Trustees of Washington Township v. Kenneth E. Davis
| Decision Date | 19 March 2001 |
| Docket Number | 01-LW-1180,00CA28 |
| Citation | 2001 Ohio 4058 |
| Parties | TRUSTEES OF WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP, Plaintiffs-Appellees v. KENNETH E. DAVIS, et al., Defendants-Appellants Case |
| Court | Ohio Court of Appeals |
COUNSEL FOR APPELLANTS: Lawrence D. Walker, Taft, Stettinius & Hollister, L.L.P., 21 East State Street, 12t h Floor, Columbus, Ohio 43215-4221
COUNSEL FOR APPELLEES: P. Eugene Long, II, Pickaway County Prosecuting Attorney, and Judy C. Wolford, Assistant Prosecutor, 118 East Main Street, P.O. Box 910, Circleville, Ohio 43113
COUNSEL FOR AMICUS CURIAE, OHIO PROS. ATTORNEYS ASSN.: Linda F. Holmes, Assistant Prosecutor, One Courthouse Square, Bowling Green, Ohio 43402
This is an appeal from a Pickaway County Common Pleas Court judgment, upon a bench trial, in favor of the Washington Township Trustees (Trustees), plaintiffs below and appellees herein. The court enjoined Kenneth E. Davis, Citicasters Co., and Clear Channel Communications, Inc., defendants below and appellants herein, from any further telecommunications towers construction and ordered the removal of existing structures. The following errors are assigned for our review:
Appellant, Citicasters Co. (Citicasters) holds a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) license to operate AM radio station WTVN in Columbus at 610 Khz. WTVN sends its signal from its Columbus studios by microwave to its transmission tower in Obetz. WTVN's signal is then broadcast from its Obetz transmission tower to the radio station's coverage area. The current tower is nearly fifty (50) years old and covers approximately sixty-four percent (64%) of Franklin County. The tower does not reach any surrounding areas including Lancaster, Newark or Marysville. Citicasters sought to correct this deficiency and upgraded its broadcast facilities. On February 12, 1998, the company agreed to acquire 228 acres of land from appellant, Kenneth Davis, and his wife, for $801,139. Citicasters purchased this property, located along Route 56 in Washington Township, roughly four (4) miles southeast of Circleville, and intended to build eight (8) new transmission towers which would considerably boost the reach of WTVN's radio signal.
The company began construction of these new towers but, on December 21, 1999, the Washington Township Trustees commenced the instant action. The Trustees alleged that the land in question was zoned as a Farm Residential District (FR-1) and that the telecommunications towers did not conform to the local zoning laws. The Trustees asked the court, inter alia, to permanently enjoin appellant's from any further construction and that they be ordered to remove all existing structures in violation of the zoning ordinance.[1]
Appellants filed a joint answer. Although appellants admitted that the property was "physically located" within an FR-1 district, they denied the allegation regarding a zoning violation. Rather, appellants asserted that Citicasters is a "public utility" and, therefore, exempted from compliance with the Washington Township Zoning laws. Appellants thus concluded that the complaint against them should be dismissed.
On January 24, 2000, the trial court conducted a hearing. At the hearing both sides stipulated to the essential facts in this case and presented the matter to the court solely on the issue of whether Citicasters is a public utility and, thus, exempt from pertinent zoning regulations. To that end, Michael McGregor, an associate professor of telecommunications at Indiana University, testified that a "radio broadcaster" is a business vested by law "with the public interest." Professor McGregor explained that the whole FCC regime, set up by the United States Congress to regulate broadcasting, is infused with the basic principle that broadcasters "serve the public interest, convenience and necessity." The witness further opined that broadcasting is a "matter of public concern" because it is one of the greater sources of information to citizens of this country. Appellants then argued that a "public utility," for purposes of pertinent zoning regulations, is a business vested by law with the public interest and that, given Professor McGregor's testimony, WTVN radio fell within that rubric and should be exempt from zoning regulations.
