WASTEWATER UPDATE
April 11 Public Update: Thank you to the 70+ residents and business owners that attended the Wastewater Public Update this past week at the Boston Township Hall. We received several question cards that were covered during the meeting. We will get those questions, and the answers, posted to the Village website soon. If you could not make the April 11 session, no worries. These Public Updates will continue throughout the project so there will be several more opportunities for updates on the project cost, schedule, and for you to provide input to the engineers and Village leadership. Your attendance, comments, and questions are important as we work through the process of design engineering, applying for grants, and working with the public on a payment scenario that works for the community.
Funding: As we have mentioned often during these project updates, the Village has very few grant opportunities that we will qualify for due to our high Median Household Income (MHI). Most of the grants available for a wastewater project were put in place to assist communities with low MHIs where affordability is a challenge for the vast majority of the community. But there are a few grants that we just might be successful getting. We have submitted an application to the Army Corp of Engineers, which will be reviewed this summer. Also, the Village plans to submit a grant application to the Ohio Public Works Commission (OPWC) this July for $750,000. If we are successful with just one of these grants, initial estimates reduce the burden on a household about $15 per month. We have been working hard to get letters of support, and position ourselves to be in a competitive position for these grants. Completing Design Engineering is one of those important steps that will better position the Village for the OPWC grant. Recently we received letters of support from Friends of Crooked River and the Summit County Health Department, which will be included with our grant applications along with the letters we have already received from Senators Brown and Portman, and the CVNP.
Sewer Fee: For those of you that own property in the wastewater district, you have received your first quarterly sewer bill. If anyone is concerned that this $15 per month sewer fee creates a burden or hardship for your budget, please feel free to contact the Village Fiscal Officer at 330-657-2151, to confidentially discuss your situation and see if we can provide you with assistance.
Questions? Never hesitate to ask your questions! There are several people that can help. Contact any member of the Wastewater Core Team:
Dee Holody: dholody@yahoo.com or at M: 216-346-8753
Bill Clifton: cliftowh@hotmail.com
Mary Booth, marymarybooth@yahoo.com
You can also contact John Stiegel, Village Fiscal Officer, or Martin Kuboff, Village Administrative Assistant at 330-657-2151
| Dee Holody |