Madison Twp. residents raise concerns over Beal Road work

MADISON TOWNSHIP — Residents questioned the work done on Beal Road during Monday evening’s Madison Township trustees meeting.

Tom Cook and Jean Wrasse raised concerns about whether the work would hold up through the winter.

“You never paved Beal Road, you just patched,” Cook said. “When winter comes, I’m just telling you ahead of time, those plows hit that, it’s going to all come up and land in the people’s yards.”

Road Superintendent Larry Weirich said the township would address the issue if the material comes up during the winter.

The township leveled the wheel tracks and low spots on Beal Road, he said, and addressed areas where the berms had raised the road.

“It’s a waste of taxpayer money, that’s what I’m saying,” Cook said.

“It’s not a waste of taxpayer money,” Weirich said.

Wrasse said she has lived on the road for 50 years and the road has never been that bad. 

She said drivers move toward the center of the road to avoid uneven areas and questioned whether the township planned to put more asphalt on the road.

“No, not this year,” Weirich said. “We’re going to tar and chip it next year.”

He said the road needs to sit for a year before the work, because the tar could otherwise soak into the asphalt.

Another resident, Dave Smith, said he drives the road every day and has no problem with it.

Township explains road work costs

“I know it’s not perfect,” Weirich said. “I wish we could pave them all.”

The township hired a company to pave 2.92 miles at a cost of $217,124, Weirich said. That works out to about $74,357 per mile.

“We did 3.373 miles of blade patching and it cost us $14,000 per mile,” Weirich said.

He said the township must bid its road projects and cannot simply choose which company performs the work.

“There’s no way this township, or most any township, can afford to pave all their roads all the time,” Weirich said. “It’s just not feasible with the cost of everything.”

The township has used the same process on many other roads as well, he said.

“If we could pave them all I’d love to do that, absolutely,” he said. “But if we wait to pave them all, they’ll be a mess before we ever make it around the township.”

Trustee Dan Fletcher also pointed to the township’s four-mill road levy as a potential way to increase road paving.

The proposed 4-mill property tax road levy would generate about $868,345 each year and stretch for five years. The levy would cost the owner of a $100,000 home about $140 annually, or $11.67 per month.

The township has about 70 miles of roads. Fletcher said at seven miles per year, the township could potentially pave every road within 10 years.

“Just keep that in mind,” Fletcher said.

Other township business

Road improvements: Trustees discussed a resolution authorizing Craft to apply to the Ohio Public Works Commission for funds for capital improvements to public infrastructure.

BWC dividend: Fiscal Officer Leanna Rhodes reported Madison Township will receive $14,384.27 in a Bureau of Workers’ Compensation dividend representing approximately 90 perccent of premiums paid in 2022.

Gas tax: Rhodes reported on House Bill 519, which would suspend Ohio’s gas tax for 90 days. The General Assembly included a $725 million appropriation to offset the revenue loss for the Ohio Department of Transportation and local governments that receive gas tax dollars.