1 court request in South Toledo street work case is pulled

6/3/2009

A request for a temporary restraining order filed by residents living in Toledo Mayor Carty Finkbeiner's neighborhood was withdrawn Tuesday after a meeting between attorneys before Lucas County Common Pleas Judge Charles Doneghy.

Residents of the Burroughs Drive and Townley Road neighborhood filed suit Monday claiming money set aside for road improvement projects on their streets has not been spent. Accompanying the lawsuit was a request for a temporary restraining order to prohibit the city from reappropriating the funds for another use.

Attorney Lorin Zaner, who lives on Burroughs Drive, said the request was dismissed because the money previously allocated for the improvement projects was still available. He said city attorneys agreed to notify him if there was any intention of moving those funds elsewhere.

According to the suit, City Council approved expenditures for improvements to the street in June, 2007, and again in April, 2008. The complaint alleges that the defendants have not fulfilled their duties by preventing the project from moving forward.

City attorneys have 28 days to respond to the suit, which names the mayor and other city officials.

Mr. Finkbeiner sent his neighbors a letter Tuesday indicating that the city would complete some final edge work but would not tear out the existing pavement.

"Extensive waterline improvements were made to the Townley-Burroughs neighborhood last year. An asphalt layer was installed that has performed well," the letter said. "The city has expended $403,000 on this project to date and will spend $73,000 to complete the improvements."

The mayor recommended Toledo City Council cut all residential street repaving funding for 2009, but council is considering allocating money toward the paving program.