Renovation to let city keep up with growth

By NANCY TULLIS
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
COLUMBIANA -- Tucked behind a residential neighborhood on the city's southwest side, some 50 construction workers report daily to move earth, pour concrete, operate cranes and accomplish numerous other tasks to complete a $14 million renovation of the city's sewage treatment plant.
The work at 536 W. Park Ave. includes construction of an oxidation ditch, a sludge press operation, two 1-million gallon storage tanks, two clarifiers and an administrative office.
The administrative office will include an office for Lance Willard, wastewater superintendent, a laboratory and a laboratory office, and restrooms, locker rooms and a lunch room for treatment plant employees.
City Manager Keith Chamberlin has said the improvements will increase the capacity of the treatment plant to meet Ohio Environmental Protection Agency standards and accommodate growth.
He said Finkbeiner, Pettis & amp; Strout Inc. consulting engineers of Akron designed the improvements based on a projected 20-year growth of the city.
Work began in December 2003 and is to be completed in June 2005.
A. P. O'Horo Co. of Liberty Township is the general contractor. Others primary contractors include Prout Boiler Heating & amp; Welding Inc., of Youngstown; EnerTech Electrical Inc. of Lowellville and Arcadis FPS engineers of Akron.
Storage tanks
Willard said the construction of the two 1-million gallon storage tanks is a priority. The tanks are known as flow equalization tanks because they equalize the flow of sewage through the plant so it does not go over capacity.
The possibility of the flow going over capacity comes with periods of heavy rain, Willard explained. Rainwater run-off, known as storm water, can seep into cracks in sewer lines and that increases the amount of sewage going into the plant.
Willard said when the equalization tanks are operational, treatment plant workers can divert sewage into the tanks during a period of heavy rain or a winter thaw and process the sewage later when the plant is not at capacity.
The storm water that gets into the sewage plant is known as infiltration, he said.
The goal of treating sewage is to have the end result be bacteria-free water that can then be released into nearby Mill Creek. Willard explained the OEPA's requirements for capacity and equipment at the treatment plant are based on what OEPA officials believe is necessary to keep bacteria from flowing into the creek.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's rural development division is funding a substantial portion of the project with a $4.8 million grant and a $7.2 million loan. The USDA required city officials to increase sewer rates in 2004 and 2005 to pay back the loan.