NORTH BALTIMORE – Village council will now await the decision of Wood County Common Pleas Judge Robert
Pollex if only its members can set utility rates in the village.
Feb. 7 was the deadline for a legal argument to be filed in court by the three residents who successfully
got the steep 2010 water and sewer rate hikes on the November ballot, following a petition drive.
But in lieu of filing a legal argument, the three, Don Halstead, Sharla Halstead and Aaron Light, wrote a
letter to Pollex, dated Jan. 26. Council members received a copy of the letter during Tuesday’s
council-of-the-whole meeting.
Because of the Halsteads’ and Light’s efforts last fall to get the rate hikes on the ballot, voters
soundly defeated keeping them. The hikes had amounted to 60 percent for water and 75 percent for sewer,
instituted incrementally from 2010 through 2013.
They were intended to help the village pay for its share of an EPA-mandated separation of its sanitary
and storm sewers. The project’s total cost is estimated at $14 million to $15 million.
Village solicitor Chet Marcin maintains that initiative petitions are not permitted to change utility
rates, based on the state’s constitution and the case law that interprets it. Last fall he filed a brief
with the court and asked for a judge’s ruling on the issue.
The three opponents’ letter indicates it is intended for Pollex, but addresses Marcin, informing him,
"you forgot one thing. This is a democracy we live in where the majority counts. There isn’t any
way a few people can dictate to the rest without public input."
The letter goes on to say, "As I understand it, even the input won’t matter because if council loses
they plan on doing this all over again. Too bad we can’t impeach them and start over.
"We realize our village has a financial problem but can’t we face it reasonably and together? …
When families have a budget crises they spend only what they have and that very carefully. Council
should do the same."
The letter refers to council’s action at its Jan. 18 meeting where it gave a first reading to two
ordinances which re-established the rate increases. After a second reading the ordinances were to be
tabled until council received Pollex’s decision on the issue.
In a phone interview Wednesday, Village Administrator Kathy Healy addressed residents who don’t
understand public finances. She explained when utility funds are set up in a municipality’s budget, the
Ohio Revised Code requires them to be self sustaining with user fees, unlike services like police and
fire which can be funded through tax revenues in the budget’s general fund.
Healy noted the village just completed a clean audit from the state during which it received no citations
and no findings for missing or mishandled funds.
Marcin said in a phone interview Wednesday the village has "grant money on the line" for both
phases of the sewer separation project. Phase one for the south side of town is currently underway, and,
according to Healy, must be completed by Dec. 9. Phase two will separate sewers in the northern portion
of town.
He said the village received about one-quarter of the funding for the project through grants, with the
village to pay for the remainder.
In order to qualify for the grants, "we had to show we are able to pay our share," stated
Marcin. When grant givers saw the village had instituted the hefty rate hikes, and could pay its share,
they provided their funds.
Healy said the village did research prior to setting the rate hikes to know what was needed. "We
didn’t throw a dart and pick a number," she quipped.
In addition, the village still has opportunities to "go after additional funds," and it will
continue to do that.
If the project is completed under budget, Healy added, "We could potentially drop off the last year
of the rate increase. We’d love to do that."
Another facet which would help the village financially is if it gains more water and sewer users since it
has lost some major industries.
