Roundabout resolution reached

SANDUSKY — A jury ruling ends a dispute involving a roundabout at a prominent intersection abutting a business. During a recent public meeting, Sandusky city commissioners adopted legislation so the local government can pay a settlement from a lawsuit it lost concerning an incoming roundabout on Cleveland Road (U.S. 6) at Cedar Point Drive: • The project — known as the Cleveland Road safety corridor — required the city to obtain a small portion of land near the Cedar Corner Complex at 1935 Cleveland Road (U.S. 6). It's where, among other businesses, Thirsty Pony operates from. • Additionally, the city also needed a temporary easement of other land at the complex. Effectively, it needed to rent the land while the project was completed. • A third amount was needed to pay for any potential damages to the remaining portion of the parcel that the owner, S&S Realty, would retain. When the city initially filed the action, officials deposited more than $150,000 with Erie County Common Pleas Court as the amount, as officials believed, would cover all three parts of the land deal. Officials from the defendant asked for a jury trial to determine a fair amount, as the plaintiffs believed the number the city suggested was too low. "This case was about establishing the fair value of the property the city would need to take from a property owner to build a roundabout," said Sandusky ex officio mayor Dick Brady. "After five days of trial, the award of (about $1.25 million) was 28% of what the property owner had asked for: $4.65 million. I consider that a big win for our city. An excessive award would have doomed the project," Brady said. The city was initially on the hook for the entire judgment amount, $1.25 million. Brady said the city reached out to the Ohio Department of Transportation to see if that agency would help cover the judgment. "With help from commissioner (Steve) Poggiali, who has a long and successful history with (the state department), we were able to negotiate an arrangement for ODOT to cover 95% of all monies awarded on this project," said Brady, noting it's about $1.18 million. The city will cover the balance of $70,000. With the suit ended and the payout approved, the project can continue. Construction on the roundabout is expected to cost $7 million. The state transportation department is covering a little more than $6 million with the balance coming from Sandusky's government.