Fate of Euclid Dispatch May Be Up To Voters

Marcus Epps of Euclid is not a happy camper. He plans on letting Council know at tonite’s (Nov 17) Council meeting. What’s got him bugged is Council’s vote on Nov 3^rd to

dismantle Euclid’s dispatch system and regionalize the service by joining Chagrin Valley Dispatch.

According to Ch 19, Council Prez Holzheimer-Gail justified the move with, "We need to move our city forward, look into doing things a little more progressive. The old way of doing business is not going to help us do things better." As part of the agreement, the council president says the current dispatchers, roughly a dozen, will not be laid off, but absorbed by Chagrin Valley. Making the move at this time also allows the city to take advantage of grant money to upgrade radio equipment for both police and fire.  

"Our equipment is aging and reaching the end of its useful life, so that would be a cost the city would have to incur if we stayed on our own. And most cities like ours are struggling for tax dollars," explained Holzheimer Gail. (posted Nov 4th)

Ward 7 Councilman Pat Delaney isn't so sure. He told Ch. 19, "We could look at garbage collection, we could look at recreation, look at many other things. But when it comes to 911, that could be a sacred cow.... When it comes to the citizens front line of protecting them, there is no margin for error. With this there will be a learning curve. And it's one of those votes on City Council when I hope I'm wrong." Delaney says residents and others opposed would rather see regionalization in other departments.

The legislation narrowly passed 5-4. Voting FOR were Holzheimer-Gail (P), Caviness (1), Scarniench (2), Jones (3) and Jarosz (4). Voting AGAINST were McLaughlin (5), Delaney (6), Langman (7) and Gorshe (8).

With the vote so close, Marcus Epps is taking action. He is circulating a Referendum Petition to overturn Council's vote, put it on hold and let the voters decide. 

According to the City Charter Article III, Section 1B, any non-emergency ordinance passed by Council is subject to referendum. The petition will need around 1,500 valid signatures (10% of the 2010 votes cast for Governor). Epps has until Dec 2nd - 30 days from passage to gathem them and will present the petitions to Finance Director Malone.

Council can if enough signatures are acquired to convince them, overturn its own legislation and so avoid the measure being put on the ballot.

Last week Epps sent an email that he will hold a public meeting at Euclid Library this Wed Nov 19th at 7:15pm. Current dispatchers and Council members are expected to be there. It's a great opportunity for you to hear the arguments and voice your opinion. Petitions for signing or gathering signatures will be available. You can read the email here.

It should be an interesting meeting.

Service Committee Meeting - Next step in fight to lower Sewer Rates

There are two items on the Oct 29 6:30pm Service Committee Agenda:
- Members of CH2MHill discuss scope of study 
- Ord. (039-14) An ordinance authorizing the purchase of a fee simple interest in, over, and upon certain real property within the City of Euclid and authorizing the Mayor to enter into a purchase agreement therefore, and declaring an emergency. (Sponsored by Mayor Cervenik)

At first, I was puzzled. Two other items are sitting in Committee. Council wants to roll back Sewer Rates to 2012. The Administration wants to hire Strand for Phase II of a Green Infrastructure Plan.

If you think about it, though, it makes sense. CH2 has reason to believe that if presented properly, the EPA might give Euclid a 'pause point' to reassess its current grey plan, offer green alternatives and potentially lower sewer rates. That's probably why the Sewer

If that happens, the City may not need to purchase the BP property for $495,000 (Item 2 on the Agenda). Well, they really don't need the property even under the current plan, since they plan to sell it after construction is finished on Lake Shore Blvd. But that's another story. 

As to the hiring of Strand for Phase II, that's a ploy. If the Administration wouldn't inform Strand that its model changed (thereby rendering Strand's initial presentation basically worthless), what's to say it won't do it again?

Regarding tomorrow night's meeting, I received the following from Councilman Langman, "As a phase one program, it by definition falls far short of a comprehensive program, as per the instructions of the Administration. The natural question is what were the next steps taken since August, 2013? It appears that nothing more happened with Strand.

So, while there is ample evidence of Council’s desire to see an integrated, green infrastructure program, and, much rhetoric from the Administration for such planning, in about 2.5 years, very little has actually been done, certainly nothing that can be deemed “construction ready” on the green side.

With no feedback or communication from the Administration, Councilman McLaughlin and I reached out to CH2Hill, a nationally recognized engineering firm, experienced in working with communities under federal consent decrees, and, experts in green infrastructure integration.

