Westerville
A Columbus Monthly Suburban Section
A Bold Day in Westerville
It’s always an honor to collaborate with Columbus Monthly to talk about Westerville. It is my hope that in the pages of this magazine, you see for yourself that Westerville is having a moment.
With a reliable combination of exceptional services, incredible amenities and job creation, Westerville is poised for more. Read on to find out how ready this community is for change and growth, especially as Central Ohio continues to be among the most attractive regions in the nation.
It is, quite simply, a bold day in Westerville. All ideas and opportunities are welcome here.
Westerville is very aware of the changes coming now and in the future, as much of that immediate growth takes place to our direct eastern borders. In order to thoughtfully accommodate that impact, we are planning and dreaming.
of land for economic development. The site sits next to Westar, a major center of commerce and workforce in Westerville, Delaware County and north Columbus, and stands to be another major destination for work and play along Polaris Parkway.
In historic Uptown, Westerville is reimagining a traditional City Hall, creating space for centralized customer service and aligning staff teams under one roof for the first time in more than 50 years. The consolidation of buildings has resulted in new Uptown investments, including COhatch, North High Brewing and High Bank Distillery.
The 88-acre “East of Africa Road” development (page 20) brings new amenities to one of the few remaining large parcels
INSIDE
VIBRANT CITY TO LIVE, WORK AND PLAY
Westerville has it all—a bustling Uptown district, top-notch city services and greenspace galore.
FULL-SERVICE CITY
Westerville’s cityowned electric and fiber optic utilities are major differentiators.
Westerville will always explore opportunities to strengthen this community. And we will never stop being BOLD. I invite you to read more and become part of our story. Learn more about how at westerville.org.
Monica Dupee, City Manager City of Westerville, Ohio
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HIGH BANK WESTERVILLE
How local investors turned the historic Post Office into a popular dinner destination..
CONNECTED COLLEGE TOWN
Otterbein University and Westerville are two parts that make a whole community.
UPTOWN UPDATE
The city’s strategy to free Uptown space for residents while adding services is working.
BUILDING THE FUTURE
The city has made the most of available land for development, and more opportunities await.
ON THE COVER: Fourth Fridays in Westerville draw crowds for fun Uptown. Photo courtesy City of Westerville
HOMETOWN ENTREPRENEUR
John Brooks of BTTS Holdings is the quintessential local business leader and committed to Westerville.
PHOTO: COURTESY CITY OF WESTERVILLE
Monica Dupee
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VIBRANT CITY TO LIVE, WORK AND PLAY
Westerville offers a comprehensive ecosystem for businesses, a historic Uptown with many locally owned restaurants and shops and plenty of recreational advantages.
By Andrew King
Janet Tressler-Davis remembers when the first wave of fast-food chains started coming to Westerville.
A lifetime resident of the city, few have had a better view of Westerville’s growth. Her father, James Tressler, served as the mayor of Westerville for 13 of his 22 years on city council, and Tressler-Davis has been President and CEO of the Westerville Area Chamber of Commerce since 1992. She even stayed in the city for her undergraduate degree, graduating from Otterbein University in 1982.
As a kid, she had access to a Burger King and to a long-defunct chain called Burger Boy Food-O-Rama.
“There just wasn’t any food,” she says. “And then all of a sudden, all this fast food came in the 80s.”
In her lifetime, Tressler-Davis has seen the most dramatic growth in Westerville’s 166-year history. From 1970 to its peak in 2019, the city more than tripled in size, growing from about 12,000 residents to more than 41,000.
With that growth has come an influx of businesses, amenities for residents, infrastructure projects and major developments. But along the way, the city has stuck to a set of principles and a core belief in putting residents first.
The result is a city with a nearly unparalleled mix of strengths, from business and recreation to residential space and city services.
Westerville now sits within 20 minutes of 300,000 jobs and commands a humming economic engine. It’s adopted the moniker, “City Within
a Park” because of its commitment to maintaining 6,000 acres of parkland.
Restaurants, events and entertainment centers flock to the city to be part of that mix.
Progress According to Plan
As it approached the 2000s, Westerville knew it had something other communities didn’t: room to expand.
The city’s modern era of expansion began in earnest just before the turn of the 21st Century, when it annexed 941 acres of land from neighboring townships in Delaware County. The area would become known as Westar, and a $30 million infrastructure project would connect the development with the up-and-coming Polaris Fashion Place retail mecca, which opened in 2001.
Recreation in Westerville
PHOTO: COURTESY CITY OF WESTERVILLE
The success of that development and the economic opportunities that came with it helped launch a new era for the city, one that has come with a variety of major development projects, strategic initiatives and long-term planning.
But much of the city’s ability to execute those projects comes from the trust built on projects like Westar, where Westerville leadership laid out a clear plan, told residents what to expect, asked them to trust the investment and then produced results. City Manager Monica Dupee knows the city can’t take that trust for granted, and she knows it isn’t earned overnight.
