Westside Messenger - April 9th, 2023

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PAGE 2 - WESTSIDE MESSENGER - April 9, 2023 Call today and receive a FREE SHOWER PACKAGE PLUS $1600 OFF 1-855-417-1306 With purchase of a new Safe Step Walk-In Tub. Not applicable with any previous walk-in tub purchase. Offer available while supplies last. No cash value. Must present offer at time of purchase. CSLB 1082165 NSCB 0082999 0083445 SPECIAL OFFER BLUEPRINT COLUMBUS Continued from page 1 they will be predominantly placed on streets with no curbs. For example, he said sloped rain gardens are slated on these avenues and roads: Clarendon, Rosedale, Safford, Springmont, and Whitehead. One or two-walled curbside rain gardens will be installed on these roadways to help alleviate grade differences between the pavement and property lines: Burgess, Eakin, Eureka, Hague, Harris, Highland, Ogden, Mound, Terrance, Warren, Wayne, and Wheatland. Biru said that motorists will not be able to park beside the two-walled curbside rain gardens but added that efforts have been made to install these two-walled rain gardens on streets that already have prohibited parking. There will be two-walled rain gardens with step-out located on these roads: Eureka, Hague, Harris, Oakley, Mound, and Whitethorne. There will be a bump-out rain garden placed on Amherst. Tiffany Conn, a Blueprint Columbus outreach coordinator said that while the bump-out rain gardens are the least preferred rain garden due to a design that “sticks out,” they serve a dual-purpose as they are also a good traffic calming measure. The regional rain gardens, which are slightly larger than other rain gardens and allow for trees to be placed on top of them, will be located on the land band owned properties on these streets: Wayne Avenue, Oakley Avenue, Highland Avenue, Mount Street and Wayne Avenue, Safford Avenue and Oakley Avenue, Whitehead Road and Eureka Avenue, and Sullivant Avenue and Clarendon Avenue. With the exception of the regional rain gardens, all of the other rain gardens will be limited in size. “They cannot be any longer than 40 feet,” said Jeremy Cawley, project manager for the city department of public utilities sewer system engineering section. All of the rain garden locations — which have been marked with “Future Rain Garden Site” signs by the city — are slated to be excavated sometime next year. The subsurface will be prepared by adding layers of soil and stone that are designed to filter stormwater. Native plants and mulch will make up the top layer of the rain garden. Chad Kettlewell, an ecologist with Coldwater Consulting, said the native plants will have a deep root system to help stabilize the soil and, as they mature, fracture the soil to keep it healthy so the water can continue to get into the soil and get filtered properly as opposed to “clogging up” and creating flooding issues. He added that the rain gardens will typically drain in 24 to 48 hours, which will reduce the chances of it becoming a mosquito breeding ground. “If the rain gardens are holding water (beyond 24 to 48 hours) that means there’s something wrong with it and somebody needs to come along to deal with it,” he said. Conn said rain garden maintenance will be on the city — not the residents. “We will maintain all of this forever,” she said. “The city maintenance team will come out at least once a month to collect trash and do the weeding and to check the flowers and plants to make sure things are functioning properly.” She encouraged residents to call the city if they believe the rain garden nearest to their location is not looking healthy or working properly. In addition to the 83 rain garden locations, there are two pervious pavers streets planned for www.columbusmessenger.com Richardson Avenue between Mound Street and Whitehead and on Eureka Avenue between Safford Avenue and Springmont Avenue. Pervious pavement is described as brick-looking concrete blocks that are designed for rainwater to seep between the cracks instead of running across the surface. Joe Tribble, a civil engineer at Korda/Nemeth Engineering Inc. said pervious pavers are the most expensive of all the green infrastructure improvements and the most time consuming to construct as well. He said because the installation of the pervious pavers involves waterline work, there will be some limited water outages but residents will be given 24 hour notification before. Cawley added that new waterlines will be installed during the process as well as new drive approaches and new sidewalks for these areas. In addition to limited water outages, Blueprint Columbus officials say there will also be other impacts during the stormwater and sanitary sewer green infrastructure improvement program. They include the removal of several trees along the pervious pavers streets, the removal of some sidewalks, handicap ramps, streetlights and street signs, and the occasional fence that may be in the excavation area. The trees that are removed will be replaced with new trees and the infrastructure that is torn up during the green infrastructure improvement process will be replaced. Tribble said it will be up to the homeowners to replace and reinstall the fence. Cawley said Blueprint Columbus’ Hilltop 4 final design concept is about 90 percent complete. He said that if “all goes according to plan” the city contractors could break-ground on the green infrastructure improvements in the spring or summer of 2024. After the project is complete, the city will begin working with homeowners on two of the other pillars of the citywide initiative to improve the sanitary sewer overflow problems that have been plaguing the area for decades: lateral lining and roof water redirection. That work, said Cawley, could begin in 2025 or 2026. The Blueprint Columbus team said certain homeowners may be eligible for a new sump pump at no cost to them. Conn said the city does not usually install sump pumps in finished basement. For more information on that program, contact the Blueprint Columbus team at blueprintneighborhoods.com or at 614-645- 1253. Residents will still be able to offer their opinions on the placement of the rain gardens and the native plants they would like to see within the rain gardens via the website and phone number listed above. Conn said Hilltop 4 residents can reach out to the team if they feel the city missed a potential rain garden location. The Blueprint Columbus project will address the sanitary sewer overflow problems in 17 neighborhoods. It will span two decades and cost roughly $1.8 billion. During the initial planning stages, the Hilltop area was designated as a high priority area as there were a significant number of basement backup incidences and the sanitary sewer overflow that discharges into Forest Creek/Scioto Run Big Run. It has been divided into four segments with the Westgate area — which was broken up into two sub-areas due to its size — defined as ‘Hilltop 1’ and the Highland/Harris area designed as ‘Hilltop 4.’ Blueprint Columbus will address the other areas of the Hilltop in the near future.
