Friday, October 29, 1999
Mason tops Deerfield in battle over annexation
BY KEVIN ALDRIDGE
The Cincinnati Enquirer
MASON — After a brief and acrimonious court battle, a 102-acre chunk of Deerfield Township is now part of Mason.
City Council accepted the acreage Monday, putting an end to a six-month tug-of-war with the township. The parcel, known as the Batsche farm, is on the east side of Mason-Montgomery Road between Bethany and Brewer roads.
The Mason Board of Education, which bought the land in April 1997 for $1.62 million, sought to annex the property to Mason to obtain water and sewer services. Initially, the school board had identified the land as a possible site for a new high school.
City Council was set to accept the 102 acres on May 9, after Warren County commissioners approved the annexation. However, township trustees appealed the commissioners' decision in Warren County Common Pleas Court.
Trustees argued commissioners erred in their decision by not considering the land — which encompasses about 8 percent of the township's northwest quadrant — unreasonably large for annexation. They also claimed the land's removal would harm the township's multimillion-dollar plans to bring parks and utilities to the area.
Common Pleas Judge P. Daniel Fedders ruled last week that the township failed to prove its case that the land was unreasonably large. Therefore, he upheld the county commissioners' decision and lifted the court order blocking the annexation.
“We think it was a fair and just decision,” said Mason Law Director Ken Schneider. “It was a pretty clear case from the beginning that the land should have been annexed.
“There was 100 percent agreement among property owners to annex,” he said. “Frankly, we felt it was a waste of city and township money to fight this thing in court.”
Township officials disagree.
“Of course, I'm disappointed about the decision, but it is necessary for us to step up to the plate for the township and defend our rights and interests,” said township Trustee Bill Morand.
Trustees questioned the school district's decision to annex the land from the beginning, saying the district officials were acting prematurely. The school board argued it needed water and sewer utilities in place as soon as possible, since the district would likely build a new high school there in a couple of years.
But with the recent announcement of a joint effort between city and school officials to build a multimillion-dollar complex on Mason-Montgomery Road featuring a new high school, city building and recreation center, the construction of a school on the Batsche property in the near future seems unlikely.
“The way it adds up, their reasons for annexing, the need for water and sewer right now, the whole thing was a sham,” Mr. Morand said.
But district officials say the land still remains a part of their long-term plans.
“The land could still be a viable site for a facility at some point in the future,” said Mason City Schools spokeswoman Shelly Benesh. “At this time, we have no plans to sell the land. We are going to hang on to it and see what happens.”
Mason and Deerfield have been immersed in a bitter battle over tax-rich township land for more than a decade. Since 1988, Mason has annexed more land than any municipality in Warren County.
Mason has tried more than 50 annexations totaling at least 4,000 acres, according to the most recent Warren County figures. Its most notable acquisition was Paramount's Kings Island, after winning a two-year court battle.
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