Fort Recovery denied grant requests

FORT RECOVERY — The village didn’t get a couple of the grants it hoped to receive.

It’s still chugging forward and considering other funding options.

Fort Recovery Village Council heard Monday from village administrator Randy Diller that the village was not granted $800,000 for dredging the wastewater lagoons or $4 million for converting the water plant to a reverse osmosis facility.

Also Monday, council amended its wage ordinance to change a few job titles and give a promotion to one of the village’s police officers.

Fort Recovery was not granted $4 million from the Ohio Department of Development’s Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Grant Program to pay for switching to a new water-softening process. 

Plans are in the works to shift the village’s treatment from lime and caustic soda to reverse osmosis membrane softening. The new treatment process is estimated to decrease the village’s chemical costs by $210,000 annually. 

When it was first discussed at a council meeting last year, initial construction costs — they involve installing 56 reverse osmosis membranes as well as locating and drilling a third well — were estimated to cost $4.35 million.

Village staff members are looking at other options to work toward switching the water plant’s treatment process. The village OK’d Diller in May to apply for and, if approved, enter into an agreement through Ohio Environmental Protection Agency’s Water Supply Revolving Loan Account. Hopes are to secure a $266,120 loan at 0% interest for five years. It would be used for planning and design work related to upgrades at the water plant. The village needs to be formally accepted for the dollars and will likely hear back on its application within the next month.

In similar news, the village also learned it also wasn’t granted $800,000 from the same program — the village applied for two different projects — to remove sludge from both wastewater lagoons. Diller later noted regardless of upgrades, the village will likely need to dredge the lagoons at some point.

He talked about upcoming treatments for the lagoons as well as a sonar report to follow them.

“We’ll continue to monitor all that and continue to work towards whatever solution is necessary to complete that dredging work,” he said.

Although it wasn’t approved funding for either of the projects discussed Monday, the village was granted $1.25 million in June 2023 from the same program formally known as the Ohio BUILDS water infrastructure program for construction of a second water tower. Plans are to construct a 250,000-gallon elevated tower on the north side of the village, mirroring the existing tower located along Industrial Drive. 

Last month, council awarded a $2,442,700 contract to Caldwell Tanks of Louisville, Kentucky, for the work. Because of inflation and other unexpected increases in cost since the grant was awarded, Fort Recovery has applied for a $600,000 one-time Ohio Capital Budget grant for the project through Ohio Senate president Matt Huffman's office. Diller noted Monday the village has been included in Huffman’s draft copy of the bill being presented to state legislature.

Also Monday, council made some adjustments to its wage ordinance.

Mitch Leuthold has been named wastewater superintendent, and Aidan O’Dell has been named water supervisor. The decision to change job classifications comes about seven months after former utility superintendent Ryan Thien resigned.

Haiden Stidam — he’s been working for the village’s police department for about a year — was also bumped up to senior patrol officer and granted a $3 per hour raise.

In other business, council members Al Post, Cliff Wendel, Scott Pearson, Erik Fiely, Greg Schmitz and Luke Knapke:

•Heard about potential plans to purchase 13 acres near Flaler Road for future development, with Diller saying the village would want to plat and annex the land.

•Paid a $116,241 pay request from PAB Construction of Coldwater, Ohio, for reconstruction of Gwendolyn and Wiggs streets. Diller noted the work is completed with the exception of work on maintenance holes, which was slated to be finished Tuesday.

•OK’d the police department to begin looking for a new vehicle to replace one of its older cars.