“Sometimes it even takes a century,” she says. “I’m lucky I’m here after that century point so that I can ride the coattails of all the professionals who came before me. But there’s a part of our brand that we call ‘The Promise,’ and we take it very seriously. If we say
we’re going to do something, we do it. And if we say we’re going to do it in a certain way, we do it in a certain way. And the reason for that is trust.
“If we don’t keep that trust at a high level, we’re not going to be the creative, innovative, thoughtful community we are. Because, at some level, there has to be that trust that we, as professionals, know the big picture and can move it forward.”
In the years since Westar’s development, residents have trusted the city with a variety of major projects.
The Medical Mile, situated along Cleveland Avenue, was built around the catalyst of Mount Carmel St. Ann’s, and now includes three hospital systems operating a variety of buildings that account for more than 4,500 jobs and nearly 800,000 square feet.
To the south, the Eastwind and Brooksedge business parks make up
more than 2 million square feet of office and industrial space.
An extension of the Westar project, the city developed a 62-acre property acquired in 2014 called Westar Place, which now houses the headquarters of DHL Supply Chain along with the Renaissance Columbus WestervillePolaris Hotel and offices of Central Ohio Primary Care, JPMorgan Chase, OhioHealth, Bank of America and T Marzetti.
The hotel, in particular, marked a specific need and served as a major win for the city. It now offers a place for corporate events and a central location for traveling workers to visit a headquarters or major office.
“Without a full-service hotel in the area, it is extremely difficult to plan the kind of trainings that we host,” said Rita Bassiet, director of sales and marketing of Renaissance Columbus
PHOTO: COURTESY CITY OF WESTERVILLE
City of Westerville
Westerville-Polaris Hotel. “People come and stay here while they’re training, including VIPs and people interviewing. You don’t want to have to send people across town to do those things. You want to have a great place to bring clients. The City of Westerville is here all the time, bringing clients in to talk about new projects.”
Each development project has different goals, attributes and return on investment. But what ties them together is referred to colloquially as “The Westerville Way,” a commitment to intentional, well-reasoned progress that benefits the city and its residents.
“We look at the data around us and we know it’s our responsibility to grow really reasonably and responsibly and stay focused on our strategies while trying not to get into the temptation of being trendy or reacting to things that are happening,” says Westerville Chief of Staff Christa Dickey. “We want to be proactive and pretty steadfast in our approach.”
A Commitment to Variety
That steadfast approach has resulted in not just development, but a diverse business climate.
From medical operations and company headquarters to recreation facilities and restaurants, demand for space in Westerville is high, and it’s not hard to see why.
“Our proximity to Downtown Columbus and to the airport is great, and then you also have the amenities in our community,” Tressler-Davis says. “We have that vibrant Uptown area, and you can’t make that up—that’s natural. So you’ve got the tradition with the innovation, right here in our community. We have Otterbein University, a variety of restaurants to bring people in, an outstanding library and school district. And then on top of all that, we have our own utilities.”
But attracting a variety of businesses isn’t just the result of proximity to Columbus and naturally occurring amenities. It’s the result of intentional planning and economic development efforts to make Westerville attractive to
all types of organizations, from smaller local concepts to large corporations.
“There’s a place for everyone in Westerville,” Dickey says. “What’s special about Westerville is that if you have an idea and you want to be a part of this community, there’s always a way.”
While big names like OhioHealth or DHL grab the headlines and move the economic needle, Dickey points to the recently opened High Bank Distillery in Uptown as the type of addition that adds flavor and community buy-in.
The distillery opened this summer in an 89-year-old Uptown building that was renovated into a 3,600-square-foot restaurant and bar with two patios, a store and an outdoor window that delivers drinks to those enjoying the city’s Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area.
It’s the type of project that connects the dots between the organizations that draw people in during the day and those that provide amenities to residents who stick around outside of the nine to five.
“We have a vibrant business community,” Tressler-Davis says. “I think our businesses work together and are community-minded. These are people wanting to get engaged in the community.”
Fostering those connections and that community feel is crucial for the city’s economic development efforts.
Those efforts start with offering business infrastructure that few can match. The city operates its own water and electric departments, and it runs a data center and fiber-optic network through their WeConnect program. Those interested in bringing business to the city have a direct line to assistance, and Westerville prides itself on working with them.
“Everybody from a business in Uptown all the way up to our biggest employer has a point of contact with the city,” Dupee says.
“We do a quarterly business leader breakfast and split them up into different areas of town or different focuses and bring the CEOs of those companies around the table to have breakfast and fill them in on everything going on
in the city. We do a survey of how we can do better, get feedback on what we’re working on, what they’re working on and how we can work together. It’s constant relationship-building and checking in that we have with our business community.”
