Brunswick Hills Trustees settle lawsuits against the township

BRUNSWICK HILLS TWP. — The Brunswick Hills Board of Trustees approved settling two lawsuits against the township that were made in reference to rezoning the Cossett Creek golf course for residential use during a special meeting Tuesday. In 2019, a zone change application was filed by developers to rezone the southwest corner of the state Route 303 and Substation Road intersection where the golf course is located. The developers wanted to rezone the area to a Planned Mixed Use Overlay District to put a large housing development in the area. The request was denied by the township. A variance application was also denied in 2020 by the township. A lawsuit was filed in the Medina County Court of Common Pleas and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Eastern Division. Tonya Rogers through the Ohio Township Association Risk Management Authority represented the township. She said the denial came because the township wanted the area to have the rural residential zoning minimum lot size of 2 acres to have adequate room for septic tanks. The developers sought a smaller lot minimum. There was a regulatory taking claim in the federal lawsuit because of the development cost associated with a larger lot minimum, Rogers said. "It's not that the government is physically taking your property, but they're imposing restrictions that are reducing your ability to develop the property or use it in an economically viable way," she said. The township needed to have a compelling government interest for the restriction, but the health and safety concern for the septic tanks went away because the sewer system expanded to where the development would be, Rogers said. The development then became an aesthetic concern instead, which was less of a compelling enough reason to restrict. The settlement resolves both lawsuits. John Slagter represented the developers, and he said the federal court made a directive to mediate for a resolution. The mediations took place over about three months. "We're at a point where both parties were able to give up enough, and we think that it's fair and reasonable to both sides," Slagter said. In the settlement, the groups decided what types of residences can go where in the area. There can be a maximum of 511 units in which up to 250 are multi-family units like apartments and townhomes, and 200 of those 250 can be rental apartments. The other units are single family homes. Originally, the developers wanted 565 units on 197 acres, Rogers said. The area for development was reduced to 172 acres. "It was a tough road that the trustees had to walk down," Trustee Chair Christina Kusnerak said. "We always had the interest of the township in mind, and what we thought would be best for all of us." The developer is required to conduct a traffic survey as part of the settlement. It is also required that there is at least one entrance into the development on both state Route 303 and Substation Road. A 35-foot buffer between the new development and existing ones and a walking trail are mandatory. The development will also have a master homeowners association. The developers still need to create a final concept plan which will then go back to the trustees to review, Rogers said. If the new plan looks substantially different from the current one, both groups will have to come back to talk. The finalized plan will still have to go through all typical county procedures for development as well. "The cost of building something in 2019 is vastly different than it is now," she said. "The world changed significantly in 2020. They had to make a lot of concessions that they weren't happy about that cut into their ability to make profits and develop the property that they thought would be the best way." If the plaintiff were to win in a trial instead of settle, the township would have owed the developers money for regulatory taking as well as attorney fees, and the property would have to be rezoned still, Rogers said. The money would come directly from taxpayer dollars. "A good settlement is where no one's happy," she said. "That's pretty much where we are. I don't think anyone left the settlement thrilled with the result." Many residents who attended the meeting were concerned about increased traffic at the intersection of state Route 303 and Substation Road as a result of the development. Rogers said the traffic there is an existing problem but because it is a state route, the township does not have control over it. "There's also case law that indicates pretty clearly that traffic cannot be the basis to deny," Slagter said. "It's one of those things where communities and governmental entities need to address and deal with situations like that." It could still take anywhere from six to 10 years to complete the development, Slagter said. "This isn't (something) that can happen overnight," he said. "There's a lot of other things that need to happen before it does happen. Again, it's our intent to move forward with this." Contact reporter Madisyn Woodring at (330) 721-4049 or mwoodring@medina-gazette.com.