The settlement agreement was signed by Judge Stacy Wall of Miami County Common Pleas Court and lawyers for Kimmel and 116 West Main; Evil Empire; Rob England, Miami County chief building official; City of Troy; and Troy Historic Preservation Alliance.
The settlement involves pending cases in the county court and Ohio’s 2nd District Court of Appeals.
Under the agreement, THPA would buy the structures known as the Tavern and the IOOF buildings and make a series of repairs outlined by England by April 30. The buildings include an 1841 structure, and another built in 1902. The repairs are needed to stabilize the structures so England can lift an earlier adjudication order for repairs that stated the buildings were unsafe, according to the agreement. The court cannot extend the agreed to deadlines.
If repairs to stabilize are not made by April 30, “the THPA shall demolish both the 1902 building and the 1841 building and remove all demolition debris from the premises no later than 30 days after the deadline (May 30),” the agreement states.
The agreement states the parties would issue a joint statement on the settlement, with a draft included in paperwork.
“The parties believe that the settlement agreement best serves the public in that it keeps the safety of Miami County citizens at the forefront of all decision, resolves years of litigation and creates opens a concrete timeline to reopen Main Street,” the draft statement reads. The official statement was released as of late Friday and most parties in the case did not respond to requests for a comment.
Patrick Titterington, Troy’s service and safety director, said the city’s paramount concern in the litigation has been the safety of the public.
“This settlement agreement provides a solid deadline by which West Main Street should be reopened. We are grateful to Judge Wall for successfully mediating this complicated resolution, especially since it fully protects the City’s interests while addressing all of the parties’ concerns,” Titterington said. “We will continue to monitor progress towards making this property an economically viable contributor to our downtown.”
The buildings were damaged in a January 2020 tornado that swept through the downtown, and again in wind storms this spring.
The Troy Planning Commission and the city Board of Zoning Appeals approved a demolition permit for the structure in 2021, but their decisions were overturned by Judge Wall. The 2nd District Court of Appeals upheld that ruling.
The building is located on the south side of Main Street just a block west of the Troy Public Square and near the county government complex of the historic 1880s Courthouse and the adjacent county Safety Building.
Troy City Council earlier this month voted to approve details of a settlement agreement.
Contact this contributing writer at nancykburr@aol.com
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