Recreation is Non-Negotiable
But efforts to attract investment aren’t just about expanding a tax base or supporting businesses—the city makes a concerted effort to draw companies who represent amenities for its residents while maintaining the recreation space that makes Westerville unique.
It starts with being a “City Within a Park,” which isn’t just a moniker or a tagline. It’s an actual commitment to maintaining and expanding Westerville’s 6,000 acres of parkland, something city leaders know is a core appeal for residents.
That duty to parks and recreation is so important that it’s even been codified in Westerville’s funding. The city collects a 2 percent income tax, and a quarter percent is dedicated to parks and recreation capital items. Known as PROS, the Parks Recreation and Open Space tax, was first approved by voters in 1998, and has continued to receive support from residents.
Community events in Westerville
That funding has resulted in the Westerville Community Center and a variety of other large projects, and it has funded the city’s attempts to keep a park within a quarter mile of every one of its neighborhoods. It underlines parks’ priority status among both residents and leaders.
“It’s always been a differentiator,” Dickey says of that commitment to parks. “For the rest of time, Westerville will make that investment in its parks and recreation system because it’s part of our model. If you take away one piece of the puzzle, the puzzle is incomplete. Our model is about a full-service lifestyle with quality of services, access to parks and wonderful amenities.”
But in Westerville, outdoor amenities and recreation don’t just mean traditional parks and playgrounds.
The city has attracted two major recreational developments that will open in the near future and aim to provide the kind of play that connects with what its community wants.
Edge Adventure Park is an upcoming 10.5-acre project situated in a wooded ravine between Vesper Way and Cleveland Avenue that aims to open in 2025. The park will feature “adventure-style” activities as well as
space to host retreats, workshops and other corporate events. It will connect to nearby trails and include recreation spaces like canopy walks and treehouses that separate it from more traditional open spaces.
“We have a wide variety of ages in Westerville, from people who are just starting families or just got out of college lal the way to people who want to age in place,” Dupee says. “You have to take that into perspective, so every park is different to try to help meet the needs of the entire community. But there also have to be fun places where our business community can come together.”
The city hopes that one of those uniting locations is the upcoming Smash Park. A 50,000-square-foot outdoor space at Westar Place, the complex will house amenities ranging from pickleball and shuffleboard to a rooftop bar and arcade games. Kerri Lockyear, executive vice president of hospitality for the Smash Park Entertainment Group, said the company was drawn to Westerville because of its exciting market and potential to be a “social hub” for the nearby growth.
“Residents should be excited about Smash Park coming into their community because it enriches the local lifestyle, encourages healthy living, and strengthens community bonds,” she says. “It’s more than just a recreational venue—it’s a catalyst for building connections and creating memorable experiences.”
Growing With Central Ohio
Westerville’s progress and growth show no signs of stopping any time soon.
Like most Central Ohio communities, the city is bracing for changes that come as a result of the massive Intel chip factories near New Albany. That $30 billion investment will shape the future of Central Ohio in ways that are still uncertain, but Westerville leaders know they’ll be in the impact zone.
“One of the core things we’re going to constantly be spending time on is the Intel impact and what that is doing to the entire region and in Westerville,”
Dupee says. “We’re always looking for opportunities to keep our community moving in the right direction and taking advantage, in a positive way, of that investment.”
Meanwhile, the city has its own list of projects. They’re in the midst of a major redevelopment of the city’s Uptown city hall that will take two years and combine and centralize a variety of departments.
Westerville is also planning for infrastructure work and the development of an 88-acre parcel of land east of Africa Road, which they purchased in 2023 and represents their next major economic development location.
“The idea is creating opportunity again,” Dickey says of that project. “We’re really hoping to replicate what has happened at Westar. This is a big opportunity. That land sat for years and years with nobody willing to develop it, so it was an opportunity for us to step in and really look at job opportunities and amenities.”
That project, like so many others, will be an opportunity for the city to repay the trust of its residents, a responsibility that Dupee doesn’t take lightly.
Westerville is already hosting open houses to explain their plans and gather resident feedback, and plans will only move forward if they’re supported by the community.
“If we don’t keep that trust at a high level, we’re not going to be the creative, innovative, thoughtful community we are,” she says. “Because, at some level, there has to be trust that we, as professionals, know the big picture and can move it forward.”
As Westerville continues to grow, Tressler-Davis is excited to see what comes next. And while the city probably won’t stay the same forever, she sees that growth as one of its strengths.
“Our community is always changing, which is a good thing,” Tressler-Davis says. “I can’t imagine doing this job in any other city. We are so fortunate here to have the accessibility and diversity that we have.”
PHOTO: COURTESY CITY OF WESTERVILLE
FULLSERVICE CITY
Westerville’s attractive business climate is thanks to a high level of coordination among city agencies.
By Andrew King
In 2024, just about every city has realized that economic development is a critical part of a community generating growth, job opportunities and amenities for its residents.
From tax incentives to infrastructure, every community has a variety of ways to attract prospective businesses and increase investment within its borders.
