The question of who will improve 1.3-mile-long Durkee Road went into second gear Jan. 20 when nearly a dozen residents attended the Claridon Township Trustees meeting.
The question of who will improve 1.3-mile-long Durkee Road went into second gear Jan. 20 when nearly a dozen residents attended the Claridon Township Trustees meeting.
While those residents live in Claridon on the north side of the road, their driveways lead to Durkee, which is in Burton Township.
The unimproved road needs serious attention and resident Adam Miller said when they approached Burton Township Trustees about repairing or paving Durkee, they were told to go lobby Claridon trustees to help pay for the project.
“Burton (trustees) said we were in the wrong meeting,” Miller said.
Claridon Trustee Jonathan Tiber said a few minutes into residents’ comments it would be illegal for Claridon to use Claridon Township tax dollars to have work done on a road in Burton Township.
“We don’t have any plans to do that, nor do we have the authority. It is not our road,” he said, adding trustees could not justify to the township’s 3,000 other residents using road funds on Durkee.
“That would be a hard pill for them to swallow. We’ve never had anything to do with that road. (Burton Township) has had it for decades. If it was our road, as a trustee, I would have saved up money for it,” he said.
Tiber said he consulted with the Geauga County Prosecutor’s Office and has been assured his position is the legally correct one.
Attorney Bob Umholz, who has a residence in Claridon north of Durkee, urged Claridon to get an advisory opinion from the Ohio Attorney General on the matter.
“It seems like the residents on Durkee Road should look into legal action,” he said.
Umholz said property in Claridon north of Durkee was split into lots to allow residential development and that indicates Claridon has a responsibility for those parcels.
“How could the township zoning board approve the lot splits when there’s no access to a road?” he asked.
Former Claridon Zoning Inspector Chris Alusheff said the law didn’t require that kind of oversight when the splits were approved.
“Before 2021, there was no requirement for a township or county to oversee a subdivision (of lots larger than) 5 acres,” he said, adding those parcels on the Claridon side of Durkee are larger than that.
“Their property lines start at the road right-of-way,” he said.
The right-of-way is about 30 feet north of the middle of Durkee, according to discussion in a previous meeting.
Miller said he believed the lots were split in 2016.
Umholz restated his position.
“Claridon Township allowed the lots to be split. They allowed residents to move onto lots that have no legal access to that road. Claridon has the responsibility because it allowed those lots to be split,” he said.
“I don’t know why they were split,” Tiber said, requesting the discussion stay on topic with paving Durkee.
“I’m not really in favor of paving the road as long as you just make improvements and dust control,” said Claridon resident Joe Miller.
Tiber noted there is a long history regarding the ownership of Durkee.
“In 1850, the county commissioners determined the road belongs to Burton Township, regardless of property lines. Now, all of the sudden, (Burton Township Trustees) want us to spend all this money for something they have ignored for years. Burton Township has had plenty of time to save money. We have one road levy from 1994. We work tight. We get by with very little,” he said. “I am frustrated because I do care about my residents.”
Dominique Miller, wife of Adam Miller, noted Durkee was a cow path in 1850 and they came to Claridon with the issue because they had no support from the Burton trustees.
“Help us figure a way to move forward. You can’t, by law, touch that road. I can’t go to Burton. Burton trustees don’t care about us,” she said.
Alusheff said if Claridon puts tax dollars toward work on Durkee, they would be breaking the law and the problem is not unique.
“Other townships have the same problem. Nobody is forcing anybody to buy property,” he said.
Tiber said trustees want an opinion from a higher level.
“I asked our prosecutor to get an opinion from the state attorney general,” Tiber said, adding, when Umholz pressed, he will also find out if the lot splits have any influence on the matter.
Tiber said he would revisit the Durkee matter with Burton trustees and advocate for the Claridon residents on that road.
