LISBON - Restoration of a historic bridge, improvements to public water and sewer systems, and repaving streets were among the projects Columbiana County commissioners are being asked to fund with their 2013 allocation of federal Community Development Block grant.

Commissioners are scheduled to receive $249,600 in CDBG money next year, and the funding requests received at Wednesday's public hearing from the 10 communities and county engineer's office totaled $730,546.

In addition, the Ohio Department of Development, which administers the CDBG program, has limited the number of projects that can be funded to four, with the result being fewer awards than past years.

County Engineer Bert Dawson asked commissioners for $40,000 of the $249,600 that is available to provide the last bit of funding he needs to restore a historic steel bowstring-arch bridge and relocate it to the county fairgrounds.

Dawson first proposed doing so in 2010 and has spent the past two years trying to secure the necessary funding, which he has done, except for the final $40,000.

The 105-foot bridge - which is basically a much smaller and older version of the Fort Pitt Bridge - once crossed the Middle Fork of the Little Beaver Creek on South Market Street in Lisbon. It has been stored on the engineer's property after replaced 50 years ago with a concrete span.

The bridge is believed to have been constructed in the 1880s, and Dawson has proposed moving it to the fairgrounds, where it would be used a pedestrian walkway spanning a ravine that separates the campground and the midway.

The cost of the project is an estimated $542,203, with Dawson securing a $433,762 grant from the Ohio Department of Transportation to cover the majority. Although the application stated the fair board is contributing $68,441, he said it his understanding the organization only pledged $40,000.

The following is a list of the other applications:

Perry Township

Continued here:
Communities, engineer seek share of annual block grant funds

Anyway that you want to leave it on your porches, postal workers will collect food items for the needy on Saturday, May 12.

We will be providing bags, or they can use their own bags, said postal worker KaSandra Erwin. They can also just set the cans down on the porch. People also do just that.

The food collection is a combined effort of the National Association of Letter Carriers and U.S. Postal Service.

Last year. Branch 1 (Detroit, Southfield, Livonia, and Garden City) of NALC collected 283,300 pounds of food, Erwin said. Nationwide, 210,000 letter carriers collect food on the largest food drive day in the world.

She advised residents to simply place their nonperishables canned soup, canned meats and fish, canned vegetables fruits and juices, boxed goods such as cereal, pasta, and rice near their mailboxes on the morning of May 12.

We will make certain it gets picked up, rain or shine, Erwin said. Most Garden City residents should expect a post card in their mail during the week leading up to the drive with a bag attached for food donations, but they can always use their own bags and boxes, if needed.

Food can also be dropped off in the lobby of the Garden City post office located at Merriman and Cherry Hill.

This is the 20th anniversary and we have collected over one billion pounds of food since beginning in 1993, Erwin said. The need is greater than ever with 46 percent of households reporting having to choose between paying a utility bill or buying food, according to Feeding America, Erwin said. Nearly 49 million Americans are hungry, 16 million being children.

sbuck@hometownlife.com (313) 222-2249

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Postal workers hold annual food drive

09-05-2012 20:42 Belize Mission Overview with our Medical Mission Team, Feed-A-Child, Children's Ministry, and Church Construction, serving with International Servants and our Belize Mission Staff.

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09-05-2012 23:07 Belize Mission Trip - Promo Video - with our Medical Mission Team, Children's Ministry Team, and Church Construction Team, serving with International Servants and our Belize Mission Staff.

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10-05-2012 04:30 Belize Mission Trip 3 - with our Medical Mission Team, Children's Ministry Team, and Church Construction Team, serving with International Servants and our Belize Mission Staff.

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10-05-2012 06:15 Belize Mission Trip 4 - with our Children's Ministry Team and Church Construction Team, serving with International Servants and our Belize Mission Staff.

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Hazle Township Municipal Authority wants to shop for a better price before converting the former Sacred Heart Church hall into a new office and meeting rooms.

The authority board voted unanimously Wednesday to reject bids for the church hall renovation project after costs for general construction, plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) exceeded $484,000. "Optional" building systems and solar panels would have increased costs to nearly $900,000.

Directors had little to say prior to rejecting the prices, with board Chairman Eugene Rafalli announcing that officials would re-evaluate the project size.

"It was too high a figure," Rafalli said. "We'll see if we can get a better price."

The authority board will likely re-bid the project after accountant Richard Kline reports back with options for refinancing authority debts, Rafalli said. Refinancing would ensure that the church hall project will have no impact on rates, Rafalli said.

"We are not going to make our customers pay anything more," he said.

The authority will also consider "different options" for upgrading the former church hall in Harleigh, he said.

The original project scope included a "green" component, such as solar panels, which will be evaluated in the future.

Forest Hills resident Richard Wienches, who has on several occasions publicly scrutinized the authority board over the project costs, did not attend Wednesday's meeting when the bid rejection vote was cast.

Officials said the church hall project would build new office space, meeting rooms and a storage area at the 5,000-square-foot building. Plans originally included adding new heating and air conditioning units and other upgrades that will allow officials to heat only parts of the building that were in use. At one point, officials discussed the possibility of sharing space at the renovated church hall.

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Church hall work could be re-bid

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Some commuters in western Wake County will face the choice of driving a free, four-mile detour during construction of a new bridge on Green Level Church Road -- or paying a toll for a shorter detour that will open about the same time.

The state Department of Transportation says it has awarded a $2.5 million contract to S.T. Wooten Corp. of Wilson to replace the 60-year-old Green Level Church Road bridge over White Oak Creek at the Cary-Apex town limits.

The contract gives Wooten the option to start work between Aug. 1 and March 1, 2013, with completion in 240 days. While the bridge is closed during construction, drivers will have a detour of four miles via Green Level West, Wimberly and Jenks roads.

The closing affects commuters who use the north-south Green Level Church Road as an alternative to the busy N.C. 55 nearby. It is timed to coincide with the opening in August of a six-lane toll road conceived as a new option for N.C. 55 commuters -- the new extension of Triangle Expressway south from N.C. 55 near RTP to U.S. 64 at Apex.

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Bridge work to close Green Level Church Road as 540 toll road opens

By Jennifer Jiggetts The Virginian-Pilot May 11, 2012

VIRGINIA BEACH

Leaders of a 170-year-old Kempsville church and the city have reached a proposed settlement over an eminent domain dispute that has spanned nearly 12 years.

The city announced Thursday morning that it will pay Emmanuel Episcopal Church $1.1 million in exchange for half an acre of church property sought by the city to widen and move Princess Anne Road. The city also will transfer to the church about 1.5 acres next to it and will seek closure of a half-acre portion of the old Princess Anne Road to add to the church's property under the proposed deal.

The church will use some of the money to build a 300-foot wall along the new Princess Anne Road to buffer its preschool from the traffic.

The agreement requires approval of both the City Council and the church's vestry.

The city previously offered the church an $852,716 settlement, according to Virginia Beach court records.

Emmanuel Episcopal representatives had been fighting with city leaders over the plan to relocate the intersection of Princess Anne and Kempsville roads.

Church leaders have said that about 12 years ago, before renovating their parish hall and building a preschool, they asked city officials whether there were plans to work on the intersection. They said they were told no and proceeded with the $2 million school construction.

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Va. Beach, church reach agreement over dispute