Bridge replacements, stormwater projects slated for Bath

by Laura Bednar

Nov. 20 township trustees meeting

Summit County Engineer Alan Brubaker and Deputy Director of Engineering Joe Paradise presented upcoming projects affecting Bath the next few years.

Three bridges are slated for replacement:

Granger Road bridge that carries Granger Road over Yellow Creek, with construction starting in spring 2024; Ira Road bridge, project bidding anticipated soon; and Revere Road bridge, anticipated construction start spring 2024. Paradise said detour routes during these bridge replacements do not interfere with each other.

The Cleveland-Massillon Road sidewalk project is in its final stages, according to Paradise. The first phase of the project built a sidewalk along the north side of Route 18 from Cleveland-Massillon to the entrance of the former Holiday Inn, west of Springside Drive.

Phase II will create sidewalks on the west side of North Cleveland Massillon Road from state Route 18 to Springside Drive with construction slated for this spring. The county plans to complete the loop will a sidewalk from state Route 18 to Cleveland-Massillon along Springside Drive. Federal funds are not available until 2025 for phase III.

Brubaker said the repaired landslide on Yellow Creek Road, west of Sand Run, is moving again. County surveyors will monitor the landslide’s movement in the spring.

A portion of Everett Road will be returned to its natural state. Brubaker said Summit County Council approved the vacation of the road east of Farmstead Road to the Cuyahoga Falls line.

“The [national] park wants us to remove anything that looks like a roadway,” said Brubaker.

Pavement was removed from the Everett Road connector to Wheatley Road and drainage structures will be removed in 2024.

The Surface Water Management District will remain in place until July 1, 2024, and current SWMD billing based on impervious surface area will be collected in 2024 along with property taxes.

In 2025, new countywide SWMD fees will be collected and Bath will no longer be designated as a special district. Brubaker said Bath’s account balance is $985,000 with an anticipated $630,000 to be added in 2024. Brubaker said the county engineer’s office will meet with Bath trustees to discuss projects for which the money can be used.

Three SWMD projects are in the works, including drainage improvements on Wye Road. The project will add erosion control measures and install improved swales in locations within the Sanctuary of Bath subdivision. The first phase expands the detention basin to add an additional five feet in depth. A Federal Emergency Management Agency grant will cover 90% of the cost with Bath fees covering the remainder. Phase II will include improvements to the existing stormwater management basin.

The Idlebrook wetlands project will construct 40-50-acre-feet of wetlands alongside the creek to provide for flood storage and create an improved habitat. “It will reduce peak flows in Yellow Creek and therefore reduce erosion,” said Brubaker.

Summit County owns the land on which the wetlands will be built east of Hametown Road and one mile north of Route 18. The county plans to apply for project grants in 2024 before moving forward.

The Bonnebrook Drive Pond project will reconfigure the pond to lower the water level prior to storms. It is funded through American Rescue Plan Act funds and is planned for 2024.

Police and fire

Trustees approved a five-year agreement that allows the township to use the Summit County jail to house up to two prisoners a day charged with misdemeanors. Police Chief Vito Sinopoli said the cost is $158 a day per bed and there is a 2.5% maximum increase each year of the contract, which runs through December 2028.

“Bath jail is a temporary hold, so there is a four-hour maximum,” said Sinopoli. “It’s more cost effective to contract with the county.”

He said people charged with misdemeanors who have no ties to the county “are a flight risk and we want to keep them [in custody].”

The fire department hired Chase Zinsky as a part-time firefighter/paramedic at the rate of $22.38 per hour. This comes at an opportune time as Fire Chief Robert Campbell said there is a shortage of part-time candidates, and a few full-time firefighters are out with injuries. Consequently, trustees approved a transfer of $40,000 to the fire department’s overtime fund from the Station No. 1 wages funds to pay employees working extra hours. ∞