Toronto extends fire coverage, seeks funds for water project

FIRE SERVICE, PROJECT DISCUSSED — Toronto Council Friday approved a contract allowing the city’s fire department to formally extend fire protection service to an area of Island Creek Township it has served through a mutual aid agreement and authorized Mayor John Parker to apply for a $250,000 grant for a water project in the Walton Acres area. — Warren Scott

TORONTO — Toronto City Council is supporting efforts to extend fire protection to an area of Island Creek Township and to replace aging water lines in the Walton Acres area.

City Fire Chief Bill Scheel said during Friday’s special meeting that a contract with the Island Creek Township board of trustees allows Toronto firefighters to answer calls in an area of the township they already serve through a mutual aid agreement, but the department now will receive a portion of levy money collected by the township for fire protection.

“We’re not taking on any more responsibility. We’re just getting the money now,” said Scheel.

The Toronto and Richmond fire departments, both comprised of paid and volunteer firefighters, will receive 18 percent, or about $63,420 per year, from $352,336 from the levy funds.

Volunteer fire companies in Pleasant Hills and Pottery Addition, which also serve the area east of Walton Acres, will receive the remainder of the funds.

First Ward Councilman Troy Stewart asked if the city could hope to receive more from the levy money in the future and was told no because the Pleasant Hills and Pottery Addition rely on it for their operations.

Councilman at large Mike Burkey asked if the additional coverage will affect insurance costs for the city department.

Scheel said he’s been advised there will not be an increase for insurance because the city won’t acquire additional property or equipment.

He said earlier there are no plans for a merger with any of the departments, as occurred last year with the Knoxville Fire Department.

The move was made because the volunteer Knoxville department lacked manpower, and it entailed an agreement calling for Toronto to receive a portion of Knox Township’s fire levy funds.

Before making a motion to create a new line item in the budget for the Island Creek Township funds, Burkey asked if there is an escape clause in the contract.

Scheel replied, “Right now this is only a contract until the end of the year. I think that gives us enough time to know if it’s going to work.”

In related business, Scheel announced the Monaca Shell Plant is providing about $22,000 for several city firefighters to attend training in pipeline emergencies through Texas A&M University.

Groups of two to three firefighters are slated during the next several months to attend the training, which is designed to prepare them for dealing with any incidents that could arise from a natural gas pipeline near the city.

Also on Friday, council authorized Mayor John Parker to apply for $250,000 in funds from the federal Appalachian Regional Commission to replace water lines in the East Fernwood Drive area of Walton Acres, which is west of state Route 7 at the city’s south end.

Parker said some lines may be more than 50 years old, and line breaks have been a recurring problem there. He added there are plans to seek other funds for a second phase involving the upper area of Walton Acres.

Burkey applauded the efforts of Parker and others to secure outside monies for the effort, adding city officials often have been wrongly accused of not pursuing grants for improvements.

Parker previously secured $1,656,000 in federal and state funds and a $204,000 loan from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, which accounts for about two-thirds of the project’s estimated cost.

The mayor said close to $3 million has been awarded in federal and state funds for that project, the replacement of water lines in the area of Fifth and Myers streets and replacement of the Alexander Street Bridge, which connects state Route 7 to the city’s north end.

Parker said ground is expected to be broken soon for the Fifth and Myers project while he continues to press state highway officials for the bridge project’s completion.

Officials with the Ohio Department of Transportation have reported work on the project has been delayed while the contractor responds to concerns by officials with Norfolk Southern Railroad, which runs beneath the span.