“Bad for neighbors. Bad for Solon. No on Issue 110."
Those words are the message on signs along the street in Solon where a proposed development project would be built. On the same street, you could find a sign that also says vote for issue 110, it’s the best choice for Solon.
Issue 110, a ballot measure that would change a zoned residential area into a mixed-use space, is a controversial topic that has drawn many supporters and detractors.
The developer BNH Enterprise wants to build the lakefront project called Solon on the Lake. It will feature a winery, retail shops and housing for young professionals on an empty plot of land, which is more than 100 acres.
“The tax revenues that will come from this project is far superior from a single family home project which is what its zoned for now,” said Alan Melamed, a consultant for Solon on the Lake project.
But this doesn't come without controversy. The developer won a lawsuit against the city to let voters determine the fate of the project, after Solon city council members never made a final decision on the project’s future.
“This is a development that would put Solon on the map and a project that can open it up to the community,” said Melamed.
An information meeting was held on the proposed site for the project. There were about 100 people in attendance.
Jerry Moore and Diane Murphy were not.
"We're scared,” Moore said. “We're afraid of what can happen."
And nervous, too, worried about the future.
Moore and Murphy live across the street from the proposed Solon on the Lake development project. Jerry's lived in his home for 25 years. There’s no other place he wants to call home.
“We're concerned about the value of our property,” Moore said "They talked about a nursing home. They talked about cutting extra streets in. We don’t know how that's going to impact us."
Moore says if the ballot measure passed, he will likely do something he never imagined.
“I think I will leave,” he said. “I will seriously consider selling at that point. And it breaks my heart."
Issue 110 will be on the November ballot. The fate of project will be in the hands of Solon voters.