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Delaware council denies annexation for 350-acre Price Trust parcel, objects to petition
Summary
After lengthy debate about infrastructure and timelines, Delaware City Council voted to deny city services for a 350.08-acre annexation petition from the Price Trust and adopted an ordinance objecting to the annexation with an emergency clause.
Delaware City Council voted to deny city services for a 350.08-acre annexation petition filed by the Price Trust and immediately adopted an ordinance objecting to the annexation, after extended discussion about sewer capacity, timing and financial risk.
The council’s resolution rejecting service to the entire annexation area passed on a roll-call vote of 6–1. Council then approved an emergency ordinance formally objecting to the annexation; that ordinance passed 6–1 on final passage. The petition had requested annexation of land north of Merrick Boulevard that spans Delaware Township and Troy Township.
Council members and staff said the city can serve about 56 acres of the property with existing utilities but lacks infrastructure to serve the remainder without a major sanitary sewer interceptor. City staff and the applicant’s attorney described the build-out as a multi-year effort; staff estimated a not-yet‑refined capital cost in the city’s plan of about $25 million for the interceptor and noted a $350,000 feasibility study had been encumbered. Planning staff reported a tentative target year of 2031 to serve the remaining acreage but cautioned that target is an estimate and contingent on budget and capital planning.
Michael Shade, attorney for the petitioners, told council his clients expect a long build-out and said earlier negotiations and offers had been revised over several years. Shade said the property is largely contiguous to city limits, is within the city’s comprehensive plan area and that parts of the site already contain water lines and easements. He said initial development would start on the southern portion and that the 56-acre parcel could be built in roughly four years once infrastructure work begins.
Several council members said they sympathize with the owners but were not willing to confirm service for the full 350 acres when only 56 acres are serviceable today and the cost and timing for the interceptor remain uncertain. Councilmembers worried about committing future councils or city finances to a large capital project without firm financing or a developer‑funded plan.
City staff advised the council that Ohio law (Ohio Revised Code Section 709.023) requires the legislative authority to adopt a resolution describing services and the approximate dates when services will be provided or to adopt a resolution denying services within 20 days of the petition filing; the council’s action fulfilled that statutory requirement.
The council discussion also noted that a denial would not prevent the petitioners from returning with a narrower annexation (for example, only those 56 acres currently serviceable). Several councilmembers said they preferred, if feasible, considering an annexation limited to the acreage the city can serve immediately rather than committing to a long-term target date for the rest of the property.