In Westerville, the amenities are so robust, they’ve led to a reputation as a “full-service city.”
That reputation starts with city services that are operated by the city itself, rather than contracted from nearby municipalities and providers. From police and fire services to waste management and utilities, keeping these services in-house allows the city to maintain high-level offerings while controlling prices for residents.
A Charged History
Perhaps the most differentiating characteristic of Westerville’s city services is its electric department.
The Westerville Electric Division is the only Central Ohio electric utility that operates the full footprint of its city, which gives Westerville and its residents a unique advantage.
“Basically, our residents own our system,” says Electric Utility Manager Chris Monacelli. “They are the owners of it, and we are responsible for it. And our main priorities are reliability and affordability.”
Westerville’s electric setup may be a major differentiator in 2024, but its story begins more than 125 years ago.
In 1898, Westerville residents had grown dissatisfied with the whale oil-burning lamps that lit the city’s streets. It was a lengthy process to light the lamps each night, and residents weren’t fans of the smell and mess.
They decided to go electric—still a relatively new technology at the time— and turned to a manufacturer that had excess power just down the street.
While other cities decided to consolidate over the years, Westerville stuck with it. And now, controlling its own energy means it can offer residents and businesses a high level of service and reliability.
“If you are a resident or a business and you have an electrical problem or outage, we will be there very quickly,” Monacelli says. “If we’re informed of an outage, we have a truck rolling. In under 10 minutes, we typically have a truck on-site. We are really only focused on the 12.6 square miles of Westerville, and that allows us to focus on reliability and affordability. What that translates to you as a business or resident is very low outage times.”
Monacelli says Westerville is at the low end of outage times in the entire nation. The city wants residents and businesses alike to “expect to have
your power on,” and provides the ability to fix it quickly.
The relatively small scope of the city’s electric grid—when compared to Columbus or the massive AEP Ohio service territory—means Westerville can be more proactive in updating technology like putting infrastructure in place for electric vehicles.
By working proactively with companies thinking of moving into the city, Westerville has been able to help them embrace sustainability goals.
“We’re getting a lot more involved earlier in the process to think about being able to construct carbon neutral buildings or solar panels and storage on site,” Monacelli says. “By being involved earlier, we can help meet the needs and environmental sustainability goals that a corporation might have.”
Speed and Safety
Reliable electricity is only useful if it comes along with reliable connectivity.
So rather than rely on internet providers to connect the city and its businesses, Westerville took data and connectivity into its own hands, just like its other utilities.
In 2012, the city opened a 16,000-square-foot Community Data Center and linked it to Westerville’s fiber optic infrastructure, WeConnect, the first municipally operated data center of
Westar
its kind in the nation.
The data center serves as a hub for local and regional businesses, offering world-class support for its fiber network, a secure data center space, cloud services like storage and backup, engineering services and more. It all operates with a “cloud-first approach” with very few physical servers, allowing for better connectivity and more nimble infrastructure.
Why invest the time, manpower and funding required to operate its own data center and network? For Chief Information Officer Michael Farrar, Westerville’s connectivity is a difference-maker.
“Having your systems in modern technology like cloud solutions and offerings allows you to keep up with a lot of the security that’s out there,” he says. “Security is continuously changing and evolving, especially with the advancements of AI. We’re seeing a lot more cyberattacks happening more
frequently, and it comes down to some of those technologies being utilized by bad actors. Having modern infrastructure helps us ensure that we’re staying up to date with the latest patches and our infrastructure is being updated on the fly.”
A Reputation for Growth
Westerville’s cutting-edge utilities have become such an attractive amenity that they’re even contributing to talent acquisition.
City Manager Monica Dupee was hired in 2020 after managing Ohio cities Napoleon and Painesville. In both of those jobs, she interacted with the Westerville Electric Division, and she says she “met the idea of Westerville through their electric department.”
“Through that process, what I took away was that Westerville was a high level of service, thoughtful, strategic, innovative and very fiscally conservative, which helps with stability and
strategy and long-term planning,” she says. “That is my dream job—that’s the kind of city manager I like to be. Take care of today, but always think about the future.”
Now, Dupee and her economic development team are using the city’s unique utility landscape to attract the companies and investment that will move Westerville forward. For that purpose, she says the centralized and forward-thinking nature of the city’s utilities and services makes a huge difference.
“All of our utilities, but electric in particular, allow us to be flexible and work more closely with our business community as we’re attracting and retaining businesses,” she says. “We’re able to be more responsive and on the spot and we can find creative solutions to their electric needs or sustainability needs.”
An attractive electricity environment has been a key part of major
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City of Westerville
developments in Westerville’s recent history, and it will continue to impact major projects in the future. That infrastructure was key in completing developments at Westar Place and the city’s Medical Mile along Cleveland Avenue, and it will serve as an important piece of developing 88 acres the city purchased east of Africa Road last year.
