By Cheryl Splain, KnoxPages.com reporter
MOUNT VERNON — The terms drainage, compaction and preservation mean different things to different people, but to township officials they relate to a wise use of taxpayer dollars. Road-building fundamentals was the topic of discussion at the Knox County Trustees and Clerks Association meeting on Monday.
Charles Brandt, fiscal officer for Brown Township, spoke about the significance of proper drainage when building and maintaining a road. When inadequately drained, rainwater and groundwater damages roadways by penetrating and breaking up the road surface, weakening the base and washing away the soil. In rural areas, removing excess moisture from the surface and subsurface is generally done via culverts and drainage ditches. Improper drainage leads to mud and erosion, which lead to blocked ditches and culverts. Brandt said that in Brown Township, trustees have tried to shore up steeper road embankments to prevent erosion.
Zach Helm of Strawser Construction emphasized the importance of pavement preservation, with a focus on roads in good to fair condition. Equating it to good daily dental hygiene which prevents future problems, Helm said pavement preservation has an upfront cost but avoids more costly problems down the road. He said trustees often concentrate on fixing bad roads and tend to neglect good to fair pavement.
Helm spoke about Onyx, a new surface treatment the Ohio Department of Transportation began using in 2014 that seals off small cracks and holes in chip seal and asphalt roads. At a cost of $13,000 to $15,000 a mile, Helm said Onyx is good for residential and rural roads. A green product, Onyx is used for bike paths and in parks.
Bart Moody, Berlin Township trustee and employee of Kokosing Construction, said that “the cheapest thing we can do is promote drainage…the next best thing we can do is spend money on preservation.” Speaking about asphalt paving, Moody said compaction is the biggest consideration in a successful application. Proper compaction compresses the stone aggregate together and removes air holes that allow moisture penetration. He also said clean, dry aggregate is important to ensure a proper seal. He suggested the trustees consider using RAP (recycled/reclaimed asphalt pavement) as a way to stretch their paving dollars.
In addition to the discussion on roads, trustees and clerks heard from various county and local officials:
*Dave Shaffer, Knox County sheriff: the sheriff’s office is conducting sex offender follow-ups; overall criminal activity is down in the county; average daily population in the county jail is 63; number of sheriff’s sales declined in 2014; and relationship, drug and literacy programs are available to inmates.
*Mary Jo Hawkins, clerk of courts: filings are down by 9 percent in Court of Common Pleas with the decline mostly in foreclosures; car titles increased to 29,000; criminal cases stayed about the same at 200; divorce/dissolutions were around 250.
*Jonette Curry, auditor: a fiscal officer training session will be held in the spring.
*Teresa Bemiller, commissioner: about $80,000 in CDBG grants is expected to be available. The first public hearing on the grants will beMar. 2 at 10 a.m. in the commissioners’ office.
*Julie Miller, Knox County health commissioner: county uptick in flu and pertussis; looking at state budget and sewage rules; introduced Zach Cooper, fulltime emergency preparedness coordinator.
*Margaret Ann Ruhl, state representative for 68th district: hearings and discussions being held on Gov. Kasich’s proposed budget, specific issues include school funding, lowered tax on small businesses, sales tax increase; appointed to the agriculture, transportation and local government committees; working on a bill that allows townships to share capital equipment.
*Bill Pursel, Monroe Township trustee and representative to DKMM Joint Solid Waste District and Knox County Convention and Visitors Bureau: Lowe’s will take small fluorescent bulbs for recycling, still working on recycling long fluorescent bulbs more often than once a year; CVB is marketing Knox County to outsiders but noted many county residents do not take advantage of the local attractions.
The Energy Cooperative sponsored Monday’s meeting. Wayne Grange served the meal.
