Racino money improving roads, upgrading communications in Austintown

AUSTINTOWN

Austintown Township has put two $1 million payments from the new racino toward improving its roads and paying off a loan for a new communications department.

Township Administrator Michael Dockry said the two payments were received in October 2013 and April 2014 with about $1 million being applied to this year’s resurfacing of township roads.

Another $742,000 is going to be used in September to pay the remaining balance of a communications loan, which originally was $830,000.

That leaves $258,000 for the township, and Dockry said officials have “not yet decided how it will be spent.”

These payments, as well as an annual payment of $500,000, were part of Ohio House Bill 386 that Gov. John Kasich signed into law in 2012 allowing video-lottery terminals and racinos to do business in the state.

Read more about the plans for the money in Sunday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.