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VILLAGE OF PENINSULA WASTE WATER
I would assume, by now, most Village residents are aware the Village of Peninsula is in violation of the federal Clean Water Act (CWA). This is not a new circumstance for the Village. Many previous dedicated Village Councils, Planning Commissions, Wastewater Committees, and Mayors have had to seek possible solutions to this predicament. There have been many great debates and arguments along the way over the past thirty years. All of the previous attempts to resolve this issue have failed, for multiple reasons, with the main stumbling block being an inability to fund such a project.
The Ohio EPA, Division of Surface Water, is now requiring the Village to resolve this issue with a permanent solution. The Ohio EPA believes the construction of a centralized sewer system is the only viable permanent solution to the Village`s wastewater issues. Obviously, this is not something that any Village Councilperson, Planning Commission Member, or Mayor would ever want to pursue unless they were given no choice. At this point, we have no choice. The only remaining option is for Council, the Planning Commission, and the Mayor to move forward with the County to plan for, design, and construct a central sewer system in a manner that will satisfy the OHEPAs requirements and be as affordable as possible for the members of our community.
Over the years, many Village Mayors and Councilmembers have met with the OHEPA. It has been communicated by all of these previous Councils, and the current Council, that the Village does not have the resources to design, construct, operate, and maintain a multi-million-dollar wastewater facility. The OHEPA accepted this reality and met with the Summit County Department of Sanitary Sewer Services (DSSS) on behalf of the Village. The OHEPA requested the DSSS to work with the Village to find a way to bring a central sewer system to the Village. The DSSS agreed to help. The DSSS, in collaboration with the Summit County Executive, were able to obtain and appropriate $7,500,000 in federal American Rescue Plan Act ("ARPA") funds for a Village centralized sewer system. The DSSS has also agreed to design, construct, operate, own, and maintain the Village system and plant.
After years and years of hard work by many dedicated individuals, this is great news. Since this funding was obtained, the DSSS hired Environmental Design Group to complete a Sanitary Sewer Feasibility Study. That report, dated 4/15/2022, is complete and is posted on the Village website. Please take the time to review the study on (villageofpeninsula-oh.gov). You should also understand that as of this date, the project is only at the feasibility study stage. No final decisions with respect to the project have been made. The DSSS also hired consulting and engineering firms to complete two other studies that are currently in progress. The first study is an evaluation to determine the feasibility of providing a central water system to the proposed Wastewater District. The second evaluation is an Assessment Study. The Mayor, Councilman Haramis, and I were given tours of two similar DSSS treatment facilities that have been in operation for decades. Their small footprint, quiet operation, and lack of odors caught our attention.
The above information describes everything we know at this time. Once we receive the final reports for the two other studies, we will post them to the Village Website as well.
I have been asked by the Mayor and the Village Council to serve as the liaison to the Council for these Wastewater and Water Projects. My email address is: jkrusinski@villageofpeninsula-oh.gov. When we receive any additional information or completed studies, we will put the information and studies on the Village website. Please feel free to email me with any of your questions. If the answer is known, we will provide it. If we do not yet have the answer, we will let you know and follow up as soon as that information is provided to us. We will gather all of the questions and answers and post them on the Village website.
Once we have the completed studies (this may take a few months) and they are posted in final form to the website, we will discuss them at Council and Planning Commission meetings and schedule public Wastewater and Water Project meetings. We will also be inviting representatives from the OHEPA and The DSSS to those public meetings to answer your questions and discuss any concerns you may have.
John Krusinski, Village of Peninsula Council Person
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