The Second District Court of Appeals has held that a municipality may not use its power of eminent domain to appropriate land in excess of what is needed for the purpose stated in the ordinance authorizing the appropriation.
In City of Springfield v. Gross (2nd Dist. 2005), 164 Ohio App. 3d 1, the court of appeals affirmed the dismissal of the City of Springfield's petition for appropriation. The City sought to appropriate .677 acres of the Grosses' property for a replacement sewer lift station. The record, however, showed that the City did not need the entire property for this stated purpose. Instead, the City planned to use a portion of the property for storage of construction vehicles and materials during construction and to build another sewer lift station in 20 to 25 years. Based on Ohio Supreme Court precedent, the court found that "the city's failure to define the purpose of the excess appropriations in definite and specific terms is fatal to the proposed appropriation."