Trending
LISBON -- The Columbiana County Park District board agreed Wednesday to try again for a tax levy to help cover district maintenance costs, but this time asking voters for a smaller amount.
Board members voted unanimously to have the county auditor's officer certify the amount for a .10-mill levy for the November ballot. Once the amount is certified, they'll vote again to place the levy on the ballot.
"This will enable us to fully maintain what we've got," board President Eileen Dray-Bardon said, if voters approve.
A .35-mill, five-year parks levy failed on the March primary ballot in what was the board's third attempt to secure funding, but the first time as a true countywide levy. The village of Rogers and Middleton, Knox and Liverpool townships became part of the park district last year.
When asked how much the .10-mill levy would generate per year, Dray-Bardon said that's what the auditor's office will determine. The .35-mill levy would have generated an estimated $890,000 per year, so she said she's estimating that the .10-mill levy will probably generate about one-third of that, but they'll know more next month.
"That would certainly give us enough for our regular maintenance and some of the major repairs we need to do," she said.
The Little Beaver Creek Greenway Trail is aging and will need some major work, especially in the area where there are wetlands and signs of erosion and where there are culverts along the trail.
When the park district placed the larger levy on previous ballots, Dray-Bardon explained the board had a vision for a countywide park district with more programming and expansion.
With the smaller levy, they'll be able to maintain the parks they have and the trail. The district operates Scenic Vista Park which covers 250-plus acres in Center Township and includes an 18-hole disc golf course, hiking trails and pavilion, Hellbender Bluff Park covering 800 acres in Madison Township, 15 miles of Little Beaver Creek Greenway Trail stretching from Lisbon to Washingtonville, and the historical Ohio Supreme Court meeting site marker on state Route 7 in Fairfield Township. The newest section of trail along state Route 154 from the village of Lisbon to the park & ride will be dedicated Friday.
The park district currently sustains operations on $15,000 received annually from the Local Government Fund. The district does not receive any money from the county general fund from commissioners, although commissioners have helped at times with American Rescue Plan Act funds. Several years ago, the board acquired oil and gas lease money, but that money is dwindling. The district also relies upon grant funding and donations.
During the meeting, Dray-Bardon said the board discussed several options, including cutting maintenance at Scenic Vista Park and Hellbender Bluff and pulling portable restrooms from Scenic Vista Park in the fall instead of leaving them all year.
To the board, the Little Beaver Creek Greenway Trail is an asset for the whole county.
"Many people come to our county as a result of that trail," she said.
Voters apparently didn't share the vision the board had countywide, but she said they're hopeful voters will support the idea of maintaining what's already in place.
"I think that people recognize the value of the Greenway trail, even if they don't personally use it," she said.
Dray-Bardon talked about the new section in Lisbon opening up and stressed that it's not the "trail to nowhere" as some have said, noting that it's a starting point for reaching the Ohio River.
A feasibility report regarding taking the trail to the river is currently being done by a Columbus firm through a contract with the Columbiana County Port Authority. She said the report will give them a blueprint of where to go from here.