TRAINING HELP — Wintersville Fire Chief Rob Herrington told Jefferson County commissioners Thursday touted the benefits of a first-of-its-kind-in eastern Ohio grain bin rescue training simulator. The department is applying for a $125,000 federal grant to build the simulator. -- Linda Harris

STEUBENVILLE — The Jefferson County commissioners are hoping the end is finally in sight for the fire escape rehab project.

At Thursday’s meeting, commissioners said only one company — Cattrell Cos. Inc. of Toronto — had bid on the project, which includes removing and remediating all the lead paint as well as glass panels and frames, reinstalling exit doors, prepping steel and installing steel mesh panels with supporting angle frames and solid steel panels at grade level, priming and painting the entire structure, installing emergency lighting, replacing existing tower roofing and any miscellaneous repairs.

Cattrell’s base bid was $553,800, with a $51,900 add-on for removing the paint and a $92,700 add-on for remediating and testing the paint.

The bid was accepted and referred to the architect for verification. The total bid — $698,500 — is within range of the engineer’s estimate, so if the documentation pans out, “then it’s OK,” Commissioner Tom Graham said. “It’s within the 10 percent threshold, so we should be good as long as the documentation is in order.”

Commissioner Tony Morelli said he’s “disappointed how long it’s taken” to get the project to this point.

“There have been several issues slowing it down,” he said. “The big one is lead paint and the process of (remediating) it.”

The project had been advertised for bid at least twice previously but no one was interested, primarily because of concerns about removing the lead paint and remediation.

“Certainly, it makes (us) happy,” Graham said. “We’ve been trying to get the fire escape done for some time. We have the money to do it, it needs overhauled — it’s certainly an eyesore for the courthouse and the city of Steubenville, we want to get it in good working order.”

Graham said the metal parts are in good working order now, but some of the glass windows in the fire escape tunnel are broken “so birds are getting in and doing what birds do. It becomes a sanitary problem, because birds convey all kinds of diseases.”

“This will be state-of-the-art when we’re done with it, when it’s upgraded,” he said. “It will be safe and sanitary.”

Graham said the steps themselves have already been analyzed to make sure they didn’t need replaced, “and they’re in great shape. We just have to replace the structure that (surrounds) them.”

Commissioners also offered their support to Wintersville Fire Department’s application for a $125,000 federal grant for a grain bin rescue simulator at its new Luray Drive training center. The state-of-the-art facility would be used to train firefighters and first responders to respond to entrapments in loaded grain binds, “a situation that can be very dangerous due to the instability of the product and the presence of toxic gases,” Chief Rob Herrington said.

“If you watch the news, every year … you see it all over the country … grain sticks, someone gets in to free it up and they get trapped,” he said. “There’s toxic gases in there as well. They explode, they do burn. The problem we’ve had is we know it’s really good to train on, but there’s not one in Eastern Ohio.”

The rescue simulator would be entirely grant funded.

Herrington, meanwhile, said they’re planning a mid-June ribbon cutting for the already completed portion of the training center, which was paid for with “a lot of private funding, funding from the state of Ohio, donations from numerous gas and oil companies operating in our area, support from the Pugliese Foundation and private financing.”

To date, he said there’s been about $1 million in development.

The second phase will begin in May with construction of several propane fire simulators and a live fire flashover trainer.

“We are a state-chartered training site,” Herrington said. “We’re bringing people in from six counties … we have 45 instructors on site, it’s grown fast.”

“I think it’s fantastic, I agree with my colleagues,” Morelli said.

Commissioners emerged from a two-minute executive session to approve pay adjustments for three employees at the Jefferson County Airpark: Shanna L. Franke goes to $14 an hour, David Lemasters, $14.48 per hour and Rudy Venditti, $15 an hour. Commissioners said the increases put their wages in line with what workers at other airports in Ohio are making.

Also approved was the contract for a $298,742 grant awarded by Ohio Department of Transportation for the runway lighting and beacon replacement project. The airpark’s share will be $79,413.

Brandon Reese, president of the airport board, told commissioners he figures they’ve invested around $40 million in the airport during the past 18 years.

“I’ve been involved since 2004, I’d say the vast majority has come since 2004,” he said. “I’d venture a guess that you guys have contributed a good piece of that, but maybe 75 percent of that money has come from grant money. And now that we’re in a good position with oil and gas money, just like the ODOT modernization of our runway lights, we’re going to be able to do a lot more. It’s just going to take a little patience and a little time.”

Commissioner Dave Maple pointed out royalty checks from oil and gas have significantly impacted the entire county, not just the airport. He said millions of dollars from oil and gas have been put into county roads, and many residents also receive royalties.

“When someone looks back and says, ‘Have we had some benefits from the oil and gas industry’ It’s real easy from my standpoint to say yes, we’ve received a good bit of benefits from that industry, alongside many people that have jobs and other revenues that are out there,” he said.

Commissioners were notified their property and casualty insurance premium through the County Risk Sharing Authority will increase about 4.7 percent.

“While individual member invoices reflect different percentage decreases, or because of exposure or experience chances see slight increases, our program as a whole continues to be stable and competitive,” their local underwriter, Oklok-Criss and Associates, wrote.

Oklok-Criss’s Debbie Hukill pointed out the Land Bank had been added to the policy, though Maple took exception not to the change but to it being made without commissioners having had input.

“I don’t think you need to look into it, I was just clarifying,” he said. “Somebody made a policy decision” and we didn’t vote on it.

“It’s going to be cheaper in the long run. but what he’s getting at is we should have been part of the process,” Graham said.

“I will definitely have a conversation with CORSA, see who it runs through,” Hukill said. “And if it’s my responsibility to get that (information) to you, fine.”

≤ Found out the city-mandated ADA changes to the third-floor courtroom designs will cost an additional $22,000.

≤ Indicated they will proceed with the energy audit and Automated Meter Infrastructure projects, but haven’t decided whether to focus solely on the water side or if they should do a facilities audit, too.

“We have a lot going on right now,” Morelli said. “The facilities (portion) is certainly not as attractive as (doing) the water department.”

That’s because identifying water losses and leaks has the potential to generate tremendous savings, Gardiner company’s Mark Haven pointed out.

≤ Awarded the contract for the 2022 Jefferson County Road 10-7.76 and 26-11.48 OPWC slip repair project to Ohio-West Virginia Excavating Co. for $259,216. The bid was the lowest of three submitted.

≤ Acting on the recommendation of county Engineer James Branagan, commissioners voted to rebid the contract for locker room renovations at the Jefferson County Service Complex. All three bids submitted exceeded the engineer’s estimate of $225,344 by more than the 10 percent allowed. The estimated has been revised upward.

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

STEUBENVILLE — Jefferson County is on the verge of getting its Social Security office back, and the Jefferson ...

WHEELING — Former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is endorsing his “old friend,” U.S. Rep. David B. ...

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

Copyright © The Herald Star | https://www.heraldstaronline.com | 401 Herald Square , Steubenville, OH 43952 | 740-283-4711 | Ogden Newspapers | The Nutting Company