The 614 for Linden is an investment and nonprofit collaboration that is seeking to implement 4 of the 10 big ideas identified in the City of Columbus’ One Linden Plan (2018). The 11+ member Collaborative works to stabilize and expand housing options, develop businesses, support entrepreneurs, build community investment, and improve resident health in Linden.

Join the Collaborative partners for a bus tour of the neighborhood and their projects; learn about implementation, barriers, and how these projects contribute to a broader effort to revitalize the neighborhood holistically.

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For the first time in over a decade, significant grant dollars are available to Ohio’s communities to tackle their brownfields. This $350 million program, known as the Brownfield Remediation Fund, opened in 2022, providing assessment and cleanup dollars to remediate and revitalize brownfields in Ohio’s communities.

This panel will focus on the newly established program, with panelists sharing how collaboration and coordination are integral to successfully plan, prepare, and maximize a brownfields project. This panel will also discuss continued brownfields advocacy efforts at the local and state level.

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Main street gateways set the stage for how visitors and residents interact with your town or neighborhood. Investing in area gateways is a key factor of placemaking, and can enhance ongoing redevelopment efforts in downtowns and residential areas. Moreover, neighborhood commercial corridors hold the possibility for inclusive and equitable economic development.

This panel will highlight the ways cities big and small are reactivating their corridors and gateways.

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Join Greater Ohio Policy Center Director of Strategic Engagement Jason Warner as he provides attendees of the 2022 Greater Ohio Summit with an update about ongoing activities at the Ohio statehouse as well as a preview of the 2022 statewide election cycle.

Note: This session will begin before the official start of the 2022 Greater Ohio Summit, beginning at 8:30am.

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