City of Toledo v. Jenkins

• Decision Date: 05 April 1944
• Docket Number: 29505.,29504
• Citation: 143 Ohio St. 141,54 N.E.2d 656
• Parties: CITY OF TOLEDO v. JENKINS et al. (two cases).
• Court: Ohio Supreme Court

54 N.E.2d 656

143 Ohio St. 141

CITY OF TOLEDO v. JENKINS et al.(two cases).

Nos. 29504, 29505.

Supreme Court of Ohio

April 5, 1944

[Copyrighted Material Omitted]

Syllabus by the Court.

1.By virtue of Section 5616, General Code, and application for exemption of property from taxation raises the question only for the year in which the application is filed.(Pfeiffer v. Jenkins,141 Ohio St. 66, 46 N.E.2d 767approved and followed.)

2.Under the power conferred by Section 4, Article XVIII of the Constitution, and Sections 3677and3939, General Code a municipal corporation may purchase or lease and operate a landing field and place improvements thereon so as to make a fully equipped aircraft and transportation terminal; and, as such, it is a public utility.

3.Section 5351, General Code, construed in the light of Section 2, Article XII of the Constitution exempts from taxation public property used exclusively for a public purpose.

4.In general the real property of a municipal corporation, constituting part of its wholly owned and operated public airport, is public property within the meaning of the Constitution and statute.

5.All the real estate necessary and incidental to the operation of such an airport and used therein is devoted to a public use.

6.The fact that revenue is incidentally derived from public property does not in and of itself alter the public character of the use.

7.Some of the real property in a municipally owned and operated public airport unit may be taxable and the remainder exempt from taxation.The term 'exclusively,' as used in Section 2, Article XII of the Constitution, and read into Section 5351, General Code, by interpretation, applies to the use of particular parts of the property and not to the unit as a whole.

8.Where a person owns a building, located on land belonging to a municipal corporation and constituting part of a municipally owned and operated airport, and leases such building merely for a term of years to the municipal corporation to be used exclusively as a part of such airport at a substantial fixed rental, the building is taxable and listable on the tax duplicate in the name of such person as owner and the legal status is not changed by a clause in the agreement of lease that the municipal corporation shall pay the taxes on such building.

9.The filing of an application for the exemption of property from taxation institutes a pending proceeding within the meaning of Section 26, General Code;andSection 5570-1, which provides that the Board of Tax Appeals shall not consider such an application, unless a certificate or affidavit executed by the county treasurer is attached certifying that taxes, assessments, penalties and interest levied and assessed against the property sought to be exempted have been paid, does not affect an application for exemption filed prior to the time the latter section became effective.

TURNER J., dissenting.

Appeals from Board of Tax Appeals.

These two appeals came to this court from the Board of Tax Appeals and relate to the taxation of the Toledo Municipal Airport located in Wood county, Ohio, about 10 miles from the limits of the city of Toledo which is in the adjoining county of Lucas.The purpose of the proceedings below was to determine whether all the airport property was exempt from taxation, and, if not, the part that was exempt.

The land and buildings which constitute this airport were acquired by the city of Toledo from the Transcontinental Airport of Toledo, Inc., a private corporation, and its receiver on November 26, 1936.

In cause No. 29504 the city of Toledo on or about June 2, 1938, filed an application seeking to have the real estate constituting the airport declared exempt from taxation.The application did not specify the years for which exemption was sought but did set forth that the property was purchased November 26, 1936.This application is known as No. 186 in the files of the Board of Tax Appeals.The cause was heard and submitted on an agreed statement of facts and an 'additional stipulation,' both in writing.

The agreed statement is as follows:

'1.The Toledo airport is located in Lake township, Wood county, Ohio, and consists of approximately 506.10 acres of land, all of which is outside of and approximately 10 miles distant from the limits of the city of Toledo.A plat of the Toledo airport property is attached hereto, marked 'Exhibit A.' '2.All of the land comprehended in the lands of the airport was acquired by the city of Toledo from Transcontinental Airport of Toledo, Inc., an Ohio corporation, and its receiver, on November 26th, of 1936.Taxes upon all of the land and buildings were paid by Transcontinental Airport of Toledo, Inc., or its receiver to the year 1937, and no taxes on either land or buildings have been paid since that date.A schedule of the taxes and assessments for the years 1937 to 1940, inclusive, with penalties, is attached hereto, marked 'Exhibit B,' which taxes and penalties are shown by parcels lettered 'A' to 'H' inclusive, as they appear upon the tax duplicate.

