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Regional strategy remains on table for using Rescue Plan funds

Commissioners discuss use of Rescue funds

County commissioners from Trumbull and Mahoning counties said they are optimistic following a preliminary discussion Wednesday about collectively using some American Rescue Plan funds in a regional strategy.

No commitments were made. Over the next month or two, commissioners in both counties are expected to host meetings with representatives from the localities within their respective counties to garner input before another session is scheduled to take the feedback back to the larger group.

In addition to representation from the county commissioners’ offices, officials from Youngstown, Warren, Howland, Boardman, charities, businesses and planning organizations are participating in the effort to come up with ways to spend the collective $250 million coming to the Mahoning Valley over the next two years from the federal COVID-19 relief response.

“The mission is there, for us all to come together and work as a community. That is the only way to make this work,” said Mahoning County Commissioner Carol Rimedio-Righetti, who attended on behalf of commissioners there.

“I feel very confident that this is a step forward, a step toward bringing Mahoning and Trumbull counties together as a group, as a team to bring ideas to the table and create solutions that we can both be a part of,” she said.

Trumbull County Commissioner Mauro Cantalamessa said the commitment to “collaboration” was apparent at the meeting.

Participants discussed what types of projects might benefit the region as a whole, as opposed to one single community, he said.

“We’re looking at this through a broader, regional lens,” Cantalamessa said.

Water and sewer infrastructure is an apparent front runner for projects drawing the most attention, Cantalamessa said.

“When trying to attract new businesses or retain existing businesses, having the necessary utility infrastructure is imperative. Improving and modernizing that infrastructure across a large area, or a key community experiencing increased economic development within a county, like Lordstown, can help us encourage economic growth,” he said.

One recurring utility issue that deters business development in the region is the way utility costs are organized, he said. Surcharges are stacked as water flows from the source and is sold to other communities to sell. The same is true when communities send their sewage to other communities for treatment.

“We could streamline that process for businesses that are interested in the area, to make the utility process more clear and efficient and learn from the issues we had with LG Chem,” Cantalamessa said, referring to when the county and local communities disputed who would handle the company’s utilities after it committed to building in Lordstown.

“When businesses look at a site they want to develop, they don’t want to see that utilities go through here, and there, and get upcharged here, and upcharged there; that is a deterrent. We need something with less bureaucracy,” he said.

The Eastgate Regional Council of Governments plans to conduct a study on the issue. The study is funded so the counties do not have to pay for it, Cantalamessa said.

The study, in preliminary stages, will outline and delineate what could be done to streamline that process.

“The tough part will be implementation. We will need buy-in from the communities. Cities and villages that own their utilities; they may not think regionalizing and consolidating will benefit them. So we will have to come up with a plan that benefits everyone in some way,” he said.

Rimedio-Righetti and Cantalamessa said the counties are still awaiting the final guidelines on how the American Rescue Plan funds can be used, too. Preliminary guidelines have been posted, but are not final or complete.

rfox@tribtoday.com

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