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ABC District unveils plan for Boardman and Canfield townships
BOARDMAN
ABC Water and Storm Water District unveiled its plan Thursday afternoon to mitigate storm-water issues in Boardman and Canfield townships in preparation for a public open house Monday.
“There is no way to tackle [these problems] as a township,” said Boardman Township Administrator Jason Loree.
Loree explained that townships cannot spend taxpayer money on private-property issues involving storm-water infrastructure. The water district is not limited in the same way.
The district has begun collecting storm-water utility fees from residential and commercial property owners. The fee is calculated based on the amount of nonpervious surface, such as roofs, driveways and parking lots, on each property.
The average homeowner will pay $3.12 per month to the district.
Canfield expects to collect about $260,000 annually, and Boardman expects to collect about $900,000.
In addition to fees collected, the district will apply for grant and federal funding.
“The district opens up a new avenue of federal dollars that doesn’t exist for townships,” said Loree.
Eighty to 90 percent of the money will be used for large projects.
In 2019, Boardman will focus on evaluating existing storm-water infrastructure and developing a plan for projects.
Moreover, the township will categorize catch basins for a replace and repair program and set up a street-sweeping and vacuum plan.
The evaluation will allow the district to complete projects on a priority basis.
The district is required to follow the EPA’s Small Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems Permit Program, which sets standards for storm-water management.
The program requires the district to educate the public about what they can do to mitigate flooding and contamination of storm water.
For example, many township residents have their sump pumps and footer drains connected to their sanitary lines, causing backup.
“We want to make sure people know how to do these things correctly and protect their homes,” said Loree.
Loree and Keith Rogers, Canfield Township administrator/ road superintendent, will present the plan for the storm water district at an open house Monday from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Canfield Library.