“Power is becoming the biggest driver for economic development in a lot of places; you can attribute that to the Intel (project),” Monacelli says. “They’re coming in as a major user of infrastructure, electricity and transformers, and all the things that come with it. That’s one of our advantages: We can be proactive. We can procure equipment ahead of time, and we are involved very early with our economic development and planning teams to make sure we have the infrastructure needed.”
The city’s robust fiber optic network, WeConnect acts as a similarly powerful economic development tool. Farrar
says Westerville’s combined powers of responsiveness, self-contained security and raw speed can often make the difference for a business interested in moving.
“We are really positioned, from an economic development perspective, to provide unique services that not a lot of communities can provide,” he says. “We have hosting services; we have multiple carriers that we can provide
HELPING OUR NEIGHBORS
connections to; we lease our conduit fiber so a large company can own their strands of fiber. It gives them that solid, robust connectivity that they need to do business.”
Westerville has one more secret economic development driver: the businesses that are already there. What better way to gauge the city’s economic reputation?
“We’re going after a couple of big headquarters right now, and we actually have companies in Westerville writing letters of support to the CEO of these incoming companies,” Dupee says. “Even when we sit down and have conversations about coming to Westerville, the reaction is usually, ‘We actually feel like you want us here. We actually feel like you’re going to invest in us.’ And that’s the point: We do. We invest in them and they’re investing in us, and we want them to be as successful as they can be because that only makes us successful.”
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Westerville Electric Division
COURTESY CITY OF WESTERVILLE
UPTOWN UPDATE
Westerville City Hall project a ‘once-in-a-generation opportunity’
By Laura Newpoff
In 2019, Westerville voters approved a 20-year bond issue that gave the city the financial means to turn a commercial structure at 229 Huber Village Blvd. into a new Justice Center. It was a monumental development for the city because it created a “once-in-a-generation opportunity,” the city says, to reimagine how city services are delivered to residents while, at the same time, opening up opportunities for new businesses to add vibrancy to the community.
That’s because moving the police and courts operations from 29. S. State St. made it possible for the city to combine that building with its neighbor—21 S. State St.—as part of a City Hall expansion and modernization project.
The new Justice Center also paved the way for the city to sell the building at 28 S. State St. that housed its Police Detective Bureau. High Bank Distillery opened its third location at that Uptown Westerville address this summer. Meanwhile, there are plans to move city
employees who work in the Westerville utility billing building at 64 E. Walnut St. into the expanded city hall, opening up another chance to sell a building to the private sector.
In 2021, Westerville City Council also approved the sale of the historic Armory building at 240 S. State St. for $700,000. Co-working space COhatch and North High Brewing partnered on a restoration project and now operate their businesses at the location.
“As part of moving forward with the
CoHatch at 240 S. State St.
Justice Center, we made a decision to consolidate city services and open up more space for businesses,” says Westerville City Manager Monica Dupee. It is an idea that drew 80 percent support from residents in a 2023 survey, she says.
The last major investment in the municipal facility was in 1987. Construction of the new city hall is expected to start before the end of 2024. When the project is complete in a couple of years, residents will be able to come to one location to pay their taxes, get permits, buy a pool pass and pay their utility bills.
MA Design is the architecture firm working on the project it describes as “a transformative journey to modernize the City Hall complex, ensuring it
meets both current and future needs,” says ????. “This project is guided by a shared vision: to create a unified campus that centralizes administrative functions, reflects Westerville’s unique identity, and strengthens the Uptown community experience. The design promotes transparency, collaboration and innovation, with key features including a bridge connector and new entryways that link previously separate buildings, fostering a more integrated and open environment for both employees and visitors.”
That open environment, Dupee says, includes removing many of the interior walls in the current structure to increase flexibility in the way people work. The project includes strategic furniture layouts, audio-visual system
The new Westerville Justice Center at 229 Huber Village Blvd.
High Brewing at 250 S. State St.
City of Westerville
is $16.2 million, according to MA Design.upgrades and a major renovation of the City Council chambers. More gathering spaces will be part of the renovation, including outdoor greenspaces.
The renovated structure will have 46,000 square feet and the project cost is $16.2 million, according to MA Design.
In addition to being the home of city services, Uptown is a historic district known as the cultural heart of Westerville where people go for shopping, dining and entertainment. City Hall will continue to be a key component of Uptown Westerville Inc.’s programming throughout the year to bring people to the district to support local businesses, says Lynn Aventino, executive director of the nonprofit. The public-private partnership works to create a unified, coherent image for Uptown, to rally community support and establish deeper collaboration, to produce positive impacts on the district and the city of Westerville.
Thousands of people are drawn to the district through events like the holiday tree lighting celebration at City Hall; the Fourth Friday street festivals that feature roving entertainment, food trucks, pop-up vendors and a City Hall concert series; and a Saturday farmers market held behind the building from May through the end of September. There’s also the annual Art Hop where people come out to support local artists and enjoy live music and free activities for children at the “Kiddie Hop” at the facility.
