All tapped out in North Fairfield

NORTH FAIRFIELD — Officials representing and residents living in North Fairfield face the stark math on the aging village water system. The problem? Just 165 households are supporting an infrastructure that would cost tens of millions of dollars to replace. The meeting centered on a presentation by Matt Clyde and Gabby Heigle, representatives of the Rural Community Assistance Program, who outlined the scale of the problem and a cautious path forward. 'The greatest and most expensive asset you manage' Clyde told council members the cost to replace the system would be a serious burden on the village if done at one time. "If you wanted to replace that today, you're probably talking between $20 million to $30 million at least," Clyde said. He clarified that the estimate covered "every water line, valve, tower, plant and hydrant," calling the system "the greatest asset that you have" but also "the most expensive asset that you manage." He reminded the council that providing safe water is not optional but a requirement under Ohio law. "You do have, the council, responsibility to provide all of your citizens and businesses safe, clean drinking water," Clyde said. A system too costly for 165 customers Clyde said the village's small customer base makes any large-scale project financially impossible. "You're talking about 165 customers that are required to have clean drinking water," he said. That's "165 customers can't afford $4 million. They simply can't." The adviser noted that borrowing even $3.8 million, a figure lifted from an earlier engineering report, would mean annual payments of roughly $198,000 at a 3.23% loan rate. "You're literally looking at a 160% rate increase," he said. "No one's ever going to do that." Asset management and planning Clyde explained to the counsel the need for an asset management Ppan to be in line with Ohio law and common practices of other municipalities. "You are required by law to have an asset management plan, and that's understanding everything that you have, the costs, the condition that they're in and then having a replacement program and being able to maintain that," he said. Clyde explained that the village must map and document every part of the system to qualify for state or federal help. "That is what your planning process is," he said. "Now it's my understanding that what I've been told is you are facing some major replacements of water mains." The latest estimates showed $6 million to $8 million just to replace the waterlines on the east side of the village, according to Mayor Casey Hacker. The 'small-bites' solution Because full replacement is out of reach, Clyde advised the council to take on smaller five-year projects costing in the hundreds of thousands each. "Let's try to bite off $350,000 to $500,000, including engineering, including bidding, including construction, including new pavement on the road after everything's been done," he said. "Then you're looking at something that's maybe a $15,000 to $20,000 payment over 30 years. That's manageable and that's doable." He urged the village to find an engineering firm willing to focus on those smaller jobs. "Once you start having that extra payment in, then let's do another ($500,000)," he said. "Let's do another $350,000, whatever." Joshua Radcliffe, the councilman leading the meeting, supported that idea, mentioning the high cost of repairing water main breaks. "In that same area, within 10 feet, we have three water main breaks that have happened," Radcliffe said. "If we can find a spot where we can replace a big number of these breaks and quit those breaks from happening, we're also saving money by keeping $36,000 worth of water main breaks from happening in the first place." Questioning the future Councilman Jeremy Antill challenged whether the village should invest at all. "This town is diminishing for the last 50 years. We have zero anything," Antill said. "We don't have a gas station. Now we don't have a store. We have nothing. And the population is getting lower and lower." He warned that without new businesses, the village's future was uncertain. "We're not getting any bigger because there is nothing here. We could just keep paying in, but the population is still getting smaller and our revenue — there's zero revenue now," he said. Clyde acknowledged the concern but said the responsibility to provide safe drinking water remains. "Even if the village dissolves, there's still going to be a responsibility. That water's not going to go away. So that has to be tackled some way, somehow," he said. Grant barriers and income thresholds Heigle, the Rural Community Assistance Program's funding specialist, explained the limits of current grant programs. "The state put out a list of what's called low- to moderate-income levels," she said. "I think we were at 33% of the village. Typically, they won't even allow you to try for an income survey unless you're closer to 50%, so there's a huge gap." When residents asked whether the lack of local revenue would be considered, she answered: "They are pretty black and white, sadly. I'm pretty on the poor side, I get it, but that is what these funders look at — your income levels — and when it's not there, you just don't qualify sometimes." Still, she promised to keep pressing the state. "Once I hear, I can let you know," she said. "But it is a big gap." Next steps By the end of the presentation, both advisors agreed on the path forward. Heigle reiterated the necessity of the village drafting a sustainable asset management plan. "Funders look at how ready you are," she said. "If the water fund is sustainable on its own and it's not going in the deficit like it has in a few years, and that you've looked at engineers, you know what you need, you have an asset management plan, it scores better." Clyde closed with encouragement and realism, and implored the village to retain an engineering firm and begin the process sooner rather than later. "Get with an engineering firm again," he said. "Put a plan together. She can get you a very quick loan to pay them for their services to the point where it's not only engineered, it's put together, you've got a permit to install, then you make your applications." He ended his remarks with a simple assessment: "I'm not a bearer of great news, and I'm sorry about that, but I'm just a bearer of realistic news."