About This Tool

This dashboard maps publicly owned parcels across Franklin County — including those owned by the County, municipalities, townships, school districts, libraries, and similar local entities — that are well positioned for housing development. Public land is one of the most powerful tools the County has to advance its housing goals, and thousands of sites across the county are owned by public entities. Many are vacant, underused, or generate no property tax revenue today. When the County or another public owner contributes land at a discount or at no cost, those savings can be passed to residents through lower rents and home prices.

Why Public Land Matters for Housing

Public land is one of the most powerful tools available to advance Franklin County's housing goals. Thousands of publicly owned sites across the county are vacant, underused, or generate no property tax revenue today. When a public owner contributes land at a discount or at no cost, total development costs can drop, helping improve project feasibility — and those savings can be passed to residents through lower rents and home prices.

The Franklin County Housing Action Plan identifies public land as a valuable asset for housing, and each public landowner can assess its portfolio and work with the County to advance priority parcels surfaced by this analysis.

How the Sites Were Identified

As part of the Housing Action Plan, HR&A evaluated roughly 5,300 tax-exempt publicly owned parcels using data from the Franklin County Auditor's Office. Each parcel was tested against three development scenarios, and the map's filters let you view the sites best positioned for each:

• LIHTC development— parcels suited to a 75-unit affordable multifamily rental projected financed through the federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program. Selection criteria: 0.75–2 acres, high development potential, and access to amenities and opportunity, a key consideration in the state's allocation of gap financing for LIHTC developments.
• Mixed-income development — parcels suited to a 75-unit project with a blend of market-rate and affordable units. Selection criteria: 0.75–2 acres, high development potential, relatively strong market conditions, and the ability to use market-based incentives such as Opportunity Zones or New Market Tax Credits.
• Single-family infill — parcels suited to new single-family or small-scale housing in established neighborhoods. Selection criteria: 0.1–2 acres, high development potential and access to amenities.

Sites shown in each scenario meet baseline feasibility requirements based on available data and align with the County's housing priorities.

Opportunity Zones

Opportunity Zones (OZ) are a federal tax incentive, established in 2017 and renewed in 2025, that encourage private investment in designated census tracts. Governors nominate the tracts, and investors receive capital gains tax benefits when they invest through a Qualified Opportunity Fund. Ohio offers an additional state tax credit on top of the federal program.

In 2026, Ohio's governor will nominate a new set of tracts for “OZ 2.0,” a designation that will last 10 years. Eligibility rules are tighter this round — the low-income threshold drops from 80% to 70% of Median Family Income, with new emphasis on rural communities — and Franklin County is expected to see about a 20% reduction in eligible tracts.

Why pair OZ with public land. In Ohio, 64% of OZ 1.0 capital went to residential development, but most of those units rented above market: 78% rented above the census tract median, and 70% rented above 120% of census tract median rent. OZ investment alone is not an affordable housing tool. Paired with public land or other subsidy, it can be.

How OZ 2.0 Sites Were Identified

Building on the public land analysis, HR&A overlaid OZ 2.0-eligible census tracts with publicly owned parcels classified as vacant or underutilized that met physical readiness thresholds. Tracts containing at least one high-potential publicly owned parcel were flagged for further evaluation. This resulting subset of eligible tracts was then scored on three factors: the amount of publicly owned acreage, the scale of vacant or underutilized land and the likelihood of attracting investment. Investment likelihood data was sourced from Urban Institute analysis and sorts census tracts based on their potential to attract OZ investment.¹ OZ 2.0 sites highlight where public land and private OZ investment could be combined to deliver housing that serves Franklin County residents.

1. Urban Institute, Data to Inform 2026 Opportunity Zone Selections, https://datacatalog.urban.org/dataset/data-inform-2026-opportunity-zone-selections.