New greenspaces will offer more opportunities to host events and concerts there, Aventino says.
“We try to keep Uptown programmed throughout the year and there are many events that attract people to the district to get foot traffic in to keep our small businesses alive and doing well,” she says. “You keep residents here by having nice places to gather. Uptown is a place people like to visit and it’s a place for residents to stay and enjoy their community. City Hall really is the cornerstone for this.”
HOMETOWN ENTREPRENEUR
Why BTTS’ John Brooks keeps giving back.
“You look like you’re running for something!” someone calls to John Brooks as he poses for photos on the corner of College Avenue and State Street in Uptown Westerville. Brooks laughs it off, but the point is taken: He’s clearly a recognized and respected community figure, and rightfully so.
Brooks is the quintessential Westerville story, having grown up, raised a family, owned real estate and planted a thriving business there.
“I grew up and still consider myself a kid from Cleveland Avenue,” he says. “I grew up off Cleveland Avenue, went
By Nicholas Dekker
to Hawthorne Elementary, went to Whittier, went to Hanby just down the street here. And then my family moved to Uptown in 1992. My parents still live in the same house. So, I’ve always felt that connection to the community.”
Brooks is the managing partner of BTTS Holdings (the acronym stands for “bigger than the sky”), a family business that operates eight major event venues around Central Ohio, in addition to catering and floral design businesses. If you’ve attended an event in the region anytime over the past decade, there’s a chance you’ve experienced its services.
“This year, we’ll host around 900 events all over Central Ohio, serving around 100,000 guests,” Brooks shares. “We’re grateful to be in this community and to be able to create these memories and experiences for people.”
His formal background is in commercial real estate, and he partnered with his parents John S. and Joy Brooks to found their first event venue in 2006, the Brookshire Event Venue in Lewis Center. In 2014, the younger Brooks began transitioning out of the real estate business to take on a managing role in the family
TIM JOHNSON
John Brooks, in uptown Westerville, is managing partner of BTTS Holdings, the largest exclusive event operator in Central Ohio with eight venues, catering and floral design.
City of Westerville
company, although he’s kept up the property business. In addition to helping move the BTTS offices to East College Avenue, he’s shifted his real estate focus to Uptown Westerville.
“I made a purposeful decision to consolidate my real estate holdings into Uptown, specifically where I felt like we could make an impact in the community,” he says. “And I really saw the city’s support of Westerville and Uptown specifically, and their plan to have an authentic and alive Uptown. I saw them put effort and focus behind that and felt like I could come alongside that.”
If you walk with him along State Street, he’ll point out buildings he owns—not to brag, but to highlight the businesses he’s helped support in the community. “I took a risk for one of my buildings off East Main Street,” he says. “We put in Cardinal Pizza, a local operator. That pizza place has become a community staple. Westerville Florist is a tenant and a friend. They’re expanding. Of course, Graeter’s is iconic and
John Brooks in front of a mural in Uptown Westerville, and at his company’s headquarters, below.
TIM JOHNSON
TIM JOHNSON
an Ohio-based company. We’re really proud of the fact that what we have here in Uptown is authentic, it’s genuine.”
One of the latest examples of Brooks’ impact is the new High Bank Distillery in the historic post office building. More than two years ago, he responded to a request for proposals from the city, through which he was able to purchase the building and bring the distillery restaurant to life. He worked with High Bank’s master distiller Adam Hines, himself a Westerville resident, to create a modern pub and cocktail bar that further connects to the community. As part of the buildout, they added a small north patio adjoining that of Java Central Coffee Roasters, and a south-facing patio that includes a walk-up window for carryout drinks in the city’s DORA district.
For Brooks and his family, all of this goes beyond just running a business. “It’s not my quote, but I say we’re here to make a profit and a difference,” he says. “Generosity is one of our key pillars and key values. We do that financially through the Give Back program; last year we were able to donate over $220,000 to area charities. We’re partnered with Food Rescue US, so leftover food from any of our events goes to those in need.”
Whether they’re relaxing on the brick patio outside Java Central or posing in front of Columbus artist Nick Stull’s mural, residents and visitors will see Brooks’ impact on Uptown Westerville firsthand. “I’ve heard my daughter describe it kind of akin to the town in Gilmore Girls,” he jokes. “I don’t watch the show, so I can’t say, but I would say there truly is a Midwest nice here.”
As he discusses his role in the city’s development, Brooks comes back to the word “steward” frequently. “I feel like my investment in Uptown is to be a steward and a community partner,” he says. “These buildings that I’m a part of were here long before I was born, and they’ll be here long after I’m gone. So if I can play a part as a community steward for this season, I’m really grateful for that.”
City of Westerville
HIGH BANK WESTERVILLE
Historic Post Office takes new life as distillery restaurant.
