Commissioners OK Children Services levy, discuss plans for regional sewer district

The Lorain County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously Friday to place a 1.8-mill, five-year renewal levy for Lorain County Children Services on the November ballot. The board also discussed early plans for a regional sewer district including Lorain County and Vermilion, the so-called "6119 plan" after the Ohio Revised Code statute that allows for the creation of those districts. Children Services Executive Director Kristen Fox Berki gave a presentation at Friday's meeting in support of sending her agency's levy to voters. The levy makes up slightly more than 50 percent of Children Services' budget. As a renewal, it will not increase taxes. Fox Berki said her agency has 150 employees who investigate child abuse and neglect claims and work with 70 licensed foster families. The agency is facing a larger number of calls for assistance each year and a larger number of children are being placed in temporary foster care, Fox Berki said. About 75 percent of Children Services referrals for investigation come from "mandated reporters," who are people required by law to report suspicions of child abuse and neglect such as teachers, doctors or nurses. One-third of reports to Children Services come from teachers, Fox Berki said. The board also heard about preliminary planning to create a regional sewer district from Lou McMahon, an attorney working on the plan for the county. He said discussions have been underway since last summer, with plans to file for the sewer district's creation before the year's end. To establish a regional sewer district that would be tasked with collecting, treating and disposing of wastewater, a petition would first be created, public hearings held, the petition filed with the courts, then a preliminary hearing followed by the creation of a plan of operation, and a final hearing. "It's gotta be viable and you gotta show it's gonna be viable when it's created," McMahon said. The ultimate goals, he said, are to keep wastewater treatment costs low, use existing wastewater treatment assets wisely, plan for additional sewer capacity that can support economic development, follow state environmental protection mandates, plan to treat wastewater for nutrients better and PFAS — also called "forever chemicals" — and ensure public health and safety. State officials are interested in greater regionalization as a practice, McMahon said. The plan is entirely voluntary and no one will be forced to take part, he said. Vermilion Mayor Jim Forthofer said the U.S. EPA previously told his city it had to totally renovate its wastewater plant, which would have cost an estimated $76 million. Then last year, County Administrator Jeff Armbruster and Commissioner David Moore, a Republican, proposed the idea of a regional wastewater district to Vermilion. Forthofer said he, Vermilion City Council and city residents are on board. "Being the guy in charge of the vision for the city of Vermilion, I'm telling you the city is going to grow," he said, and that means Vermilion needs to consider working with neighbors and regional partners on future growth. Commissioner Jeff Riddell, a Republican, said better wastewater treatment options also will help keep Lake Erie healthy. "We can deliver lower-cost sewage treatment to all the residents of Lorain County, and we can do it on an equitable basis," he said. "In a perfect world, if we had the whole county involved, everybody in the county would pay the same for their wastewater, and for many it would be less than they're currently paying." "We want to move this process quickly, we needed to get it done, and it's going to change the face of Lorain County back to where it was when the steel plants came in and Ford came here," Armbruster said. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com.