Sewer loan recommended by committee
By Ben Saylor
Rocky River
Published Dec. 19, 2007

Rocky River’s large sewer ambitions got a big boost last week when the District One Public Works Integrating Committee (DOPWIC) voted to recommend funding the city’s Valley View Sewer Project to the Ohio Public Works Commission.

Several weeks ago, the city had been informed that the Valley View project had been ranked in the second tier, which meant it was possible that the project would not ultimately be funded. The city then identified two areas of its application that it could go into greater detail with. One was access to funds, or whether the city had been funded by the Ohio Public Works Commission in the past. While the Rocky River Wastewater Treatment Plant has received OPW funds in the recent past, several communities besides Rocky River benefited from those dollars. The other criterion was one of health and safety. Mayor Pamela Bobst told West Life that there is a timing issue with the Valley View project, as it benefits Lakewood as well as Rocky River, and because if something is not done about infiltration in that area soon, Rocky River would have to divert the flow of the sewers in that area to the Rocky River Wastewater Treatment Plant, whose current capacity was not planned to accommodate the Valley View area.

“This not only impacts the Lakewood plant but also the Rocky River plant,” Safety-Service Director James Linden told West Life.

One hundred and nine homes in the Valley View Drive area flow by gravity into the Lakewood Wastewater Treatment Plant. However, there is significant infiltration from the Rocky River homes in this area, necessitating a replacement of the sewers. Currently, the sewers in that area are inverted, meaning that the storm sewer runs on top of the sanitary. Separating the storm and sanitary sewers eliminates infiltration.

The Cuyahoga County Planning Commission then rescored Rocky River’s proposal. In addition, a top-tier project was removed from the list because of a delay in that particular project, meaning the Valley View project was moved into the first tier. DOPWIC then reviewed the rankings and voted to affirm the city’s recommendation and forward it to OPW.

And while the city will not hear from OPW regarding the $2,987,000 zero-interest loan until March, officials were pleased with the re-ranking.

“Going forward, that will be tremendous,” Bobst said. The total cost of the project is currently estimated at just under $5 million, the remainder of which would be funded through the city’s Sewer Maintenance and Rehabilitation Fund, which was passed along with this year’s budget last Monday.

Linden praised Bobst for her efforts in securing the recommendation.

“The only reason this is getting done is because of Mayor Bobst,” Linden told West Life. “She’s the one who’s been listening.”

Sewer work will figure prominently in Rocky River next year; Linden told West Life $150,000 has been allotted for dye testing and televising sewers throughout the city. The Valley View project is the first in a $55 million Sewer Maintenance and Rehabilitation Plan that could take 20-25 years to complete.