By Nicholas Dekker
One of the most prominent redevelopment projects in Uptown Westerville is a new location for High Bank Distillery, which transformed the former post office on State Street into a modern eatery and cocktail bar.
The significance of a distillery and cocktail bar opening in Prohibition’s birthplace is not lost on everyone involved.
“Honestly, the whole story behind our company is centered in Westerville,” said Rob Gelley, general manager of High Bank’s Westerville location. “With Henry Corbin and his saloon getting dynamited a few times. With the Whiskey War starting out of that—hence the name of our whiskey brand, Whiskey War—it’s home for us. I mean, we’ve got the Anti-Saloon League Museum right across the street. And especially with this post office being a big part of the Anti-Saloon League movement, sending so many leaflets out of here, it’s just a complete circle right back to the start of it all.”
After operating as the post office for many years, High Bank’s building served as offices for the parks and recreation
department, then Westerville police detectives. Now the space certainly feels more comfortable than government offices; High Bank preserved many of the building’s details, from the original wood floors to handsome metal grates from the teller windows. They’ve augmented the designs with a full kitchen and plenty of white subway tile, while also saving a skylight to illuminate the space.
The $2.7 million renovation and conversion project was developed by John Brooks of BTTS Holdings, an event and hospitality operator, and Steve Wathen of commercial real estate firm Equity. High Bank also has restaurants in Grandview and Gahanna.
High Bank serves lunch, dinner and weekend brunch, with an eclectic pub menu that caters to the whole family. The menu spans a variety of snacks, handhelds like burgers and Korean Philly sandwiches, pizzas, and full dinners like fish and chips or chicken shawarma bowls. Gelley recommends the Brussels sprouts and the wings to any first timer.
As expected of a distillery restaurant,
the cocktail menu takes center stage. It draws on High Bank’s award-winning portfolio of vodkas, gins and whiskeys. “Not to toot our own horn, but we put a lot of time and energy into the production of the cocktails,” Gelley says. Cocktails are grouped by spirit, from the vodka-centered Lavender Lady to the Blood Orange G&T to the smoked Old Fashioned.
As another nail in the coffin to Prohibition, High Bank is opening a speakeasy in the basement of the building this fall. Named P.O. Box 21 for the Twenty-First Amendment, the cocktail bar will seat about 40 while featuring 21 distinct cocktails. The space features original details from the building like a post office seal in the floor; the outer lobby is decorated in 90s-era USPS blue and red stripes and gray slatted walls.
Gelley says Westerville has welcomed High Bank with open arms. “One thing that I have enjoyed a lot about this location is the community aspect,” he says. “Seeing people walk up and down the street 24/7, it’s just rejuvenating, it gets me excited. You know, it feels like a community.”
Bank
CONNECTED COLLEGE TOWN
Staff and students at Otterbein University and the residents of Westerville are woven together as one community.
By Peter Tonguette
Far too often, colleges and universities can seem cut off from the cities or towns they inhabit, but Otterbein University has long forged connections with its home base.
“Sometimes universities are described as bubbles, and that’s not the goal—in fact, it’s not good educationally,” says Otterbein University president John Comerford, whose school just welcomed 583 first-year students from 25 states and 2 countries outside the United States who are pursuing over 60 majors.
As Comerford sees it, the university and the city are inextricably linked—and both are the better for it.
“To steal a term from real estate, attracting and retaining students, faculty and staff is location, location, location,” Comerford says. “We have great programs and all sorts of cool activities and sports, but the reality is we got lucky in that we were put in the right cow town 177 years ago.”
Otterbein students feel comfortable in Westerville, Comerford says, because both the school and city take pride in their diversity. “If you look at
Westerville, . . . it’s really diverse,” he says. “It matches our student body. Our student body comes from all over the place and is really diverse, socioeconomically and racially and religiously.”
To help cement the bond between students and the place where they’ll reside over four years, Otterbein sponsors a number of programs that aim to give back. For example, the annual Fall Plunge immerses students in community service endeavors during their first weekend on campus. “We have 30-plus agencies we work through and send hundreds of students across the community to good work,” Comerford says.
From the city’s perspective, the Fall Plunge provides undergraduates with a kind of initiation. “That gives them a chance to find out what Westerville is all about, to put some shoe leather and elbow grease into helping their community that they’re going to call home for the next few years,” says Mayor Kenneth Wright.
Faculty and staff get in on the act, too: Once each quarter, Otterbein employees give their time to volunteer at the food pantry run by WARM
(Westerville Area Resource Ministry). “We all go to spend a few hours sorting canned goods and things like that,” Comerford says. “It’s great bonding time.”
Students attending Westerville City Schools also have the opportunity to benefit from their proximity to a university by participating in Otterbein’s College Credit Plus program, which makes collegiate coursework available to high-schoolers. Wright’s own daughter participated in the program.
