VANDALIA — The Vandalia City Council declined to place a referendum for a new 167-home housing development on the May ballot.
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Residents had gathered signatures to challenge the project, citing concerns over increased traffic and the loss of local wildlife.
The development, known as Riverdale, is planned by Addison Properties for a plot of land near Brown School Road and Little York.
City officials blocked the petition after the city manager determined that the ordinance approval is an administrative action not subject to a referendum under Ohio Supreme Court standards.
Lenard Green is among those opposing the construction of the new homes.
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He expressed concern that the local infrastructure is already struggling to handle the current vehicle volume.
“The intersection of Brown School and Little York, it’s just cars lined up certain times of the day,” Green said. “So basically, if you put a hundred and something houses over here, I don’t know what they’re going to do.”
Green has lived in the neighborhood for 15 years and noted that the area has shifted from a rural environment to a more developed one.
“When I first moved out here, behind me, where they have all these houses at now, there was nothing back there,” he said. “There were just basically woods and deer, saw one fox.”
Voters who signed the petition expressed frustration during city meetings.
Green said he feels the City Council is not representing the neighborhood’s perspective.
“It’s like the City Council suppose to represent the wishes of the people,” he said. “That’s what I said when I got out to speak. I was like, look behind you, this is your community. What are we going to do?”
Addison Properties and the property owner have indicated they will take legal action if the ordinance is placed on the ballot.
Despite the legal stance, Green and other residents argue that discussing the matter is not a substitute for a public vote.
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