SRM Materials, the operator of the former Weidle gravel pit, has prevailed in a lawsuit against German Township to expand its operations on land near Butter Street and Eckhart Road.
SRM paid Weidle Corp. $4.5 million for 42 acres in May 2023. This includes 31 acres off Eckhart Road, two acres off Sugar Street and 12 acres off Butter Street.
Zoning Decision
In a March 2024 decision, the German Township Board of Zoning Appeals denied the company’s planned expansion on 32 acres zoned for agriculture. In the meeting, multiple residents testified in opposition, citing concerns over noise, dust, and significant damage to local roadways caused by heavy truck traffic.
German Township and SRM debated in court filings about SRM’s presence at the zoning meeting. A filing stated, “At the March 12, 2024 hearing on the application, no one from SRM showed up to testify, purportedly due to a scheduling error. No community member spoke in favor of the project.”
Court filings also included comments from residents and German Township officials, including:
Michael Osborn, who lives in an adjoining property, noted that the dredging operation is 4,000 feet from his house, but the noise, vibrations, and rumbling of the trucks and equipment are clearly audible and intrusive.
Rhonda Leigeber stated that the current operation creates noise from 7:30 a.m. until after 8 p.m., and she believed that the expanded operation would only make matters worse.
James Rowland, “cars get flat tires in front of my house all the time because of the roads—the berms of the roads are getting tore up and people, if they run over those, it busts their tires. It’s a safety issue.”
German Township Road and Service Administrator Jeremy Holbrook’s official report outlined several concerns: (1) Butter Street lacks the structure to support the heavy traffic that SRM produces daily. The additional heavy traffic transporting gravel from the new location to the processing facility will cause even more damage; (2) the addition of a mining operation at the new location will increase traffic on Eckhart Road; and (3) SRM has made no effort to repair any of the damage caused by their equipment.
Gary Stemp, who stated that he lives next door to the facility, said that he “worried about the water because my well is only 15 feet deep. And I’m right beside the property that they’re doing. If they go down further than that, they’re going to be right into my water.”
Brent Anslinger asserted that granting the conditional use would “negatively impact the rural characteristics of the neighborhood in a drastic and impactful way.”
Initial Ruling Favors German Township
Tennessee-based SRM Materials sued in the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas to overturn the Zoning Board ruling. The court ruled in favor of German Township, finding that the Zoning Board’s denial was supported by "substantial, reliable, and probative evidence," specifically the firsthand testimony of residents and the township road administrator regarding road hazards and environmental impacts.
SRM Appeals and Wins
SRM appealed to the Montgomery County Appeals Court, which issued a ruling in favor of SRM and its planned land expansion on October 3, 2025.
The Appeals Court looked at other cases, including a similar mining case in Pickaway County. In their opinion on the German Township case, the appeals court cited the Ohio Supreme Court, saying, “The Court further held that even when general standards of a township zoning resolution are applied in the interest of public health and safety relative to a conditional use application for mining activities, they may be used only as conditions for approving the application, not as reasons for its denial.”
The opinion said of the German Township Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA), “The BZA appears to argue that R.C. 519.141(A) allows it to require certain conditions for approval, such as (1) inspections of nearby structures and water wells to determine structural integrity and water levels; (2) compliance with applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations; (3) identification of specific roads to be used as the primary means of ingress to and egress from the proposed activity; (4) compliance with reasonable noise abatement measures; (5) compliance with reasonable dust abatement measures; (6) establishment of setbacks, berms, and buffers for the proposed activity; (7) establishment of a complaint procedure; and (8) any other measure reasonably related to public health and safety.”
“Even assuming this were true, the BZA did not do that. It looked at only its own general standards, found that SRM’s application did not meet them, and then rejected SRM’s conditional use application.”
Even assuming this were true, the BZA did not do that. It looked at only its own general standards, found that SRM’s application did not meet them, and then rejected SRM’s conditional use application.
Final Court Ruling
The Appeals Court concluded its opinion by stating, “We reverse the decision of the trial court and remand the case to the Board of Zoning Appeals for reconsideration of SRM’s conditional use application. On remand, the BZA shall consider SRM’s conditional use application based on the evidence already in the record, the provisions of the Revised Code, and the terms of the township zoning resolution.”
German Township appealed this ruling to the Ohio Supreme Court, which denied jurisdiction in February 2026, ending the appeals process and granting the legal victory to SRM.
German Township Reaction
In the February German Township Trustees meeting, Jake Stubbs responded to a resident question about cost, saying, “Insurance picked up the case. And kept it. So there's no cost, no additional cost to us.”
The Township held a special meeting of the zoning board on March 4. No minutes from that meeting have been posted.
Reached for comment, German Township Fiscal Officer Mark Heistand offered no comment on the lawsuit. German Township Trustees Lou Potter, Jake Stubbs and James Rowland did not respond to an email about the Supreme Court’s denial. SRM also did not respond to outreach about the lawsuit.
© 2026 Twin Creek Times
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