None of the roughly 2,000 signatures submitted by people opposed to the forthcoming Buc-ee’s Travel Center at Interstate 71 and Ohio 39 were valid.
Organizers wanted to get a referendum on the November ballot. Matt Finfgeld, director of the Richland County Board of Elections, briefed board members at their July 14 meeting.
“It just dies, from what we understand,” Finfgeld told the board. “Really, there’s no board action that’s needed on this, but we did want to let you guys know what’s happening, where it’s at.”
Mansfield City Council approved a development plan and final annexation at its June 2 meeting. Under the plan, Buc-ee’s will pay for the $15 million in infrastructure needed for the project.
Still, a number of people are opposed to a Buc-ee’s in Mansfield, alleging environmental risks, safety issues and a decline in the quality of life.
Finfgeld reviewed a letter that he and Deputy Director Jane Zimmermann submitted to city Finance Director Kelly Converse after reviewing the referendum petition.
“After a thorough review of the petition materials, the board determined that the petition failed to comply with several mandatory requirements of Ohio law governing municipal referendum petitions,” they wrote. “Because these statutory requirements were not satisfied, the board found that there were no valid part-petitions and, consequently, no valid signatures to certify.”
Petition for ballot initiative had several deficiencies
Finfgeld said there were four deficiencies:
“Many of the ones online definitely did not live in Mansfield,” Finfgeld said. “There were some that didn’t even live in Ohio.”
The online submission included residents of Texas, Colorado and Georgia.
Further, Finfgeld said organizers started obtaining signatures in March, weeks before council officially signed off on the project.
“It’s hard to petition something that hasn’t happened yet,” Finfgeld said.
Even if the 2,000 signatures had been valid, organizers did not have enough to put the referendum before voters. They needed 35% of the number of votes cast in the most recent gubernatorial election. Zimmermann said the number needed was 4,148.
“It sounds pretty cut-and-dried to me,” Board Member Bill Freytag said.
Nick Stadelman, a farmer who lives in the area of the proposed supercenter, submitted the referendum petition.
Zimmerman advised anyone looking to prepare such a petition to seek legal counsel.
Reach Mark Caudill at 419-521-7219 or via X at @MarkCau32059251.
This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Bid to stop Mansfield Buc-ee’s fails, no valid signatures on petition
Reporting by Mark Caudill, Mansfield News Journal / Mansfield News Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Mark Caudill, Mansfield News Journal | USA TODAY Network
