NILES — As 2025 and early 2026’s heavy winter is put in the rearview mirror, the county’s engineer gave an idea of how much salt the city used — and a proposal for purchasing it moving forward.

As Wednesday’s public comments wrapped up, Trumbull County Engineer David DeChristofaro introduced Lauren Hill, his new director of government affairs, and described the status of the salt program his office organizes for 41 communities.

“Niles ordered 2,000 tons of salt this season, and you’ve used 1,570 tons that we actually delivered — whether you use them or not,” DeChristofaro said. “You have about 429 remaining, which is about a 79% consumption, so you guys are in good shape for the balance of the year.”

DeChristofaro said he will be submitting his order for the 2026-27 winter season, explaining that the order encompasses 41 entities within the county.

“You are one of those entities; it’s nearly every city, village and township orders through the engineer’s office,” DeChristofaro said. “The only village and township that doesn’t — they order direct — is Cortland and Liberty.”

DeChristofaro, who met with representatives from villages and cities that buy salt through the county, said he was informed that former county engineer Randy Smith led them to believe that they would need to order their salt through the county engineer’s office to get the same price they pay for salt.

He said he found it necessary to correct that information.

“We purchase salt through the Ohio Department of Transportation contract, and in fact, according to ORC 5513.01, ODOT has permitted every political subdivision, including colleges and universities, to participate in their contract for salt,” DeChristofaro said. “Just as we do at the county engineer’s office, and just as Cortland and Liberty do, at the same price we pay, regardless of the size of the order, and without going through the engineer’s office.”

DeChristofaro said he did research and learned Trumbull County was the only county with such an arrangement, which he says doesn’t make sense.

“This has caused the county engineer’s salt order to expand from 12,000 tons a year to 34,000 tons a year. That additional 22,000 tons of salt that is ordered for the other 41 entities is dropped off at our office, at the engineer’s office, by the mines, the salt mines,” DeChristofaro said. “Then it’s loaded in trucks and delivered to all these entities at an additional cost to each of you.”

DeChristofaro said the costs for the arrangement have approached tens of thousands of dollars a year, calling it “totally unnecessary.”

Salt would be delivered directly to entities if they ordered it through ODOT contracts, DeChristofaro said.

He said it would likely be in the best interests of larger townships, cities and villages with larger orders exceeding 500 tons — noting Niles’s 2,000 tons and storage facility — to order directly through an ODOT contract, adding that he recognized the benefits smaller townships and villages may have by ordering through him.

“This way, not only can you pay the same price as we do, you have the salt delivered directly to you at no cost,” DeChristofaro said.

He said he’s had discussions with an unnamed big village and city, who are very interested in getting their own ODOT account.

“I truly believe purchasing salt directly through ODOT would be beneficial for everyone, especially the larger communities,” DeChristofaro said. “But for those who would rather keep things the way they are in order through us, that’s perfectly fine.”

COUNCIL QUESTIONS

DeChristofaro explained that one of the issues his office has had is keeping up with multiple communities requesting salt at the same time, using a scenario where he might get 250 tons for the week, but the city of Warren might request that exact number.

He was responding to a question from Councilman Michael Lastic, D-at Large, about whether their entire order would come at the same time.

“I get extra tonnage, and Warren wants the whole thing, and I have to tell them, I can’t give you the whole thing because Niles called and wanted 50 tons and I’ve got Champion who wants 20 tons,” DeChristofaro said. “I can’t give Warren everything.”

DeChristofaro said he believed he emailed Warren Mayor Doug Franklin, requesting them to use the salt in their own dome for at least another week or two because his office was running short on salt in its dome, because deliveries weren’t coming in the quantities needed to service the 41 entities.

Councilman Aaron Johnstone, D-2nd Ward, questioned whether breaking away and becoming a much smaller customer to the salt mine would cause them to lose priority.

DeChristofaro said their priority would not fall.

DeChristofaro clarified that smaller entities benefited through storage, explaining that West Farmington orders 10 tons.

“The trucks that deliver it from Morton want to deliver a minimum of what their trucks will carry; they’re not going to carry half of a load,” DeChristofaro said.

DeChristofaro said communities were still allowed to store salt at his facilities, adding that he was letting each community make its own decision to pursue an individual ODOT contract on its own.