AWARE members push for repair fee

Creation of such a fund is in the preliminary stages.
By DENISE DICK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
BOARDMAN -- Proponents of a mechanism to establish a fund to address flooding issues are taking their show on the road.
Marilyn Kenner, chief deputy of the Mahoning County Engineer's office, also chairs AWARE, the Alliance for Watershed Action and Riparian Easements. The group is an advisory committee of representatives of local governments in Mahoning County formed to address stormwater issues.
Last month, Kenner spoke at a Boardman trustees meeting about creation of a stormwater utility, a fee based on the size of a piece of property and its corresponding amount of pavement. She was seeking support for the fee from the panel as well as members of the public who attended the meeting.
Such a fee remains in discussions and no decisions have been made to impose such a fee which would require action from county commissioners. No amount has been determined.
Kenner said AWARE plans to attend meetings in other areas classified as Phase 2 communities under Ohio Environmental Protection Agency standards to talk about the fee.
"We want to go to other areas to drum up support," she said.
Trustee Kathy Miller supports establishment of such a fee.
"I would love to have it," she said. "I think it's really important for the whole county. It's just a way to share the costs to repair infrastructure."
Riparian setback regulations, which regulate building near streams and other watercourses, also came out of the AWARE committee. Boardman enacted those regulations earlier this year, and other Mahoning County communities are expected to follow suit.
Phase 2
Besides Boardman, parts of Austintown, Canfield, Beaver, Poland and Springfield townships are phase 2 communities -- those required by Ohio EPA to take steps to reduce and control polluted stormwater runoff.
The phase 2 classification is based on population in the 2000 Census. Kenner expects the number of communities to increase after the 2010 Census.
Funds from a stormwater utility fee, collected through real estate taxes, would be used to finance projects that address flooding.
"We're going to see if we can get some support from the public and if they support it, take it to trustees before going to commissioners," Kenner said. "Obviously, we don't want to even ask commissioners to do this if we don't have grassroots support."