Switch to water from Niles begins

The switch likely won't be held up by a lawsuit the company filed.
By ED RUNYAN
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- Workers with the Trumbull County Sanitary Engineer's Department will begin to "valve off" the Aqua Ohio Inc. water serving 2,800 customers in the southeastern Trumbull County area today and begin the switch over to Niles water.
But now officials can do it with less fear of a legal issue that was pending since last March.
Visiting Judge Thomas P. Curran of Cuyahoga County, sitting by assignment in Trumbull County Common Pleas court, ruled Friday on the county's behalf in a lawsuit private water supplier Aqua Ohio of Boardman filed against the county.
Jim Brutz, an assistant county prosecutor who is legal representative to the sanitary engineer, said the judge's ruling indicates that the county acted properly in ending its contract with Aqua Ohio when it decided to provide Niles water to the 2,800 customers instead of Aqua Ohio water.
Aqua Ohio has been providing the water to Vienna Township, 90 percent of Brookfield Township and portions of Hubbard and Liberty townships since about 1955 through an agreement with the county.
What was behind suit
According to Aqua's March 2006 complaint against the county, Aqua extended the contract several times, ending in February 2005. But the county was supposed to give Aqua Ohio a one-year notice when it decided to end the contract, which it didn't do, the lawsuit said.
Consequently, the contract should have rolled over for an additional 10 years, or until at least until February 2015, Aqua Ohio said.
"The judge ruled that [Aqua Ohio] did have notice, that the contract had been terminated," Brutz said. "We're hoping this will end this issue."
The county took steps to install the necessary equipment to switch the area over to Niles water coming from the Mahoning Valley Sanitary District in May 2006, when it awarded contracts of 1,478,786 to install a waterline, and 880,000 to build a booster station. Part of the project was funded with a 500,000 state grant.
Gary Newbrough, county sanitary engineer, said the switch will take four to six weeks.
Aqua Ohio can appeal Judge Curran's decision, and a trial date of Aug. 13 remains on the books, Brutz noted. But because Aqua Ohio presented evidence at Friday's hearing, both sides "put their cards on the table," so there's little likelihood that a trial in August would have a different outcome than Friday's hearing, Brutz said.
Walter J. "Buzz" Pishkur, Aqua Ohio president, could not be reached to comment.
runyan@vindy.com