Ohio Edison Co. v. McElrath

137 N.E.2d 642, 73 Ohio Law. Abs. 236, 60 Ohio Op. 462, 1955 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 395
CourtTrumbull County Court of Common Pleas
DecidedFebruary 2, 1955
DocketNos. 63392, 63393, 63394, 63425, 63427, 63428
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 137 N.E.2d 642 (Ohio Edison Co. v. McElrath) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Trumbull County Court of Common Pleas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ohio Edison Co. v. McElrath, 137 N.E.2d 642, 73 Ohio Law. Abs. 236, 60 Ohio Op. 462, 1955 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 395 (Ohio Super. Ct. 1955).

Opinion

[238]*238OPINION

By BIRRELL, J.

During the First World War the Carnegie Steel Company, in the expansion of its business, constructed a new steel mill in Weathersfleld Township across the Mahoning River from the cities of Niles and Girard. About the same time the McDonald-Niles Real Estate Company purchased, and platted the surrounding farm land. From this platted land the Village of McDonald was ultimately incorporated, including the property of the Carnegie Steel Company. Here were constructed homes for the employees of the Steel Company, and a beautiful Village with paved streets, schools, park, recreational facilities, and all the necessary Municipal Buildings grew upon the 900 acres included in the boundaries of this incorporated Village. The great valuation of the Carnegie Steel Plant provided sufficient taxes to support the schools and the Municipal activities without an unduly high rate of taxation upon the properties of the home-owners.

All of the platted lands, however, were not included in the boundaries of the Village, and portions known as the McDonald-Niles Realty Company Plats, A, B, and C, constituting the lands west of the boundaries of the Village, were neither included nor improved. Although a few lots had been sold and individual houses constructed in these unincluded plats, much of these plats was later vacated by reason of the lack of demand for lots outside the Village, the insolvency of the Real Estate Company and the Receivership which ultimately overtook it. The families who had located their dwellings on these lots may have envied their more fortunate neighbors who had selected theirs in the Village where the expense of more extensive improvements was lightened by the presence and taxable-availability of the Carnegie Steel Company. They were partially benefltted, however, by having their territory taken into the McDonald Village School District. The Village of McDonald had never cared to annex these lands, perhaps because of their low tax value and lack of improvements which might cost the Village good tax-money to provide.

About the year 1952 The Ohio Edison Company, having previously acquired land along the Mahoning River north of the Plats, A, B, and C, began the construction thereon of an extensive Plant for the production of electricity which it distributes and sells throughout Northeastern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania including the cities of Youngstown, Girard, Niles, Warren, Sharon and many lesser communities. The value for tax purposes of this partially constructed plant for the tax year 1953 was reported by the County Auditor at $5,831,790.00 and officers of the Company estimated that perhaps $15,000,000.00 or more would be spent in improvements upon its property before the Plant was completed, thus finally creating a rather substantial tax-valuation.

[239]*239Shortly after the coming of The Ohio Edison plant dreams of annexation to McDonald Village again blossomed in the hearts of the inhabitants of Plats A, B, and C, and a petition for this purpose was prepared and application made to annex not only plats A, B, and C, but certain adjoining farm lands, together with the Ohio Edison property (O. E. Ex. No. 14). Unfortunately the Trumbull County Commissioners refused to consent to such annexation. Shortly thereafter a petition was filed with the Weathersfield Township Trustees to incorporate the same lands into a Village of Hillcrest. Upon vote of the inhabitants of this area the application was carried and the Trustees filed the required transcript and papers with Marybelle McElrath, the Recorder of Trumbull County (O. E. Ex. No. 1), Defendant in these actions.

Now, under the provisions of §707.11 R. C., and within the ten days provided by §707.20 R. C., petitions for injunction “restraining the Recorder from making the record and certifying the transcript,” were filed by the following parties:

Ohio Edison Co., on its own behalf, Case No. 63392.

Stanley K. and Ann Louise Wilder, owners of property in Niles City School District, Case No. 63393.

Delbert Garland, owner of property in Weathersfield Township, Case No. 63394.

David W. Granger, owner of property in Niles City School District, Case No. 63425.

Carmen Di Cristofaro, owner of property in Niles City School District and Weathersfield Township, Case No. 63427.

Ellis Bequeath, owner of property in the area sought to be incorporated and in Weathersfield Township School District, Case No. 63428.

The foregoing six cases were consolidated for the purpose of the trial, and are before the Court for determination upon the pleadings, evidence, arguments and Briefs.

The grounds relied upon by the Plaintiffs are those set forth in §707.11 R. C., which reads as follows:

“Within sixty days from the filing of the papers relating to the incorporation of villages by the board of county commissioners with the county recorder as provided by §§707.08 and 707.09 R. C., any person interested may make application by petition to the court of common pleas, or, if during vacation, to a judge thereof, setting forth the errors complained of, or the inaccuracy of the boundaries, or that the limits of the proposed corporation are unreasonably large or small, or that it is not right, just or equitable that the prayer of the petition presented to the board be granted, or containing any or all of such averments, and praying an injunction restraining the recorder from so making the record and certifying the transcript.”

These grounds will be discussed in the order therein set forth.

Errors Complained of

New errors on the part of the Trustees in the proceedings submitting the question of incorporation to the vote of the electors are complained of, probably because that matter was litigated and carried to the Supreme Court with the result set forth in the case of State, ex rel. Moore v. [240]*240Trustees of Weathersfield Township, 161 Oh St 38. It is urged that the Trustees had no jurisdiction to act upon territory which includes platted lands, resting this suggestion upon the argument of the dissenting opinion in the case of Wachendorf v. Shaver, 149 Oh St 231, which dissenting opinion coincided with the opinion and decision previously made in that case by the Common Pleas Court, 33 O. O. 458. In this respect, however, this Court is bound by the majority opinion of the Supreme Court ably rendered by our own Judge Carter and upholding the right of Trustees to include “platted” as well as “unplatted” lands.

“Inaccuracy of the boundaries"

Sec. 707.04 E. C., among other requirements of the Petition for incorporation, requires; “(A) An accurate description of the territory embraced within the proposed Municipal Corporation.” It is claimed that the description is inaccurate in three respects: to-wit. the point of beginning, the northeast corner and the easterly courses of the northern boundary. The claim of inaccuracy of the point of beginning is untenable since it was discovered that the Trumbull County map (Bequeath & Garland Ex. No. 5) is incorrect in locating the north line of the Village of McDonald along the south bank of the Mahoning river. The official description contained in the Petition for Incorporation of McDonald Village (Defendant’s Ex.

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Bluebook (online)
137 N.E.2d 642, 73 Ohio Law. Abs. 236, 60 Ohio Op. 462, 1955 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 395, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ohio-edison-co-v-mcelrath-ohctcompltrumbu-1955.