'3.Parcels 'B' and 'H' are occupied by buildings, a description of which, with the occupany and use of the same, is as follows:

'Parcel 'B':

'(a) A one-story tile and steel frame hangar (known as the east or Transcontinental hangar) 83.4 x 120 feet; also a one-story office addition size 18 x 120 feet.This building was erected in 1928 by Transcontinental Airport, Inc., and is used and occupied for airplane storage, two offices, repair shop, boiler room and toilets.The storage space is rented by the city to private individuals for storage of airplanes on established daily, weekly or monthly rates.The offices were vacant until 1940 and during 1941 were rented to Metcalf Flying Service and Transcontinental Aviation Company on a monthly cash basis.These companies conduct a training program sponsored by the federal government and the Toledo University.The repair shop is used by all tenants without extra charge.The boiler is for heating the building, and toilets are for the convenience of the public.

'(b) A one-story brick substation, with frame and glass tower erected in the Spring of 1938.The building is used to house transformers, distribution system, electric equipment for the airport and field operations, and has an office at which gasoline sales are recorded, and incoming and outgoing ships registered.Above the office is a flood light for field illumination, with controls for traffic and all other lighting facilities.

'(c) A one-story brick and concrete block hangar, (known as the Curtiss-Wright or west hangar), size 100 x 120 feet; a two-story and part basement office and waiting room addition 22 x 120 feet; a one-story brick and concrete ticket office, size 10 X 41 feet.This building was erected by Curtiss-Wright Flying Service, Inc., pursuant to a lease agreement between Transcontinental Airport of Toledo, Inc., and Curtiss-Wright Flying Service, Inc., dated April 1, 1929, copy of which lease agreement is attached hereto, marked 'Exhibit C.'Said lease was modified by an agreement dated January 1, 1936 between the receiver of Transcontinental Airport, Inc., and Mevon Corporation, the successor in interest of Curtiss-Wright Flying Service, Inc., a copy of which agreement is attached hereto, marked 'Exhibit D'.

'The city acquired the interest of Transcontinental Airport of Toledo, Inc., and of its receiver under said lease agreement as modified at the time of, and as a part of, the acquisition of the airport property, and entered into an agreement with Mevon Corporation, extending the 1936 modification of the 1929 lease to December 31, 1940, copy of which agreement is attached hereto, marked 'Exhibit E'.The title to the land upon which the hangar is located is, and continuously since its acquisition in 1936, has been, in the city of Toledo.The ownership of the west hangar and administration building above described has during the period covered by the taxes in question been in accordance with the provisions of 'Exhibit C'.Under the provisions of the April 1, 1929 lease (Exhibit C) full title to the west hangar and building would pass to the city in 1949, unless otherwise agreed, and the city, in fact, acquired full title by subsequent agreement, in December of 1941.The building is occupied and used in part for the administration offices of the airport, and waiting room open to the general public; office space leased at a nominal rental to the United States Department of Agriculture and the United States Department of Commerce.Office space is also leased to United Air Lines, Inc., Transcontinental & Western Line, Inc., and a class room to Metcalf Flying Service on a monthly or yearly basis.Hangar space is rented to private owners at fixed rates, except space used by local C.A.A. inspectors and directors of aeronautics, without charge.

'(d) A two-story frame house occupied by the manager of the airport, having eight rooms and bath, with two-car garage.The manager receives free rent as a part of his compensation.The land used in connection with this residence is approximately one acre.

'Parcels A, C, D, E, F and G have runways and landing fields upon the same, as shown on 'Exhibit A'.

'Parcel 'H':

'A story and a half five-room frame house, with barn and garage.House occupied by service man employed at airport, who receives free rent of the house as a part of compensation.The barn is used to store farm tools used on airport, and miscellaneous equipment.The land used in connection with above mentioned house is approximately one acre.

'4.Parcels D, E, F, G and H, and the westerly parts of A, B and C, except the portions thereof occupied by concrete runways or structures...