A series of proposals on how to handle various types of billing concerns for funding the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District’s $270-million watershed renewal plan is receiving additional scrutiny.
Members of the MWCD’s Board of Appraisers discussed nine assessment-related proposals presented by the engineering consulting firm of Fuller, Mossbarger, Scott and May during a meeting today (Sept. 16) held in New Philadelphia City Council chambers.
The three-member Board of Appraisers agreed to hold off on formally accepting any of the recommendations made in the proposals until additional research and discussion could be completed. The next meeting of the Board of Appraisers, which by law is the body that develops the methodology for assessments related to conservancy districts, is Oct. 14.
The MWCD’s Conservancy Court and Board of Directors recently adopted an Amendment to the Official Plan of the Conservancy District, which includes nearly $270 million worth of estimated projects and partnering opportunities to maintain flood reduction and promote clean water in the watershed. Funds for the work would be collected through an assessment from owners of property in the MWCD jurisdiction, as detailed in Ohio Law. Collection of the assessment is projected to begin in 2007.
During the meeting, members of the Board of Appraisers heard proposals from James Rozelle of Fuller, Mossbarger, Scott and May – MWCD’s consulting engineering firm on the assessment process – about the following topics of the Conservancy District’s developing assessment program:
- Definition of residential and non-residential properties
- Agricultural properties
- Vacant properties
- Parcel consolidation procedures
- Service charge calculation procedures
- Exempt parcels
- Public roads
- Billing adjustments
- Condominiums, apartments and MWCD cottage site leases
During its August meeting, the Board of Appraisers agreed to pursue a working definition of a parcel that states: “For purposes of this Appraisal of Benefits, a parcel is defined as one or more contiguous (adjoining) tracts of land with the same Property Use Code (PUC) and the same owner of record, as determined by the County Auditor’s records. Such parcels may be divided by a public or private road(s) or a stream(s) and still be considered one parcel under this Plan.”
Rozelle told the appraisers that recommendations for how the assessment process will be handled are based on the working parcel definition.
Ohio law authorizes the state’s conservancy districts to levy assessments. Three basic classes of parcels are subject to the assessment: residential, agricultural and commercial/industrial. MWCD has estimated that owners of residential and agricultural parcels will pay about $12 per parcel annually under the program. An estimate for owners of commercial/industrial property is being developed. The Board of Appraisers – James Navratil of Medina, Thomas Roe of Wooster and Mark Waltz of Dover – plan to have their work related to the program complete by early 2006.
Conservancy District officials have been meeting with public officials in all 18 counties in the MWCD region to discuss the watershed plan and gather input on projects needed in the local areas, as well as to discuss the numerous partnering opportunities that can be developed.
The amendment to the MWCD Official Plan details projects in six major categories:
- Infrastructure improvements, including serving as a partner to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for upgrades to dams in the system for safety and flood protection with the MWCD providing 3.45 percent of the total cost of the work and the federal government paying the balance.
- Sediment removal through dredging operations.
- Shoreline protection to reduce erosion damage.
- Water quality improvements including monitoring water quality, reducing pollution, addressing acid mine drainage problems, providing environmental education and improving sewer systems.
- Watershed management through planning and assistance for local interest groups and private property owners with programs to reduce sediment and pollution.
- Reservoir maintenance and inspection on a regular schedule.
A complete copy of the plan is available online at www.mwcd.org or by contacting Darrin Lautenschleger at the MWCD office toll-free at (877) 363-8500 Ext. 226.
Since its inception, the MWCD has operated on revenue primarily from the use of its facilities through various fee structures and the stewardship of its natural resources. However, this funding alone cannot address the large-scale needs and costs associated with the aging system, which are showing the effects of sedimentation, erosion and other issues that can have a negative impact on flood reduction and water quality benefits.
The MWCD, the largest of the 20 conservancy districts in the state, is believed to be the only one active district that does not collect an assessment for maintenance of its facilities. Founded in 1933 for flood reduction and water conservation in the Muskingum River Watershed – an area that stretches from Akron to Marietta and from Mansfield to eastern Harrison County – the MWCD system of 14 reservoirs has been credited by the federal government with saving property owners around $6 billion in potential flood damage and saving countless lives.
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