Councilman pushes legislation to help prevent flooding in city

One lawmaker suggested a lottery system to determine city areas to address first.
By DENISE DICK
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- A city councilman wants to see if a possible solution to some city residents' flooding woes introduced a year ago holds water now.
Councilman John Homlitas, D-3rd, chairman of council's sewer committee, plans to request that the legislation, which would establish a program to install backup prevention valves and sump pumps at homes, be considered at Wednesday's regular council meeting.
The legislation also calls for removal of footer drains from the city sanitary sewer system.
The legislation was introduced a year ago and tabled two months later. Some council members had questions on the ordinance.
"I think it's important that we have a definitive answer to this," said Homlitas, the legislation's sponsor.
Paying for work
The money to pay for the work was to come from proceeds of a sewer rate increase passed last year. That increase took effect December 2003.
The reimbursement from the city to residents would be based on income.
"When we first started discussing this, I think we were the first city in Ohio to talk about it," Homlitas said. "Since then, other cities have implemented it."
The legislation was proposed after flood waters in summer 2003 deluged many city basements and streets, and people crowded public meetings asking for solutions.
Councilman Robert Holmes III, D-4th, opposes the legislation.
The problem is that the downtown has combined sewers, and the legislation won't address that, he said.
When the 76-cent sewer rate increase -- the first increase since 1991 -- passed last year, it specified that 31 percent of the increase go to construction; 15 percent to a reserve fund; and 54 percent to operation, maintenance and replacement at the plant.
The money for the sump pump installation and footer drain removal would come from the construction portion.
"It's not construction; I'm sorry," Holmes said.
Order
Some questions that arose among council members included how to decide which houses to do first.
"That would be an administrative decision, and whatever they decide, I'm sure it would be done fairly," Homlitas said.
Councilman Gary Fonce, D-at large, who supports the legislation, advocates a lottery system where the 10 worst areas of the city are placed into a hat and randomly drawn to determine what area is addressed first.
That would eliminate politics, he said.
"I give John Homlitas a lot of credit," Fonce said. "He's worked very hard to get it passed and do what's best for the citizens of Warren."
Fonce agrees that the city doesn't have the money to take care of everyone's problem at once.
"But if you have 3,000 people with a terminal illness, and only enough cure for 100, do you not cure the 100?" he asked.
denise_dick@vindy.com