The cost of sewer improvements in Ravenna Township's Chinn Allotment has dropped dramatically, thanks to additional grant money from the state of Ohio, combined with construction costs that are lower than originally expected.
Gov. Mike DeWine recently announced that the Portage County Department of Water Resources has been granted $2 million for the long-awaited sewer project.
Daniel Blakely, director of the Department of Water Resources, said the grant, combined with other funding sources, brings the total amount of funding to $8.9525 million.
In addition, Blakely said the total project cost has dropped to $9.72 million. That's because the contractor, United Earthworks LLC, proposed a cost of $8.32 million, less than the engineer's estimate of $9.2 million.
The remaining $795,000, when divided among the 250 "benefit users," means each property owner would have to pay an estimated $3,180.
Earlier this year, residents were looking at a cost of $16,000 per lot - a cost that would have doubled or tripled for some homeowners, based on how many lots they own.
The project stems back to the 1980s, when a pipe burst on Karen and Gary Hogan's property in Ravenna Township's Chinn allotment and carried raw sewage from 19 neighboring homes into their yard. At one time, a child fell into a sinkhole that opened in their yard as a result of the broken pipe.
In 2015, the Ohio EPA received a complaint alleging a failing septic, with raw sewage entering "waters of the state" in the area of the allotment. The Hogans said the neighborhood's plight only caught the attention of the EPA after the state agency learned the sewage was leaking into Breakneck Creek, which feeds the Cuyahoga River and ultimately Lake Rockwell - the water supply for the city of Akron.
The EPA's Northeast Ohio District Office collected bacteria samples that found E. coli levels "in exceedance of the public health nuisance standard," and discussed the findings with the Portage County Health District in 2016. The health district sent a formal complaint to the EPA in 2018, alleging that unsanitary conditions exist in the neighborhood.
An order issued in 2019 required the county to design, build and install a sewer system to serve the Chinn Allotment, and submit a plan to fund the improvements.
Portage County Commissioner Sabrina Christian-Bennett previously said the board obeyed the order and directed the Portage County Department of Water Resources to design the system. But when initial designs came back, the cost of the project, and the amount each resident would owe, was much higher. The original amount was $40,000 per lot. Commissioners directed Water Resources to go back to the drawing board to come up to a more affordable design.
The COVID-19 pandemic also delayed the project, she said at the time.
Last spring, the county presented the project to residents, with an engineer's estimate just over $11 million, and nearly $6.5 million offset by grants. The remaining cost was split among residents. Blakely said he was eager to get moving on the project, fearing the county would lose funding if the work was delayed further.
Commissioners pledged to keep looking for grants to further lower the cost for homeowners.
Since then, the engineer's estimate and the contractor's bid have dropped, while the amount of funding received has increased.
Over the summer, the county received $500,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funds toward the project, which at the time lowered the cost about $2,000 to each benefit user.
Reporter Diane Smith can be reached at 330-298-1139 or [email protected].