Mayfield Heights approves Cleveland Water restated service agreement as council seeks funding for aging mains

Mayfield Heights officials voted Aug. 4 to let the city's mayor execute three agreements with the City of Cleveland that would transfer ownership of local distribution water mains to Cleveland Water and make the community eligible for the utility's suburban water main renewal program. The measure, carried by roll call, authorizes an asset-transfer agreement, a municipal utility district (economic development) agreement and a restated water service agreement with Cleveland Water. The documents put Mayfield Heights into a 20-year minimum term with automatic annual renewal unless the city gives five years' notice to revert to the previous agreement. The change will make Mayfield Heights eligible for Cleveland's twice-yearly project-selection process, which reimburses municipalities for design and construction of selected water-main replacements. Cleveland Water commissioner Alex Margavicious told council the utility has reinvested about $243 million across nearly 500 suburban projects to date and that the program is intended to accelerate replacement of high-failure, low-fire-flow or otherwise problematic mains. Margavicious said the restated agreement leaves repair responsibilities unchanged (Cleveland Water will continue to repair breaks whether or not a community signs) but requires ownership transfer for Cleveland to undertake larger capital replacements. He described five primary contract elements: the restated water service agreement, a companion economic-development (municipal utility district) agreement, an asset-transfer…