Appeals court overturns Waterville Township ruling

5/5/2007

Ohio s 6th District Court of Appeals has overturned a lower-court decision that would have allowed Waterville Township to remove the villages of Waterville and Whitehouse from the township.

Township residents had petitioned Lucas County commissioners to remove the municipalities from the township, and Lucas County Common Pleas Court Judge Robert Christiansen ruled in their favor, saying that state law allows townships to remove municipalities they encompass if a majority of the property holders in the township s unincorporated area petition for the change.

But the appellate court found certain parts of that law unconstitutional, so any decision the Common Pleas Court judge made based on that statute is void.

The township s petition drive began in 2001 after Timothy Pedro, a Waterville resident, was elected a township trustee.

Mr. Pedro and Anton Urbas, Jr., sought the appeal.