Berea seeks Ohio Water Development Authority loans for neighborhood water and sewer work; bids to be opened this week

Council on Feb. 3 gave first reading to two ordinances that would authorize the director of public service to apply for Ohio Water Development Authority (OWDA) funding for the Adrianne, Patty and Gerard reconstruction project.

Public-service staff said bids for the project will be opened this Friday. City staff told council they have received some Ohio Public Works Commission funding as a grant plus a small loan and plan to apply to OWDA for two loan components — one for sewer and one for water. Preliminary estimates presented in the meeting put the sewer loan around $800,000 and the water loan around $1,500,000, for a combined application of about $2,300,000 across ordinances 2-1 and 2-2.

City staff said the OWDA board meets on the last Thursday of each month and that the city may request suspension of the second-reading requirement so the council can transmit approvals in time for the February board meeting if needed. Public-service staff also said the city will hold a public meeting for affected residents after a contractor is selected; the contractor and the city’s construction-management firm would attend that meeting.

Council members asked whether the two ordinances corresponded to water versus sewer; staff confirmed that ordinance 2-1 covers the water component and ordinance 2-2 covers the sewer component even though the title language is similar. A resident who identified an address asked for that clarification during the public portion of the meeting.

No final votes were taken on Feb. 3; council advanced the measures for first reading and heard staff presentations about schedule, funding sources and outreach plans.