An overflow capacity crowd that spilled out into the parking lot attended the June 24 meeting of City of Union Council to protest passage of an ordinance under emergency status.
Ron Nunnari | The Register-Herald
UNION — During a council meeting lasting more than two hours and 21 minutes with an overflow capacity crowd, members of council voted to amend the city’s official zoning district map for proposed residential development on 17.56 acres of land north of Phillipsburg-Union and east of Old Mill roads.
Council adopted the ordinance under emergency status following a public hearing during which several area residents voiced opposition to the rezoning and the city’s intention of adopting the ordinance as an emergency.
The zoning change from Agricultural-Residential to Residential Planned Unit Development would clear the way for construction of 54 homes on the 17.56 acre site.
City officials stated the development would provide additional revenue for the city. Opponents stated their concern of the development causing overcrowding in the elementary schools operated by Northmont City Schools.
One person noted that the City of Clayton is rezoning land on the south side of Sweet Potato Ridge Road for more than 500 homes.
Rob Smith, representing D.R. Horton Homes which requested the zoning change, discussed housing shortages and the need for new home construction.
A Clayton resident living on Old Mill Road stated that most people moved to their residences because they liked the open rural character of the land. She cited concerns for school crowding in the wake of elementary schools being closed and a failed school levy.
She provided photos of flooding that has occurred from drainage coming from the nearby Irongate subdivision.
City Manager John Applegate said he is aware of the flooding that occurs but noted that when rainfall exceeds what the storm sewers can handle, flooding will take place no matter what.
Union resident Michael Glover who just moved to the city a month ago cited concern over the city pushing the development forward in only 12 months.
“Why are you passing this as an emergency so that they can start building in less than 12 months when a neighboring development took three years?” Glover asked. “That’s the problem I have. One of the main reasons we ended up purchasing up here was this was reminiscent of where we grew up. We haven’t grown up here in Ohio, we grew up along the eastern seaboard, so it was rural country.”
Glover said country living was the main reason his family chose to settle in Union. He said the rezoning makes it look like the city wants to take that away by making it more suburban or urban.
“You are probably going to lose people who will move out of this area because it is no longer rural,” Glover said.
He also cited concerns over the price of the proposed homes being two or three times higher than the median city average.
Linda Black said she wanted council to consider three reasons why the rezoning ordinance should be denied. She alleged that passing the ordinance as an emergency violates the city charter by thwarting people’s rights to referendum.
She cited case law regarding administrative and legislative actions and said the rezoning was a legislative act, which is subject to a citizen referendum.
“In Ohio, the constitutional right to a referendum is a fundamental aspect of the democratic process,” Black said. “This process serves as a form of direct democracy and provides a check on the actions of legislative bodies. By enacting of an ordinance as an emergency, council is taking away our referendum rights as granted by the Union Charter and Ohio law.”
Black also noted that a developer’s request to rezone property is not an emergency citing that emergency ordinances are enacted as a necessity to preserve the public health, safety and welfare.
“A developer’s rezoning request does not involve public health, safety or welfare,” Black stated. “There is no urgency.”
She argued that merely stating that an ordinance is an emergency without providing valid reasons or using vague language did not meet the legal requirement.
This and other concerns by residents of Union, Clayton and Englewood fell to the wayside as council ultimately adopted the ordinance as an emergency.
Vice Mayor John Bruns noted that the city does adopt many things as an emergency only because certain legislation has to be enacted by a specific date.
“Sir, with all due respect the only thing you are doing is trying to justify passing this as an emergency,” one resident called out from the audience.
Council’s act brought angry comments from members of the audience, one stating, “We aren’t going to forget this.”
Applegate assured the audience that the city would take to heart all of their concerns and would make sure the developer met all of the requirements before moving forward with the development.
“I thank mayor and council for making this decision that keeps the city moving in the right direction in small steps,” Applegate said. “It’s not 300 or 400 homes. I would be against that personally. But I like that it is managed growth and allows us to proceed.”
Reach Ron Nunnari at (937) 684-9124 or email [email protected].
