Friday, April 14th, 2006 By David Hansen
For three years the North Olmsted and Cleveland school districts fought a legal scrap over about $75,000 in property taxes paid to the wrong place by a now-closed Circuit City store.The Cleveland “Finders,” who benefited from a Circuit City tax goof, wanted to remain “Keepers.” North Olmsted, which should have gotten the money, wanted it returned. Circuit City tried fixing its tax returns and North Olmsted got some back, but not all.
Back and forth the argument went. The county Common Pleas Court told Cleveland to give it back. An appeals court said Cleveland didn’t have to. So North Olmsted went beyond the playground monitors and to the principal’s office – the Supreme Court of Ohio.
This week, in a bitter and snippy 4-3 split, the judges issued their ruling: Cleveland can keep the money. Finders keepers, losers weepers.
The real losers were of course the taxpayers of these two communities. I wonder how much was shelled out in legal fees for this little exercise?