“She tells me that the instructors there were very engaged with their students,” Wright says. “It helped her to prepare herself for the rigors of college.”
As much as Otterbein offers Westerville, however, the city gives back to the school through its unique amenities and incomparable quality of life.
“We have more than 650 acres of parks and green spaces,” Wright says. “We’ve got 51 miles of trails. Our uptown is just a stone’s throw from Otterbein’s campus. Anything that they’d want to do as far as food, entertainment and activities, it’s all within walking distance.”
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Otterbein University
BUILDING THE FUTURE
Corporate development opporunities abound in Westerville east of Africa Road and elsewhere.
By Peter Tonguette
Once upon a time, Westerville was thought of as an offshoot of Columbus.
Its famous historic Uptown area, says Westerville Economic Development Director Rachel Ray, was named such “because it was ‘uptown’ from Downtown Columbus. They were connected by trolley many, many years ago.”
By the 1970s, Westerville was considered a bedroom community, and by the 1980s, it had acquired a reputation
as a thriving suburb that was quickly becoming a residential destination.
These days, the city is an economic engine unto itself. Leaders date the turning point to the 1990s, when the city made the consequential and impactful decision to annex 941 acres in what was then Genoa Township and Orange Township.
“It was later branded the Westar area,” Ray says. “The city leadership made the decision that this area was going to be planned and developed
for economic development uses, so revenue-generating uses.”
Linked to Westerville through the main arteries of Cleveland Avenue and Polaris Parkway, numerous companies sprang up on the site, including the corporate headquarters of Lancaster Colony and Vertiv. With those companies came 10,000 jobs, and with those jobs came income-tax revenue that helped support the city’s superb services.
“The way municipalities are
Westar
City of Westerville
funded is based on income taxes,” says Westerville assistant city manager Jason Bechtold. “Making sure that you have a strong employment base in your community is important to fund a lot of our city services, like police and parks and roads and infrastructure.”
In 2014, 62 additional acres were folded into the site. Westar Place, as the area was dubbed, is anchored by the Renaissance Columbus WestervillePolaris Hotel, an amenity that attracted further corporate growth in the area.
“If companies have international clients and partners, they can benefit from the world-class Renaissance hotel,” says Ray, who also points to the talent pool within Westerville and surrounding suburbs as being appealing to companies. “Their employees can
Experience the Renaissance Columbus Westerville Hotel. Whether you are traveling for work or for fun, the Renaissance Columbus WestervillePolaris Hotel is ready to help you create lasting memories. Embrace total comfort in spacious rooms and suites, well-appointed with contemporary amenities and deluxe bedding. Recharge and reconnect with a specialty cocktail at our lounge and restaurant with sweeping views of our natural surroundings.
Experience the Renaissance Columbus Westerville Hotel. Whether you are traveling for work or for fun, the Renaissance Columbus WestervillePolaris Hotel is ready to help you create lasting memories. Embrace total comfort in spacious rooms and suites, well-appointed with contemporary amenities and deluxe bedding. Recharge and reconnect with a specialty cocktail at our lounge and restaurant with sweeping views of our natural surroundings.
Experience the Renaissance Columbus Westerville Hotel. Whether you are traveling for work or for fun, the Renaissance Columbus WestervillePolaris Hotel is ready to help you create lasting memories. Embrace total comfort in spacious rooms and suites, well-appointed with contemporary amenities and deluxe bedding. Recharge and reconnect with a specialty cocktail at our lounge and restaurant with sweeping views of our natural surroundings.
PHOTO: COURTESY CITY OF WESTERVILLE
of Westerville
benefit from all the amenities of the Westar area as well as being relatively close to where they live in many cases.”
Other companies that migrated to Westar include Central Ohio Primary Care Physicians and DHL, whose North American supply chain operations are headquartered there.
Now Westerville is building on Westar and Westar Place—literally. In 2023, a pair of tracts totaling 88 acres were purchased for commercial use by the Westerville Industry and Commerce Corporation. Situated to the east of Africa Road, the acquisition cost $8.4 million.
“As we were reaching this point of build-out, we made the case to the City of Westerville,” Ray says. “We’re running out of land and we need more inventory, and we have an opportunity to again play that master developer role in acquiring the land, investing in
infrastructure and creating more shovel-ready sites.” She envisions the area as appealing to companies seeking their own buildings.
“A lot of companies now want to control their real estate,” Ray says, adding that, by making investments in infrastructure, Westerville will be ready to go when companies come calling. “We can respond very quickly when economic development opportunities are presented,” she says. Corporate headquarters, companies in the life sciences as well those engaged in advanced manufacturing research may find the area especially appealing, she says.
Westerville itself remains a major attraction for current and future companies.
“They want to be closer to amenities and closer to the talent, and we’re very well located in southern Delaware
County and northern Franklin County, where there is a lot of talent within a short drive,” Ray says.
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