A Summit County Common Pleas Court judge will not grant a preliminary injunction to stop the city of Fairlawn from installing a gate system on Rothrock Road to restrict access to a planned new Walmart and Sam’s Club in neighboring Copley Township.In her ruling Monday, Judge Alison McCarty stated that this is a “preliminary ruling and is in no way an endorsement of the closure of Rothrock Road. Closing Rothrock Road creates as many problems as it resolves.”Copley Township and Fairlawn resident Kevin Woodman filed the injunctions challenging the planned gate system, saying it would limit access to a public road to just a small number of people and could pose a safety hazard for emergency vehicles that need to quickly move through the area.Fairlawn officials said residents would use access cards to lift the gates and EMS, fire, police and service vehicles would use an automatic detector device installed in vehicles to raise the gates when needed. The court stated although it is sympathetic to Copley’s and Woodman’s position and all the citizens that will be burdened by the expense and inconvenience of the Rothrock Road closure “there are valid and serious concerns that if this project is put on hold by way of a preliminary injunction, and the planned construction of the new WalMart/Sam’s Club proceeds forward, the property owners along Rothrock Road and surrounding residential neighborhoods will be harmed.”The steel gates that are to be installed would be 6 feet high and 14 feet wide. The street would be widened 50 feet on each side to allow room for vehicles to turn around. Fairlawn Mayor Bill Roth pushed setting up a gate system south of Rothrock Road, just west of Sawgrass Road that would limit access to residents and emergency vehicles in an effort to keep business traffic out of the neighborhood.The road-closing move came after developers decided to build a 300,000-square-foot retail complex that would include a 24-hour Walmart Supercenter with a full grocery line and a Sam’s Club that would include fuel pumps. Walmart and Sam’s plan to relocate from a retail area of Fairlawn, Rosemont Commons, off state Route 18, less than one mile away to a site in Copley Township next to residential areas of Fairlawn. The proposed site, which is on 40 acres of undeveloped land, is located in the northern portion of Rothrock Road.“This is a positive step for the city,” Roth said. “Technically we can proceed with our plans, but realistically, it’s too late to put down the asphalt because of the cold weather. We could start as early as the spring.”Before the legal challenge, construction work on the Rothrock Road gate project was planned for August with completion in October. The judge has not yet ruled on the legality of the road closing.In her recent ruling, McCarty points out that if Fairlawn moves forward to construct the gate system, the expenditures the city makes may be more costly if the court ultimately determines that the planned closure is unlawful. Fairlawn would have to pay to remove the gates.The judge also urged Fairlawn to voluntarily put the planned road closure on hold and attempt to work out a compromise with Copley Township, those residents impacted by the gate and the retailer.Marilyn Miller can be reached at 330-996-3098 or mmiller@thebeaconjournal.com.