Saturday, July 03, 1999
27 acres stay in Deerfield Twp.
Most Bethany Road residents drop petition
BY KEVIN ALDRIDGE
The Cincinnati Enquirer
DEERFIELD TOWNSHIP — Trustee Bill Morand doesn't consider derailing the annexation of 27 acres into Mason to be a big victory.
But when it comes to keeping township land in the township, no victory is small.
Township officials were suc cessful in convincing 11 out of 19 Bethany Road residents who had asked Warren County commissioners in May to annex their property into Mason to withdraw their petition. Several of the property owners already had homes in Mason, but their road's right-of-way remained in the unincorporated township.
Initially, 15 property owners signed the petition because they desired road maintenance and speed limit control along Bethany Road. The other four property owners wanted their land to remain in the township and refused to sign the petition.
Melissa Feldmeier, an attorney with Wood & Lamping, Cincinnati and agent for the petitioners, said she sent a letter to county commissioners on June 24 withdrawing the petition after a majority of the landowners decided they too wanted to remain in the township.
Mr. Morand said the property owners he talked with were not aware of all the ramifications involved if they annexed.
“There were some property owners out there who didn't want to go to the city that were going to be dragged into Mason regardless,” Mr. Morand said. “The way it was explained to them was that whoever didn't want to go wouldn't have to. And it doesn't work that way.”
Under Ohio law, county commissioners can grant the annexation of a chunk of land as long as a majority of the property owners favor the action. Mr. Morand said that had a majority of property owners continued with the petition, even those who didn't want to go would have been annexed.
“This was just another typical example of the aggressive tactics used by the city of Mason to annex land from the township,” Mr. Morand said. “(City council) is trying to create a metropolitan area out of Mason at the cost of any and everyone, using any means necessary. It was also an effort to stop us from effecting some positive changes in the township by bringing water and sewer to the area.”
Mason City Manager Scot Lahrmer called the petitioners' change of heart “unfortunate.” He disputed township officials' claims that the annexation was largely an effort to thwart Deerfield's plans to bring water and sewer to the area.
“This particular annexation was initiated by the property owners who wanted additional services,” Mr. Lahrmer said. “It is unfortunate that won't happen now, but this had nothing to do with anything the township has planned out there.”
Trustees plan to bring water and sewer lines to service the township's 1,300-acre northwest quadrant later this year. The township owns a 152-acre parcel northeast of Bethany Road on Mason-Montgomery Road, which it plans to convert into a park.
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