ASHLAND – Aber’s Towing & Crane Service is moving from its Claremont Avenue home to the burgeoning East Main corridor.

During Tuesday’s council meeting, Council approved a real property tax reduction agreement for Jerdan Real Estate Ltd. (Aber’s Towing & Crane Service). The deal would give Jerdan a 50 percent reduction in real property tax for 10 years.

The company plans to build a new 25,000-square-foot building and a 270,000-square-foot parking area on a 15-acre piece of property at 1325 Commerce Parkway.

Jerdan agrees to hire four full-time permanent employees and retain 17 employees from its current Claremont Avenue Location in return for the abatement.

The project includes Jerdan investing $1.5 million to $2 million to purchase land and construct the building and parking lot, along with $50,000 for furniture and fixtures and $25,000 for inventory.

Construction is set to begin Oct. 1 and is planned to be completed by April 1, 2018.

Land sale tabled

Council tabled an ordinance which would authorize the sale of 7.394 acres of land owned by the city at 865 U.S. 42 at a cost of $1,000 per acre. Mann-Blake Renewable Industries Inc. had expressed interest in the land to build a facility that would produce a fertilizer product using organic waste. City Engineer Shane Kremser told council some of that waste could include sludge from the city’s nearby wastewater treatment plant, which the city currently pays to have spread on farmers’ fields.

Kremser said the land is of no use to the city and it is possible that once the Canadian company does its land studies, they may also be unable to use the former landfill site.

“This project is still pretty preliminary,” said Ashland Area Economic Development executive director Kathy Goon. “This would be their first site in the U.S. They called our office in January to inquire whether or not we had any properties. We have worked with Shane since January on this with some other folks … We want to make sure we have vetted out everything and we have done all of our research.”

Council members wanted more time to research the business before voting on the sale of the land.

Brookside Park pond project updated

During Tuesday’s meeting, Mayor Duane Fishpaw updated council on the stalled project to dredge the pond at Brookside Park. The pond was drained in the spring to allow the pond to be cleaned. According to Fishpaw, Director of City Services Jerry Mack has been working with a company that has the equipment needed to finish the dredging.

“There is so much sediment on the bottom that the pond turned and killed 99 percent of the fish,” Fishpaw said. “We have to dredge it to remove the rotting vegetation that was using all the oxygen the fish would be breathing.”

Fishpaw said that the previous equipment being used to dredge the pond wasn’t able to completely dredge the pond so new equipment had to be brought in, which has delayed the project’s completion.

In other business:

  • Council authorized entering into a contract with Simonson Construction Services for the Morgan Avenue storm sewer extension project west of Chestnut Street. The project is expected to cost $44,410. Kremser said the sewer line will be installed under the sidewalk on the north side of Morgan, and will also replace one catch basin and add another one.
  • Council ratified existing fire and rescue agreements with Milton and Montgomery townships. The agreements have been in place for several years but City Law Director Rick Wolfe said no ordinance was ever passed authorizing them.
  • Capital improvement project funds were created to accept donations for three separate projects: the city pool, Brookside tennis courts and to purchase a fire department ladder truck. The city would like to install a heater in the pool to extend the number of days it can be open and to refurbish the tennis courts.

  • Council authorized submission of a grant proposal through the Ohio Department of Transportation for federal dollars for Ashland Public Transit operations capital funding for 2018. APT coordinator Liz McClurg told council she has received confirmation of a $30,000 increase in federal funding to $232,000. Ashland Public Transit also will receive $60,520 for a new vehicle.

  • Council authorized an agreement with the Ohio Publics Works Commission to acquire state capital improvement program funds to upgrade traffic signals at the Main Street-Claremont Avenue intersection and add emergency vehicle signal pre-emption at Main Street intersections with Center, Union, Arthur and Miller streets. The city’s required share of the $300,000 traffic signal project would be $60,000.