BATH TWP.: Ending a long legal fight, Bath Township and Blue Heron Nurseries have settled their differences over the agricultural use of a residential property at 5117 Medina Road.
The lawsuit, which has worked its way to the Ohio Supreme Court, centered over the township’s contention that a commercial business is not permitted in a residentially zoned area.
Township legal counsel Robert Konstand said the agreement between the parties was approved by Summit County Common Pleas Court Judge Paul Gallagher earlier this month.
Blue Heron contended its retail nursery operation was legal and exempt from Bath’s zoning rules. A lawsuit ensued.
The 9th District Court of Appeals two years ago sided with the township ruling the business was a commercial enterprise and not protected by an agricultural exemption. The Ohio Supreme Court later declined to hear the case.
Since then other lawsuits were filed.
Under the terms of the settlement, Blue Heron will only operate as a wholesale business with restricted hours.
The business will not be allowed to expand and the township is allowed to audit the nursery to ensure compliance.
“We have an agreement that we can enforce through the courts,” Konstand said.