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Fill project halted along Wisner Road
(by Joseph Koziol Jr. - June 22, 2011)
Fill project halted along Wisner Road
By JOSEPH KOZIOL JR.
Work was halted last week along a stretch of Wisner Road, where Chardon Township officials were attempting to shore up an eroding roadway.
Township officials stopped the work after officials with Holden Arboretum raised concerns about what type of work was occurring and how it might impact their adjoining property. The work was occurring on Wisner Road, between Mitchells Mill and Mentor roads.
Chardon Trustee Steven Borawski said the work was occurring along the Chagrin River, which holds a state scenic river designation.
Trustee Steve Borawski said the scenic river designation imposes stricter regulations for any activity within 1,000 feet of the river.
Roger Gettig, director of horticulture and conservation for Holden Arboretum, said he encountered the work June 7 while driving the area. While some of the fill consisted of broken concrete, which he called "clean fill," the remaining materials were "gravel with muck," he said.
Mr. Gettig said much of the fill was ending up on Holden property, outside the right of way. He said Holden received no notification that the work would be proceeding.
"If someone was dumping 500 cubic yards of material on your property, you would want to know," Mr. Gettig said.
Township and arboretum officials are to meet July 6 to discuss what work may be allowed in an attempt to counter the slippage occurring there that threatens the road. Also invited to the meeting are the Geauga County Engineer's Office, the Geauga Soil and Water Conservation District and representatives of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
Mr. Gettig said Holden officials are interested in finding out what the township had planned for the area and whether it will actually solve the problem they are trying to fix. He said Holden officials are also concerned how it might affect the water quality of the river.
He said he understands that officials may be struggling with trying to find a solution for a road that is situated along a steep ravine, especially when working with a tight budget.
"They are just good people trying to do a good job," Mr. Gettig said.
Mr. Borawski said township officials had hoped to keep costs down by using free concrete provided by the county engineer's office. The township was expected to pay costs for trucking the material to the site, about $45 per load, he said. The entire job was expected to cost the township about $2,800.
Mr. Borawski said the dumping witnessed by Mr. Gettig was actually garbage that had been dumped there. Mr. Gettig, he said, saw township workers trying to pick up the garbage, not dumping it.
If the township cannot use the materials provided by the engineer's office, he said, the cost for providing fill there will likely quadruple.
Purchasing clean fill and transporting there will likely cost in the neighborhood of $12,000 to $14,000.
"It's a shame, but what are you going to do?" Mr. Borawski said.
The lower stretch of the Chagrin River was designated as a State Scenic River in 1979.
The portion now affected by the work, known as the headwaters of the Chagrin or upper Chagrin, was designated as a State Scenic River in 2002. The program was enacted in an attempt to protect and preserve Ohio's remaining high-quality streams for future generations.
"Scenic rivers retain most of their natural characteristics at a time when many rivers reflect the negative impacts of human activities," according to ODNR.
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