The opinion
[Cite as Westerville City School Dist. Bd. of Edn. v. Delaware Cty. Bd. of Revision, 2024-Ohio-2963.]
COURT OF APPEALS
DELAWARE COUNTY, OHIO
FIFTH APPELLATE DISTRICT
WESTERVILLE CITY SCHOOL JUDGES:
DISTRICT BOARD OF EDUCATION Hon. W. Scott Gwin, P.J.
Hon. William B. Hoffman, J.
Appellant Hon. Craig R. Baldwin, J.
-vs-
Case No. 24 CAE 01 0006
DELAWARE COUNTY BOARD OF
REVISION, ET AL.,
Appellees OPINION
CHARACTER OF PROCEEDINGS: Appeal from the Delaware County Court of
Common Pleas, Case No. 23 CV F 10
0805
JUDGMENT: Affirmed
DATE OF JUDGMENT ENTRY: August 2, 2024
APPEARANCES:
For Appellant For Westar Polaris III, LLC
MARK H. GILLIS EDWARD F. HIRSHBERG
KELLEY A. GORRY Ryan Law Firm, PLLC
Rich & Gillis Law Group, LLC 301 Grant Street, Suite 270
5747 Perimeter Drive, Suite 150 Pittsburgh, PA 15219
Dublin, OH 43017
For County Appellees
MICHAEL P. CAVANAUGH
Delaware County Prosecutor's Office
145 North Union Street, 3rd Floor
P.O. Box 8006
Delaware, OH 43015
Delaware County, Case No. 24 CAE 01 0006 2
Hoffman, J.
{¶1} Appellant Westerville City Schools Board of Education appeals the
judgment entered by the Delaware County Common Pleas Court dismissing its
administrative appeal for lack of jurisdiction. Appellee is Westar Polaris III, ILC.1
STATEMENT OF THE FACTS AND CASE
{¶2} On March 21, 2023, Appellee filed an original complaint with the Delaware
County Board of Revision (hereinafter “BOR”) seeking to decrease the value placed on a
parcel of property owned by Appellee by the Delaware County Auditor from $14, 657, 100
to $13, 450,000. On September 27, 2023, the BOR adopted Appellee’s opinion of value.
Appellant appealed this decision to the Delaware County Common Pleas Court.
{¶3} In the trial court, Appellant sought to stay the proceedings due to the
pendency of numerous appeals by other school districts in this Court which raised the
same issues. The trial court denied the motion to stay, and sua sponte dismissed
Appellant’s administrative appeal for lack of jurisdiction, finding Appellant did not have
standing to appeal the BOR’s decision to the Court of Common Pleas. It is from the
January 2, 2024 decision of the Delaware County Common Pleas Court Appellant
prosecutes this appeal, assigning as error:
I. THE DELAWARE COUNTY COMMON PLEAS COURT ERRED
IN HOLDING THAT R.C. 2506.01 DOES NOT CREATE AN
INDEPENDENT RIGHT OF APPEAL IN DIRECT CONTRAVENTION OF
1 Appellees Delaware County Auditor and Delaware County Board of Revision did not file a brief in the
instant appeal.
Delaware County, Case No. 24 CAE 01 0006 3
THE PLAIN LANGUAGE OF THE STATUTE AND SUPREME COURT
PRECEDENT.
II. THE DELAWARE COUNTY COMMON PLEAS COURT
COMMITTED LEGAL ERROR IN CITING JRB HOLDINGS, HAMER, AND
NKANGINIEME AS SUPPORT FOR ITS HOLDING THAT R.C. 2506.01
DOES NOT CREATE AN INDEPENDENT STATUTORY RIGHT OF
APPEAL.
III. THE DELAWARE COUNTY COMMON PLEAS COURT ERRED
IN HOLDING THAT THE BOARD OF EDUCATION LACKED STATUTORY
STANDING TO APPEAL PURSUANT TO R.C. 2506.01.
I., II., III.
{¶4} This Court has previously considered the legal issues raised by Appellant
in the instant appeal. The assignments of error are overruled for the reasons stated in
Westerville City School Dist. Bd. of Education v. Delaware Cnty. Bd. of Revision, 2024-
Ohio-1567 (5th Dist.); Olentangy Local School Dist. Bd. of Education v. Delaware Cnty.
Bd. of Revision, 2024-Ohio-1564 (5th Dist.); and Delaware City Schools Bd. of Education
v. Delaware Cnty. Bd. of Revision, 2024-Ohio-1565 (5th Dist.).
Delaware County, Case No. 24 CAE 01 0006 4
{¶5} The judgment of the Delaware County Common Pleas Court is affirmed.
By: Hoffman, J.
Gwin, P.J. and
Baldwin, J. concur