Lucas County Commissioners voted to affirm findings and approve a six‑year work plan for the Swan Creek Watershed ditch improvement petition (No. 1054) on July 15, 2025, after a presentation by County Engineer Mike Paniewski and an extended public comment period. The motion passed on a recorded vote of two in favor and one opposed; the board recessed to July 22, 2025, to consider a small set of filed exemptions.

The petition covers the Lucas County portion of the Swan Creek Watershed and would authorize systematic removal of log jams, accumulated sediment and other obstructions, establish a maintenance fund and schedule annual assessments on benefiting landowners. Paniewski told the commissioners his office inspected 464 petition segments and identified about 810,000 cubic yards of accumulated sediment across roughly 154 miles of ditches in Lucas County and 1,438 log jams — an average of 3.1 log jams per segment. "We identified a total of 810,000 cubic yards of accumulated sediment in the watershed," Paniewski said during his presentation, and he described that volume as comparable to annual dredging volumes the Corps of Engineers removes from the Maumee River.

Why it matters: Paniewski and other proponents say the work restores conveyance capacity, reduces flood risk and lowers long‑term maintenance costs once deferred maintenance is addressed. The engineer presented a six‑year sequence of contracts focused heavily on log‑jam removal in years 1–3 and sediment removal in later years, with target annual contract values around $2.2 million to $2.6 million per year in the initial six‑year period. Paniewski said the county has secured about $3.2 million in outside grant funds since 2021 to complete about 4.1 miles of two‑stage ditch work.

Public comment emphasized two recurring themes: the scale and accuracy of property assessments and concerns about local impacts from heavy equipment and spoil placement. Dozens of property owners, farmers and township officials spoke. Several residents said soil‑map classifications used to calculate benefits — and therefore assessments — are inaccurate for individual parcels. "I don't need another tax on our farm," said farmer Jeff McQueen, describing routine self‑maintenance and saying his property would be unfairly charged. Others asked how spoil and removed debris would be handled, whether the removal would harm riparian habitat and whether tree and log removal would expand easements.

County staff repeatedly said the assessment methodology follows the factors required by Ohio law and that property owners who maintain petition ditches can file for annual credit. Paniewski explained the credit process: a landowner files by May 1 each year, engineers verify the work and, if approved, the county reports a reduced assessment to the auditor. He also said the petition process was initiated in 2021, under the statute and procedures then in effect, and that the village of Whitehouse and the city of Toledo — both home‑rule municipalities — have agreed in writing to assume assessments for properties inside those municipal boundaries.

Several technical and procedural issues were raised during comment and in filings by local officials. Swanton Township’s trustees and other speakers asked whether the petition complied with statutory requirements for bonds, notice and state agency review. County counsel and the prosecutor’s office responded that the petition was filed and processed under the statute as it existed March 20, 2021, and that required steps (including submittal to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources) were completed earlier in the process.

What passed and next steps: The board approved two formal items on the agenda: (1) affirming the finding of improvement, confirming scheduled benefits and damages, and ordering the establishment of a ditch maintenance fund for petition No. 1054; and (2) approving the six‑year plan of work for calendar years 2026–2031, ordering competitive bidding for the projects and confirming assessments to fund the plan. The clerk recorded votes: Commissioner Cabecki — yes; Commissioner Gerken — yes; Commissioner Lopez — no. The board recessed the item to a special session on July 22, 2025, to consider four property owners’ exemption requests that had been filed.

Numbers and scope cited at the hearing: roughly 41,000 parcels and 85,000 acres inside the Lucas County portion of the watershed; 464 petition segments inspected; 810,000 cubic yards of sediment (average 1.9 feet depth per segment); 1,438 log jams identified; projected first‑six‑year annual contract work roughly $2.2–$2.6 million per year; a total maintenance base figure cited in the presentation (as calculated for benefit apportionment) and shown on mailed notices to owners.

What remains unsettled: residents and townships pressed for individual corrections to assessments (the engineer and commissioners noted an exceptions process to consider those claims if the petition is approved), asked for clearer specifications of the depth/width of work to be done on specific parcels, and requested more detail about spoil handling and habitat protections. Commissioners and staff said they will continue to press for state and federal grant funding to reduce local costs, but several speakers and commissioners acknowledged that available outside funding is limited and that much of the work the engineer described is classified as local maintenance under typical grant rules.

The county set a follow‑up hearing for July 22, 2025, to take testimony from four property owners who had filed timely exceptions; staff said design, bidding and permitting work would proceed this fall if the plan moves forward, with construction starting in 2026 if contractors are selected.

Sources: presentation and final engineer's report read into the record by County Engineer Mike Paniewski; multiple public‑comment statements recorded in the July 15 Lucas County Commissioners meeting transcript; county counsel and prosecutor's office statements on procedural compliance.