Lifestyle: Finding Your Place - Hilliard

FINDING YOUR PLACE

Whether you prefer city, suburban or small-town settings, Central Ohio has a spot for you.

If downtown living isn’t your vibe, no worries. The Columbus Region has plenty of options, from trendy walkable neighborhoods to charming rural towns. Here’s an alphabetical snapshot of 28 notable communities around Central Ohio—one of which is apt to feel just like home to you.

HILLIARD

FOUNDED 1853 | POPULATION 36,892 | COUNTY Franklin

Hilliard is a sprawling, continually growing suburb offering a little bit of everything. While its population has jumped more than 30 percent since 2010, stretches of farmland still separate many of the newer housing developments and the city’s three high schools, while urban-style apartments are starting to pop up here and there. Historic Old Hilliard continues to be the anchor of this community, with a mix of longtime shops and restaurants, along with newer additions such as the Center Street Market, featuring food and retail vendors and anchor business, Crooked Can Brewery. Hilliard’s Station Park, one of 25 parks in the city, abuts this active retail area and includes a splashpad for kids, live music in the summer and a trailhead for the 7-mile Heritage Trail multiuse path.

Other notable additions to this former railroad town include a massive, domed indoor sports training facility owned by former professional two-sport athlete Bo Jackson, a sleek new branch of the Columbus Metropolitan Library and a popular e-sports and gaming arena.