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Question of Boardman's new landlord registration program to be decided in court
BOARDMAN
The question of whether the township can implement its new home-rule resolution, which requires landlords to register with the township and bring their units up to certain standards, soon will be considered in court.
The township and a plaintiff who is challenging the resolution are scheduled to be in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court on Wednesday for a preliminary-injunction hearing, though the hearing might be rescheduled until a new judge is determined, since Judge Shirley Christian recused herself from the case due to a conflict of interest.
William Hiznay of Poland, who owns property at 200 Meadowbrook Ave. in Boardman filed a civil lawsuit against the township Nov. 12. Hiznay is asking for a preliminary and permanent injunction to prevent the township from enforcing the resolution and for a declaratory judgment against the resolution, which he argues is illegal.
“We’re asking that the ordinance be found to be improper, and essentially be rescinded,” Atty. Joshua Hiznay, who filed the suit, said previously. “I just don’t believe that the [Ohio] Revised Code permits a township to start something like this.”
The resolution, which trustees unanimously approved Nov. 10, sets new requirements for landlords.
It requires landlords to register with the township with their contact information, pay an annual fee, maintain certain standards within their rental units and subject their units to periodic inspections by the township zoning department based on any complaints.
Township trustees and Zoning Inspector Sarah Gartland say the goal of the program is to get the 4,000-plus rental units in the township to meet basic living standards, a goal which they say will be easier to achieve if they have current contact information for all landlords. The resolution is part of the zoning department’s ongoing effort to stabilize neighborhoods in the township.
Some of the resolution’s requirements are that rental units have working toilets, running water, structurally sound ceilings and walls and working heating and electrical systems, among other things.
The annual fee for landlords is $40 per unit. The cost for landlords who own more than six units is $150, plus $15 per unit.
The township argues that it has the authority to enact this type of resolution because of its home-rule status, which gives it broader powers than other townships have.
The plaintiff, however, argues in the filing that, “As a limited home-rule township, Defendant Township does not have the statutory authority to establish standards; as a limited home-rule township, Defendant Township does not have the statutory authority to impose civil fines for failure to comply with a rental-unit registration program as limited home-rule townships are not authorized to establish registration program.”
The plaintiff argues that the resolution, therefore, is illegal and cannot be enforced.
The township put implementation of the program, which was set to begin at the start of the year, on hold pending resolution of the litigation.
The preliminary injunction hearing likely will determine the outcome of the case, Atty. Matthew Vansuch, the township’s attorney, said.
The judge will decide whether the plaintiff or the defendant is more likely to be successful in a trial. If the judge decides that the township is likely to succeed, the judge would not grant a preliminary injunction to the plaintiff, Vansuch said.