Magistrate backs city in dispute
Columbus didn’t violate open meetings act over Little Turtle Way project
A Franklin County magistrate disagreed with residents of a Northeast Side subdivision seeking to stop the reconfiguring of a section of Little Turtle Way, finding that the Columbus City Council didn’t violate the Ohio Open
Meetings Act while approving the project.
Magistrate Jennifer Hunt disagreed with the contention of Little Turtle residents that council placing the ordinance approving the roughly $6 million in road work on the council’s “consent agenda” – a procedure where routine business is combined to be voted on in a single vote – violated the requirement for an open meeting. In fact, the magistrate noted, the action took place at a meeting that was open to the public.
The city’s charter, akin to its constitution, “explicitly provides for self-government for regulating the actions of
City Council,” Hunt wrote in her decision.
“Absolutely no evidence was presented that a majority of City Council members had a prearranged discussion about placing the resolution on the consent agenda,” she wrote, and that if merely using a consent agenda was illegal, it would generally upend the use of that voting method across the state.
“Plaintiffs have provided absolutely no case law to support this argument or outcome,” Hunt wrote. The magistrate also determined that the subdivision residents couldn’t demonstrate that they were likely to ultimately prevail in court, a needed step for a preliminary injunction halting the project’s construction as the case progressed.
“We will continue to pursue justice on behalf of the residents of Little Turtle that are being threatened with these unfair and unnecessary eminent domain proceedings.” Phil Harmon An attorney representing the plaintiffs and himself a Little Turtle resident, in an email
Hunt’s finding still must be approved by Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Karen Phipps, who granted the temporary restraining order in July that stopped construction from moving forward, according to Phil Harmon, an attorney representing the plaintiffs and himself a Little Turtle resident.
Harmon on Monday filed objections to the magistrate’s decision. He said the city has 14 days to respond.
“We are confident in our legal position. We will continue to pursue justice on behalf of the residents of Little Turtle that are being threatened with these unfair and unnecessary eminent domain proceedings,” Harmon said in an email.
The city of Columbus wants to eliminate the current single-lane entrance road into the Little Turtle residential development and single-lane roadway out – separated by a large greenway space – and combine them into a one, two-way road on the west side. A roundabout would also be constructed at the intersection of Little Turtle Way and Longrifle Road in the development.
The Dispatch reported last month that while the city maintains the road must be redesigned for safety, residents contend that Little Turtle Way is being squished into a combined road to open up land for development by Mo Dioun, who purchased the Golf Club at Little Turtle for $2.1 million in 2015 and then hired former Mayor Michael B. Coleman in 2017 to lobby for the road project.
By spring 2018, the City Council had the project underway by approving $350,000 for an engineering and trafficstudy – a year before subdivision residents were notified that there was a safety issue being corrected.
Throughout the hearings, the Little Turtle residents “repeatedly attempted to present evidence concerning alleged misconduct” of numerous city employees and officials in moving the roadway redesign forward, Hunt wrote, even though the only claim alleged in the complaint involved a violation of the Open Meetings Act.
Lara Baker-morrish, general counsel for the Columbus City Attorney’s office. said in an interview with The Dispatch that the magistrate’s ruling showed the council complied with the city’s code.
“They failed to demonstrate that the city didn’t comply,” Baker-morrish said of the plaintiffs. “We complied with the state law, too.”
In an emailed statement, Randy Borntrager, assistant director of the Columbus Department of Public Service, said the department is pleased with the magistrate’s ruling.
“The Little Turtle Way project will provide needed reconstruction of the deteriorating roadway and ensure equitable and safe access for all users,” Borntrager wrote.
“Pedestrians and bicyclists will benefit from the addition of sidewalk and a shared-use path,” he said. “The project will ease congestion, decrease speeds and support safe mobility in a fastgrowing area of Columbus experiencing increased demand.” wbush@gannett.com mferench@dispatch.com