By JOE GORMAN Tribune Chronicle

YOUNGSTOWN — The Wick Neighbors Inc. development group is a step closer to its goal of developing the North Side Smoky Hollow neighborhood.

The group announced Wednesday an agreement with a Cleveland firm that has worked on other neighborhood revitalization projects. The firm, Zaremba Inc. of Cleveland, has helped develop several urban neighborhoods throughout the northeastern part of the state in recent years.

Wick Neighbors Executive Director Margaret Murphy called the agreement a milestone for the city, and said seeing the revitalization project inch another step toward breaking ground is exciting.

Two other developers from the Pittsburgh area also sent in bids after the group asked for proposals in December.

Wick Neighbors and Zaremba will go over plans already in the works for a total makeover of the neighborhood near Youngstown State University. Plans call for a $250 million development that includes homes, apartments and a central park called Harrison Commons, capitalizing on Harrison Field of YSU.

Wick Neighbors was formed in September 2003 by churches and businesses in the Smoky Hollow neighborhood, located between Wick and Andrews avenues behind the YSU campus.

Josh Butler of Wick Neighbors, who served as the chairman of the committee who picked the developer, said he has seen Zaremba’s work firsthand because he lives in Cuyahoga Falls, where they are undertaking a project to help revitalize their downtown. He said he likes the fact that the firm is not afraid to take on projects that others have passed up.

‘‘Now, possibly, this is a new day, and I feel pretty good,’’ Butler said.

Among Zaremba’s projects are the HarborWalk in Lorain; the Avenue District in downtown Cleveland, and 150 new single family homes in the Fairfax neighborhood in Cleveland, next to the Cleveland Clinic.

Murphy said it is hoped the pre-development work will be over by the end of November. She said she expects some minor tweaking of previous plans, but no major changes. She also stressed that there was a lot of community input before the decision was made to pick Zaremba.

jgorman@tribune-chronicle.com

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