The trial court took the matter under advisement and, on March 21, 2000, filed a decision and judgment entry ruling in favor of the Trustees. The court determined that the radio station is not a "public utility" for purposes of the Washington Township Zoning regulations. The court reasoned that although the station may serve a "public interest," the station is not a matter of "public concern." Indeed, the court noted that "[t]he nature of its operations and the quality of regulations governing 610 WTVN do not parallel those of businesses that are ordinarily accepted as public utilities." The court further noted that even if the radio station could be deemed a public utility, the Trustees still had authority under R.C. 519.211 to prohibit construction of Citicasters's telecommunications towers. Thus, the trial court permanently enjoined appellants from any further construction of those towers and ordered appellants to remove all existing structures in violation of the Washington Township Zoning regulations within thirty (30) days.[2] This appeal followed.[3]
Our analysis begins with the provisions of R.C. Chapter 519, which gives authority to township trustees to regulate zoning in unincorporated township territories. Townships have no power under zoning laws, however, to regulate the location, erection or construction of any buildings or other structures of a "public utility." R.C. 519.211(A); also see Symmes Twp. Bd. Of Trustees v. Smyth (2000), 87 Ohio St.3d 549, 551, 721 N.E.2d 1057, 1060. This restriction is also reflected in Section 6.03 of the Washington Township Zoning Resolution:
"Nothing contained in this Resolution shall prevent the location, erection, construction, reconstruction, change, alteration, maintenance, removal, use or enlargement of any building or structure of any public utility or railroad, whether publicly or privately owned, or the use of land by any public utility or railroad for the operation of its business." (Emphasis added.)
Appellants admitted below, and they concede on appeal, that the Davis property is zoned "farm residential" and that the radio towers are an inappropriate use for that district. Appellants have argued throughout these proceedings, however, that Citicasters is a "public utility" and, thus, exempt from Washington Township Zoning under both R.C. 519.211(A) and the township zoning regulations.
We note that the term "public utility" is not defined in either the statute or the resolution. The question of whether Citicasters is a "public utility" under these provisions has become the focal point of dispute in this case. The trial court, in a lengthy and detailed opinion, concluded that Citicasters is not a public utility and, hence, exempt from zoning. Appellants argue in their first and third assignments of error, which we consider together, that the trial court's judgment is erroneous as a matter of law and is against the manifest weight of the evidence. For the following reasons, we disagree with appellants arguments and we adopt the trial court's well reasoned opinion and rationale.
The question of whether a concern is a public utility is a mixed question of law and fact. Coventry Twp. V. Ecker (1995), 101 Ohio App.3d 38, 41, 654 N.E.2d 1327, 1328; Montville Bd. Of Twp. Trustees v. WDBN, Inc. (1983), 10 Ohio App.3d 284, 286, 461 N.E.2d 1345, 1348. This Court will not reverse a trial court's factual determinations when those determinations are supported by some competent and credible evidence, see Shemo v. Mayfield Hts. (2000), 88 Ohio St.3d 7, 10, 722 N.E.2d 1018, 1022; Vogel v. Wells (1991), 57 Ohio St.3d 91, 96, 566 N.E.2d 154, 159; C.E. Morris Co. v. Foley Construction Co. (1978), 54 Ohio St.2d 279, 376 N.E.2d 578, at the syllabus, but we will apply a de novo standard of review to a trial court's application of the law to those facts. See Soler v. Evans (Sep. 26, 2000), Franklin App. No. 99AP-1020, unreported; Friend v. Elsea, Inc. (Sep. 26, 2000), Pickaway App. No. 98CA29, unreported; Pierce v. Vanbibber (Jun. 30, 2000), Scioto App. No. 99CA2639, unreported. With this concept in mind, we turn our attention to the rather nebulous question of what constitutes a "public utility."
As mentioned previously, neither the pertinent state statute nor the Township Zoning Resolution contain a definition of the term "public utility." Furthermore, we find no definitive test or standard appearing in case law to apply in these situations. Rather, as the Ohio Supreme Court has noted, "[t]he determination of whether a particular entity is a public utility for the purpose of exemption from local zoning restrictions requires a consideration of several factors related to the 'public service'...
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