COLUMBIANA COUNTY State seeks to close roads plagued by ATVs, littering

Commissioners approved annexing property in Perry Township into Salem.
By NORMAN LEIGH
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
LISBON -- State officials are proposing to close all or part of two township roads to prevent trespassing and to hinder trash dumping.
The officials met with Columbiana County commissioners Wednesday to discuss the proposals.
Commissioners advised them they must follow road vacation procedures. Those include advertising the proposal in a local newspaper and commissioners' holding a public hearing on the matter.
Commissioners will decide whether to vacate the roads. If so, ownership of the section of road vacated will revert to adjoining property owners.
Charlotte McCurdy of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources told commissioners she wants Mackall Road vacated.
The overgrown Middleton Township road runs through Sheepskin Hollow State Nature Preserve. The dirt road also is bordered by private property.
Although virtually unused by regular vehicle traffic, Mackall Road remains a public road and is used by all-terrain vehicle riders, McCurdy said.
The ATV riders are routinely driving their machines off the road and into the nature preserve, which is prohibited, McCurdy said.
Another trouble area
Steve Roloson, a scenic river manager for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, proposed closing a section of Grimms Bridge Road in St. Clair Township just west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania line.
Roloson said people illegally dump trash along both sides of the road, despite repeated cleanup efforts. Discarded items include tires, furniture and appliances.
The road is near a scenic portion of Little Beaver Creek, Roloson noted.
Some of the property on which items are dumped is owned by the state's forestry division. Other sections are privately owned.
Commissioners noted that Grimms Bridge is used by people in the area to get to and from their homes, and there may be opposition to closing a section of the road, commissioners said.
In other business, commissioners approved annexing about 46 acres in Perry Township into Salem.
The property is just north of Pearce Circle on the city's northeast side.
A Salem-based developer wants to build up to 17 single-family homes on the site.
Commissioners noted that the county auditor's office has told them there will be another $418,000 available for the county's budget before year's end.
The money is from higher-than-anticipated revenue from the county's 1 percent sales tax.
Commissioners said they are still deciding how to use the money. They noted that some county departments, such as the sheriff's office, need funding to get through the end of the year.