On dissolution of a park district, the board of park commissioners is dissolved and all of its duties and responsibilities shall be exercised by the probate court until all of the board's business is completed and all of its property disposed of. The court may retain special counsel and another person who in the court's discretion are qualified to assist it in the closing out of business and disposal of property and any employee of the district the court determines is necessary to closing out the business or to maintaining the property of the district in good order until it is disposed of. Any employee not retained by the court shall be terminated within ten working days of the board's dissolution and paid one month's base salary or for one hundred seventy-three hours, whichever is applicable, in addition to all other pay and allowances due him. The same shall be paid to any employee retained by the court upon his termination.

The court shall send the director of natural resources notice of the dissolution together with an inventory of the district's real property, any personal property of the district that he considers to be functionally related to the use or management of the real property, and a full and accurate statement of any indebtedness that is secured by the real property. The director shall, within sixty days of receipt of such notice, notify the court of his acceptance or rejection of any such real property and its related personal property and indebtedness. If the director accepts, the court shall convey the real property to the state, subject to any deed or other restrictions placed upon use of the real property as a condition of receiving federal or state assistance for its acquisition or development, and transfer the related personal property to the department of natural resources. If the director rejects, the court shall convey any real property of the district and transfer any related personal property to any other agency of the state or any political subdivision or instrumentality of the state located within the former park district or within a county in which territory that was annexed to the district is located, that is interested in acquiring the real property for parks and recreation, conservation, or other public purposes, in that order of priority, and that is willing to assume any related indebtedness and fulfill any deed restrictions and any other restrictions placed upon use of the real property as a condition of receiving federal or state assistance for its acquisition or development.

If no state agency, political subdivision, or instrumentality of the state is willing to accept the real property and related personal property and indebtedness, the court shall convey such property to the board of county commissioners of the county in which the property is located. The board of county commissioners may sell, lease, or transfer such property in accordance with sections 307.09 to 307.12 of the Revised Code. If there is any outstanding indebtedness on such property sold or leased, the proceeds from the sale or lease shall be paid into the fund from which payments are made to extinguish the indebtedness on such property and the proceeds shall be used for that purpose; otherwise the proceeds shall be paid into the general fund of the county. The budget commission shall continue to levy and collect taxes necessary for the payment of any outstanding indebtedness of the district for which tax revenues of the district were pledged and that is not otherwise assumed.

Except as otherwise provided in this section, upon dissolution of a park district, the probate court shall order the budget commission of each county affected to terminate the tax levies of the park district, levied under section 1545.20 or 1545.21 of the Revised Code, and the assessments levied under section 1545.18 of the Revised Code and divide the net indebtedness of the district among the state, political subdivisions, and instrumentalities that acquire the district's real property on the basis of the market value of the real property that each acquires. Upon disposal of the district's real property, the court shall notify the budget commission, which shall transfer the remaining funds of the district to the proper authorities.

Effective Date: 09-06-1979.