Columbus casino site owner returns state funds

COLUMBUS (AP) — Almost $100,000 in state environmental cleanup money has been given back by the former owner of a possible Columbus casino location.

City officials opposed to the site near the city’s NHL arena and baseball stadium had accused Plaza Properties Inc. of obtaining the money under false pretenses

But the company says in a letter to Mayor Michael Coleman that it did not mislead officials when it said it would build condominiums on the property. President Lawrence Ruben says the company requested the grant a year before the casino developers came calling.

Ruben says the money was indeed spent to clean up the site, but the company will return the funds for the sake of its reputation.

Developers last week said they’d prefer to build the casino elsewhere.