In their initial investigation dated June 26,  2014, based on all known documentation of Euclid’s Long Term Control Plan, the following was stated:

“…There is new and relevant information that could be applied to the City of Euclid’s long term control plan to reduce costs, extend implementation schedules, increase regional buy-in, and, increase community benefits by adding green solutions”

“In the 2012 update to your Long Term Control Plan, green infrastructure was largely dismissed as not having any real value to Euclid.  These finding are quite inconsistent with regional and national programs that have demonstrated the benefits of a balanced green-gray approach.”

“We recognize that Euclid has been in the Consent Decree game a long time and, that it may be unfavorable to question the existing path forward.  Fatigue is understandable but integrated planning presents a new opportunity that is worth exploring, moving the community improvements and benefits through the green infrastructure to the front of program and, giving Euclid more time to evaluate and implement gray investments, ultimately saving considerable money for the community.”

The City is about to begin construction at the Waste Water Treatment plant. Once begun, those costs will be locked in place for good, along with ever increasing sewer bills.

That last item is what we started with: can we save the rate payers of Euclid, and, the neighboring communities money through the introduction of green infrastructure to Euclid’s Long Term Control Plan?  

Councilman McLaughlin and I firmly believe that this question is absolutely critical for the long term financial health of Euclid rate payers. 

Please join City Council, the Administration as we discuss further opportunities with CH2MHill on Wed, October 29, 2014, 6:30 PM,  Euclid City Hall."

EPA in Favor of Green Infrastructure Solutions

Green infrastructure (GI), protecting and restoring natural landscape features and using natural systems (or systems engineered to mimic natural processes) to manage rain water as a resource, is a win-win-win approach and a fundamental component of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) sustainable community efforts.
That's the official stand of the EPA when it comes to managing stormwater. To learn more about GI, click the link on the right for my Sustainable Environment page

EPA May Reconsider Consent Decree in Euclid’s Favor

       Members of City Council have reason to believe the EPA is more than willing to revise its

A Portland OR green street diverts
water from the sewer into the land

Consent Decree in Euclid’s favor. Such a revision could result in lower compliance standards and an extended time frame. Either or both could result in lower sewer bills for Euclid and a much improved landscape. 
       The holdup seems to be an Administration unwilling to ask the EPA for a hearing. Council is hoping public demand will move the Administration off the fence.
       Back in 2005 the EPA accused Euclid of violating the Clean Water Act and demanded it improve the way our Plant treats storm and sewer water before releasing it into Lake Erie. In 2011 the City entered into a Consent Decree with the EPA to resolve the problem. Euclid’s solution under advice from its engineers CT Consultants, was to build huge above ground storage tanks at the Wastewater Treatment Plant to hold overflow water until it could be treated and replace certain lines that during overflows release improperly treated sewage into Lake Erie. The plan had an estimated $80 million cost and required acquisition of the homes on E 221 and E 224. Needless to say, many residents were upset.
       That plan changed after Ward 5 Councilman Patrick McLaughlin (himself an engineer) suggested an alternative – use membrane technology, build underground storage tanks off-site, closer to Lake Shore Blvd. Only then did CT admit that yes they knew of the technology but hadn’t thought of recommending it. There were a lot of upsides – dozens of residents would keep their homes, the lake view wouldn’t be spoiled, the technology was cutting edge and the EPA would go along with it. The downside - the cost of compliance jumped to somewhere between $136 and $150 million. 
       Residential sewer rates in 2012 totaled $46.17/mcf. Today, rates are at $66.23/mcf and by 2019 are expected to reach $81.57/mcf. They will continue to increase until 2025. The driving force behind the increases is the Capital portion needed to pay for the entirely Gray Infrastructure Plan. From Jan thru March 2012, Ward 7 Councilman Daryl Langman wrote a series of posts for his blog 7th Ward-Euclid. They’re a good read if you want a background on

A disconnected downspout
diverts water from the sewer into a
rain garden. Photo courtesy of Low
Impact Developmenmt Org

the EPA mandate, sewer rate increases and the potential savings of green infrastructure. To better understand Green Infrastructure, visit my Environment Page.
       In March 2012, following McLaughlin’s and Langman’s lead, Council passed a Resolution urging the Administration to consider a combination of Gray and Green Infrastructure. 18 months later on August 28, 2013, Strand Associates, a leader in green infrastructure (GI) solutions presented the City with various options that would divert water out of the system, bring the City into compliance with the EPA’s requirements AND LOWER LONG TERM COSTS. Members of Council, the Administration and CT Consultants were present.  Prior to the meeting, CT Consultants changed the model Strand was initially given without notifying Strand.  Read More