Burton Council Discusses Multi-Family Housing Proposal on Rapids Road
Burton Village resident and developer Dan Demko met with village council March 23 to discuss the steps required to rezone a parcel on Rapids Road for multi-family housing.
Burton Village resident and developer Dan Demko met with village council March 23 to discuss the steps required to rezone a parcel on Rapids Road for multi-family housing.
Demko said the 7.9-acre parcel must be rezoned before construction can begin this summer on a planned series of multi-family units. He also has four neighboring parcels under contract through Burton Development LLC, bringing the total development area to nearly 14 acres.
Village Mayor Ruth Spanos told Demko the project must first go before the planning commission.
“We will have to set up a time. They don’t have a regular time every month,” she said, noting the commission will make a recommendation to council.
Council agreed that hearings and paperwork would take about 50 days. A council hearing would be held before voting on rezoning the parcels from R-1, single-family housing, to R-3, multi-family housing. Once rezoned, the board of zoning appeals would meet to review proposed variances, such as setbacks.
“Our goal is to end up with 55 homes,” Demko said of the Rapids Road project, estimating the cost at $16 million to $17 million. “I have secured funding, if I can do it.”
Demko has attempted two prior housing developments. His first effort, Hillside Village on Kinsman Road, stalled when the parcel, then in Burton Township, could not be annexed by the village. Rising construction costs during the COVID-19 pandemic halted the project.
A renewed attempt in 2024 also failed.
“It ran out of runway,” Demko said in a text at the time, and the project was mothballed.
Monday, Demko said investors remain interested in his plans to develop all parcels. Once complete, the combined developments would include roughly 194 homes with an estimated cost of $80 million, he said. He noted that no other village property is large enough to support a development of this scale.
Demko said the Rapids Road parcel should face fewer regulatory hurdles because the land is flat and contains minimal wetlands, reducing the likelihood of delays from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
Phase one of the project must succeed first, Demko said, and asked if rezoning and permitting could be expedited.
Spanos responded that the village must follow existing zoning regulations.
“We do have zoning and we have a zoning process. We just want to guide you to the cleanest way,” she said. “Our job is to navigate through the rules.”
Zoning Inspector Cole Crea added that the Geauga County Planning Commission, which must approve rezoning, has a heavy workload.
“I have a deadline in order to close. I’m concerned we are going to miss that deadline,” Demko said.
He added he will request more time from investors if needed.
“If we can’t, I’m done,” he said. “I will not be able to go forward with the project.”
Crea noted that timelines are set by the village’s codified ordinances.
In a March 24 follow-up interview, Demko said the planned homes would be privately owned, with prices starting at $350,000 for two-bedroom units.
