Mayor Andrew Ginther and the Columbus City Council announced their 2017 Capital Improvements Budget on Monday morning, with a particular focus on community centers as a way of improving public health.
Of the $861 million budget, Ginther said that 88 percent will go to neighborhood improvement projects, including a new community center in Linden.
A $7.5 million renovation of the Indian Mound Community Center will start in December. Ginther said providing public spaces for communities is critical.
"These centers for opportunity, we believe, will help us improve the quality of life in our neighborhoods and go after those social determinants of health that drive infant mortality," Ginther said.
The new Linden community center will offer mental health and addiction services for adults, and a kitchen for cooking classes.
"It is going to be a place where communities really come together," said Columbus City Council president pro tem Priscilla Tyson. "We have put together a local food action plan that there will be kitchens in these facilities to teach individuals how to prepare healthy foods for their families."
The city is also looking to build a new fire station, as well as upgrade and maintain water and sewer lines.
"Construction will begin on Station 36 on the far east side," Ginther said. "The first new, not replacement, but the first new fire station we have built as a city in more than a decade."
The Capital Improvements Budget can be viewed in full online. The budget will be read and approved at the Columbus City Council meeting May 15.
