Canton council advances sewer loan applications, creates capital project funds and approves outside counsel payment in Perry Township water dispute

Canton council and its standing committees on April 6 approved a package of loan and appropriation items for sewer and water infrastructure, created new capital project funds, and voted to pay outside counsel for a water‑service dispute with Perry Township.

In the finance committee, City staff (Director Hyman and other presenters) described a series of Water Pollution Control Loan Fund (WPCLF) and other loan applications to finance sewer repairs and interceptor rehabilitation across multiple projects: West Tuscarora Street (estimate cited ~ $1.2 million for the sewer component), Elgin Avenue Northwest neighborhood project (~ $750,000), Shroyer Avenue Southwest replacement (~ $850,000), a Navarre Road Southwest trunk sewer (~ $3.2 million), and a Westside interceptor rehabilitation (~ $3.7 million). Staff said many of the projects stem from U.S. EPA administrative orders requiring inspections and cleaning and that the city plans to submit separate loan applications designating repayment sources for each loan.

The committee also advanced an $8 million estimate for replacement of large raw pumps at the Water Reclamation Facility (WRF), a membrane replacement project estimated at $29,000,000 (described as a sole‑source purchase from Kubota), and an electrical improvements project for the WRF (staff estimated $20,000,000 and expected bid activity in coming months). The Sugar Creek Water Treatment Plant closeout and several change orders for street and waterline work were discussed and signed out by the committee.

During council session, members voted to add ordinances back onto the agenda and then adopted several items, including an ordinance to pay a moral obligation to law firm Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP not to exceed $12,709 for outside legal work on the city’s water dispute with Perry Township. A law department official explained the city owns roughly 57.6 miles of water line in Perry Township, earned about $3.1 million in revenue from Perry customers in 2025 and that the asset value of those lines was cited as approximately $100 million; the official said those facts justified securing a second legal opinion given the risk of litigation.

Council also adopted Ordinance 28 to create project funds for several capital improvements (Colonial Boulevard phase 2, 4th Street SE bridge rehabilitation, 12th Street resurfacing, West Tuscarora safety project phase 1, Elgin Avenue NW neighborhood project) and later adopted Ordinances 29 and 30 (property conveyance and vacating/replat actions) by recorded roll‑call votes. Multiple motions to suspend rules and to adopt ordinances were approved by recorded roll call votes (the record shows repeated roll calls with 12 yeas on several items).

Public comment: Skylar Bruce, who identified themself and provided an address, spoke against the emergency passage of the legal‑fee payment, questioned why outside counsel was needed and suggested the $12,709 could be better spent on the city’s 'shower bus' program. The law department official responded to council during the finance recess, restating the legal and financial stakes and the rationale for the outside opinion.

Why it matters: The loan applications and appropriations move several large sewer and water projects toward design and construction, and the membrane and pump investments at the WRF represent multi‑million‑dollar capital needs with multi‑year implications for ratepayers and coordination with county partners. The outside‑counsel payment highlights a live intergovernmental dispute with Perry Township that carries potential legal and financial risk for the city.

Next steps: Staff said detailed maps and bid documents will be circulated to council members before further action and that some large projects may be phased across years; council indicated upcoming committee and floor consideration for remaining agenda items.