in the pipeline that should be built between now and 2027,” Gottke says. With various housing options planned, from market-rate apartments to singlefamily homes, the county aims to alleviate the strain on housing availability and attract diverse residents. “Most of the new development is focused on marketrate apartments,” explains Gottke. However, that’s not everything.“There is also about 350 owner-occupied homes in the works, including single-family homes, patio homes, townhouses, and some senior living options.”This variety in housing types is a deliberate strategy to accommodate various needs, from young professionals to retirees. Knox County’s growth strategy aims to balance residential, commercial, and industrial development. “The 1,500 units are really just meeting pent-up demand from the past decade,” says Gottke. The county needs about 2,500 new housing units by 2030, following a “retail follows rooftops” model—focusing on housing first to attract retail and commercial growth.This push is driven by local employers’ needs. “There’s a huge demand for housing and workers,” Gottke notes, emphasizing that the goal is to provide options for local talent rather than solely attracting outsiders. BUILDING INFRASTRUCTURE FOR GROWTH Knox County is laying the groundwork for future expansion without requiring extensive overhauls to its core utilities.“We’re fortunate that our municipal water and sewer systems currently have the capacity for growth,” Gottke says, highlighting that large-scale infrastructure upgrades, like water treatment plant expansions, aren’t necessary right now. However, the county’s infrastructure efforts are concentrated on transportation, with projects underway to improve We’re in the middle of it all. Our students come to Gambier, Ohio, from every region of the country and corner of the globe to engage with different viewpoints and focus on very big things in a small, wide-open space. KENYON.EDU 247 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 05, ISSUE 10 KNOX COUNTY, OH
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