of planning. “The city has done very well over the years implementing downtown comprehensive planning, and they’ve updated that every 10 to 15 years,”Westendorf notes.“The problem is those plans did nothing but sit on shelves and collect dust.” Now, with infrastructure in place, Franklin’s historic buildings from the 1840s finally see renovation and reuse. THE RIVERFRONT ADVANTAGE: RECREATION, TRAILS, AND NEW DESTINATIONS Most Ohio river towns face an insurmountable barrier: the massive levee system built after the devastating 1913 flood. These protective walls separate downtowns from their rivers, creating dead zones where development cannot occur. Franklin discovered it holds a unique exception to this rule, opening possibilities no other community along the Great Miami River can pursue. “The great Miami River flooded and they created the Miami Conservancy District based on the peak of that flood plus 20% minimally,”Westendorf explains.“We are the only community that can pull the river into our downtown.” Franklin’s east bank sits naturally higher than the levee requirements, allowing direct 5 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 06, ISSUE 07 FRANKLIN, OH
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