By TODD HELBERG
cnedit@crescent-news.com
Less than two months after a joint board of county commissioners rejected the proposed Lick Creek project, a smaller proposal -- utilizing a different government mechanism -- is being sought by property owners.
Defiance County commissioners met Monday with their Williams County counterparts and voted to form a joint board for a refangled project.
The board makeup is the same as the one that on April 25 effectively turned down a petition for a larger project. The previous board had voted 3-3 -- with Defiance County's three commissioners voting yes and Williams County's opposed -- to proceed with the Lick Creek and Little Creek cleaning project in Defiance and Williams counties. (The old board of commissioners was dissolved Monday.) A tie effectively killed the plan.
That project had been proposed under a different method that involved the counties' soil and water conservation boards. But this one is being sought through a petition filed by property owners in Williams and Defiance counties directly to Defiance County commissioners. Their filing fee was approximately $7,500, according to county officials.
The new project has a smaller scope than the original one.
According to Defiance County Engineer Warren Schlatter, the proposal is to remove logjams, sand bars and leaning trees in Lick Creek from U.S. 6 in Williams County south to Prairie Creek in Defiance County, just before it joins the Tiffin River. It would also include Little Lick Creek, from Williams Center to where it joins Lick Creek in Ney.
While the first project also included Little Lick Creek, it also proposed work on the entire stretch of Lick Creek which begins near Bryan.
During Monday's meeting, Schlatter was appointed as project engineer. Williams County Engineer Dennis Bell had served in that capacity during planning for the previous project.
Dates will be scheduled for the joint commissioners board to view the ditch as well as a public hearing on the petition.
Schlatter said he plans to study the proposal -- partially using information compiled by Bell during the previous project -- before making a recommendation at the public hearing. The joint board will then decide whether to proceed.
While the previous project proposed through the soil and water conservation boards was killed with a tie vote, Schlatter noted that ties are broken by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources director in cases where property owners petition county commissioners for the work.
A tie vote may not be as likely this time, however.
One reason Williams County commissioners rejected the first project is that they believed it was too big and too expensive for property owners who would be assessed for the work. Defiance County Commissioner Otto Nicely said Williams County commissioners indicated support for a smaller project, which would also involve property assessments.
Nicely said commissioners will seek grant funds to help offset the cost to landowners.
In other business Monday, commissioners:
-- learned from Schlatter that Williams-Defiance County Line Road, east of Openlander Road, should reopen by the end of next week following a bridge project.
-- met with wastewater officials for an update. Wastewater director Greg Reinhart stated that smoke testing on the express sewer north of Defiance is scheduled for the end of July.
-- held the second public hearing on community development block grant projects with Maumee Valley Planning Organization (MVPO) officials. MVPO will be submitting an application to the state for proposed projects.