City loses $1.3M suit

SANDUSKY — Sandusky's east side roundabout project became a little more expensive. An Erie County jury recently awarded S&S Realty a nearly $1.3 million judgment for land the city needs to three separate but related aspects: • Permanently acquire a part of land • A year-long easement for construction • Damage to property retained by S&S Realty In 2022, city officials approved a contract to construct a roundabout at the intersection of Cedar Point Drive and Cleveland Road (U.S. 6). The city needed to obtain, through eminent domain — a process when a government body seizes land from a private landowner for a public project for a value equal to fair-market rate — less than one-tenth of 1 acre of property that is home to S&S Realty's Cedar Corner complex. S&S relates to Sortino Management & Development Co. That site includes the Thirsty Pony restaurant, Cedar Lanes bowling alley and Holiday Inn Express hotel. The judgment An Erie County jury returned a $1.25 million judgment for the defendant, S&S Realty. The jury determined the value of: • Temporary easement at $719,000 • Damages to property retained by defendant at $373,000 • Land taken at $157,000 "The Sortino family is grateful to the jury for recognizing the significant adverse impact the roundabout will have on its Cedar Corner property," said Rachelle Zidar, the attorney for S&S Realty. Sandusky officials are still examining their legal options moving forward, according to city communications manager Tom Horsman. "The city is aware of the court's decision and is currently reviewing the outcome," he said. "As is standard in these types of matters, there is a period in which either party may consider an appeal. No final decisions have been made." What happened City officials made what they deemed a fair-market value offer for the land needed for the project, an amount a little more than $150,000. When S&S refused the offer, the city filed suit in May 2024 to obtain the land. The roundabout project required the city to take and keep that fraction of an acre and also rent a portion of the land for one year while construction occurs. The city's appraiser, C. Erik Kirk, pegged the fair market value of the seizure and rental at $157,000, according to court documents. The city contended that the Cedar Corner complex would lose three parking spaces. With more than 250 parking spaces on the property, that would be about 1% of the spaces. S&S Realty countered that they would lose 20 spaces, translating to nearly 8% of all spaces. In addition to the loss of spaces, the businesses would also lose access to 10 additional spots during construction, and the project would affect customers entering and exiting the parking lot, according to court documents. A brief filed by S&S Realty contended that appraiser Dwight Kumler would testify that the property's fair market value would be diminished by more than $4.5 million. That number included about $150,000 for the taken land and the improvements on that land, nearly $2.2 million in damage to the property retained by S&S Realty and nearly $2.3 million as compensation for the yearlong easement.