New Zoning Code for Liberty Township - Things That Affect YOU - Ohioans for Responsible Rural Development

Last December the Liberty Township Trustees put the capstone on a two-year project to update and improve our township's 20-year old zoning resolution.  With the help of citizen volunteers, township zoning and zoning appeals officials, and the expert guidance of the Fairfield County Regional Planning Commission, and during many public hearings, a new code was hammered out and is now a reality.  The new code is a vast improvement over the old one and brings our township into compliance with state law and best zoning practices.

Why is this important?  For that matter, why are zoning ordinances important to us?

Through township zoning, citizens create and manage the type of community they wish to have.  Without zoning rules, disputes between neighbors arise and those disputes will be settled either by the law, or possibly by violence, the unpleasant alternative to the rule of law.  Without a zoning ordinance, outsiders, particularly the courts and outside land developers, will dictate what our neighborhoods will look like, how we may conduct ourselves and what we can do on our own properties.

When a zoning ordinance is outdated and contrary to state law, as ours was, it is unenforceable.  When a zoning ordinance is unenforceable it is as if it does not exist and once again the citizens are at the mercy of outside speculators who exploit the code's weaknesses and the judicial system that is far removed from us and ill equipped to design an ideal land use plan for us here.  Disputes settled by court action might resolve specific issues between two litigants, but such decisions may not consider the betterment of the community at large.

Zoning ordinances are "living documents", meaning that almost any and all provisions can be changed.  This allows us to modify things about the ordinance we do not like, or that subsequently learn are not workable for us.  Ohio law and our zoning ordinance spell out the proper procedures for zoning changes.   Zoning code changes, or amendments, can be requested by either property owners, the zoning commission, or the board of township trustees and after information gathering, public hearings, and after deliberations by the zoning commission, the county regional planning commission, and the township trustees, amendments to the code are either approved or rejected.

If you would like to view our new zoning ordinance, view or download the file at the link below, or contact the Liberty Township Trustees :

LIBERTY TOWNSHIP ZONING RESOLUTIONS (PDF - updated November 2011)