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Canfield Flower Mill court case continues
By ROBERT CONNELLY
CANFIELD
A court case regarding the Canfield Flower Mill slowly continues as road grindings remain in the front yard of the property.
The mill sits along state Route 46 in the northern part of Canfield Township, 4575 S. Canfield-Niles Road. According to Vindicator files, the land encompasses a farmhouse, greenhouse and shop building and was put in the possession of James Steiner in 2013.
Steiner attended a special meeting of the Canfield Township trustees in January and asked trustees about a deal that had fallen through to end a court case on his property. “You’re going to get more resistance from me now,” he told the board at the January meeting.
According to court documents, Steiner was notified that he was in violation of township zoning ordinances on Feb. 4, 2013, based on “numerous piles of asphalt grindings” on his property.
He denied he was in violation in a Feb. 22, 2013, letter to the township Board of Zoning Appeals, which led to a March 27, 2013, zoning appeals board hearing for Steiner.
The township board ruled against Steiner because the piles of asphalt grindings violated zoning for his property, which was zoned agricultural.
Steiner argued the Feb. 4, 2013, notice and zoning ordinance are unconstitutionally vague.
Magistrate Timothy G. Welsh on May 20, 2014, ruled in favor of David Morrison, township zoning inspector, and the township zoning appeals board. Judge R. Scott Krichbaum overruled that decision July 29, 2014.
Donald Duda, a Mahoning County assistant prosecutor representing the township, appealed Judge Krichbaum’s decision, and an oral argument in that appeal in the 7th District Court of Appeals has yet to be scheduled.
“Everything’s been briefed and put forth before the court of appeals,” Duda said. “I would expect oral arguments to be happening pretty soon. ... My expectation is we would likely see a decision before the end of the year, although Mr. Steiner did hire new counsel, and I don’t know if that’s going to change anything.”
Steiner had been represented by Atty. Ronald E. Knickerbocker until he filed a motion to withdraw April 7. Atty. Michael P. Ciccone took over April 8 and was “not accepting media calls” on the case when reached to comment Friday afternoon.
“The way the zoning is written, he’s asserting that it’s vague. Too vague for anyone to understand, but I look at it, and I see it’s pretty straightforward ... the [ordinances are] in kind of a matrix chart” outlining what’s allowed or not. “I think a person of ordinary intelligence can understand that chart from reading it,” Duda said.