DELAWARE, Ohio -- A landlord filed a lawsuit this month against Delaware County, claiming that the auditor and commissioners breached a lease agreement on a now-closed Bureau of Motor Vehicles office in Lewis Center.

Tuller Square Northpointe, of Columbus, is seeking $139,109 for the remainder of a lease that began in August 2005 and expires in August 2012. The company's suit also asks the county to pay at least $5,000 for legal fees and expenses.

The Delaware County auditor's office operated a BMV at 8625 Columbus Pike in Lewis Center until June. Auditor George Kaitsa closed the office after the state did not renew its contract. Kaitsa was out of the office yesterday and unavailable for comment.

The lawsuit says the county has refused to pay monthly rent on the vacant building, which is a breach of the lease.

The lawsuit was filed Nov. 3 in Franklin County Common Pleas Court after attempts to reach an out-of-court lease settlement failed, said Dan J. Binau, the attorney representing the landlord.

Kaitsa complied with the landlord's terms and conditions of ending the lease, Assistant Prosecutor Bill Owen said.

The county stopped payment on the lease in August, after the prosecutor's office determined that the lease was invalid because it was not signed by the commissioners. Former auditor Todd Hanks signed the office-space lease, but he did not have the authority to enter into a rental agreement on his own, prosecutors have said.

A trial date has been set for November 2010 in Franklin County.

dwilson@dispatch.com