www.columbusmessenger.com Government Focus Smaller trash trucks sought in the Hilltop By Dedra Cordle Staff Writer The Greater Hilltop Area Commission has submitted an unusual request for the city council to consider as they prepare to finalize their capital improvements budget and the capital improvements plan: invest funds that go toward the purchase of old trucks. For the past several weeks, the advisory board has been soliciting feedback from the public on which capital improvements they would like to see in the area. Among the highest of priorities for the commission and the community at large was addressing the trash-filled alleys that have been plaguing the westside for decades. The commission said at its meeting on April 4 that they would like for the city to consider the purchase of older or smaller trucks that are able to fit into the alleys to collect litter and other found furnishings as they did in the past. According to commissioner Josh Maddox, the city has informed the advisory board that they would no longer be able to pick up trash in the alleys as the new trucks they purchased are too large for the narrow stretch of roadway. He said because there has been an increase in the trash found within the alleys since the decision was made, the only real choice they had was to ask the city to use capital improvement dollars to buy smaller trucks that can. He said that while he is not confident they will do so, he added that it is something that needed to be requested. Commissioner James White agreed. “We want the right trucks to pick up trash in our communities’ alleys because that is what our community needs,” he said. Several city officials who were in the audience questioned whether this would be considered an operational expense rather than a capital expense. The commission said it could be both since the city would have to pay drivers to pick up the trash but noted that the request to purchase smaller trucks could be viewed more on the capital side of the budget. Olabisi Eddy, the city’s westside neighborhood liaison, said there are a number of initiatives the city is taking to address the litter problem, such as moving to 90-gallon collection bins. Commissioner Leah Brudno said that is a start but it is not enough. “We’ve been yelling at them (about this issue) for many years,” she said. “We want them to pick up the damn trash in the alleys.” Brudno added that she would also like to see the alleys fortified so they experience less wear and tear if and when collection trucks venture down there again. The other two priority items on the commission’s capital improvements list was alley repairs and the installation of additional alley lights in the central Hilltop region and the construction of a multi-purpose community facility in the Holly Hill/Georgian Heights/Eakin Elementary School area. Columbus residents can also submit their own list of capital improvements they would like the city to consider for their neighborhood in future budgets. A link to the form can be found on the Greater Hilltop Area Commission’s Facebook page. In other news: Derrick Hessler, the community relations coordinator with Rise Up CBUS!, invited the public to attend the dozen Rise Up CBUS! events that will be taking place throughout the remainder of the year. There are four events scheduled on the westside: April 27 at the Dodge Community Center, 667 Sullivant Ave.; July 13 at Columbia Heights Church, 775 Galloway Road.; Aug. 24 at the Central Baptist Church, 1955 Frank Road.; Sept. 28 at Wedgewood Middle School, 3800 Briggs Road. All of the events are scheduled to take place from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. For a complete list of locations, visit the city’s Rise Up CBUS! website at columbus.gov/neighborhoods/Rise-Up-CBUS! At 12:30 p.m. on April 29, commissioner Jennie Keplar will be hosting a “Context Training” presentation at the Columbus Metropolitan Library: Hilltop Branch, 511 S. Hague Ave. that goes over topics such as the history of the Hilltop and the history of the area commission and its purpose. Get the most out of your lawn this spring. Save now with 50 % OFF * Your First Application 1-844-634-1742 SCHEDULE YOUR APPOINTMENT TODAY! Accepting New Patients Walk-Ins Welcome IV Sedation Offered Most Insurances Accepted 17 Norton Road, Columbus, OH 43228 614-870-3337 April 9, 2023 - WESTSIDE MESSENGER - PAGE 3 Adam Miller STATE REPRESENTATIVE News from the Statehouse The General Assembly continues to work on Ohio’s 2-year operating budget. The budget is expected to be around $45 billion. That is a lot of numbers. These numbers are inanimate and can drive the agenda, making legislators forget the human impact this budget has. This is not red or blue. It is just how budgets can be about numbers and not people. Ohio has an amazing history of accepting testimony from any Ohioan wishing to share their thoughts. Testimony is your opportunity to speak directly to an Ohio Representative or Senator and influence how they will respond to legislation under consideration in their committee. If you are worried about speaking and taking questions, you can always submit your testimony in writing. Testimony is key to reminding legislators on how the budget will affect people. I was humbled and honored to witness the courageous testimony, leadership and persistence of a Hilliard resident who testified before the House Finance Committee about the challenges faced by Ohioans who rely on Direct Service Providers (DSP). These providers are critical to the independence and well-being of individuals with disabilities. The testimony dealt with the wages paid to DSPs and how individuals struggle to find care. The average salary for a DSP is $14 per hour in Ohio. That simply is not fair to those providing the care and those receiving the care. I urge you to go to www.ohiohouse.gov and review the budget for yourself. Come downtown and testify before the committees taking up the budget. It is important that our legislators know budgets are about people, not numbers. Your advocacy from social media to testifying is vital for each member of the General Assembly and is a key component to the budget process. And, like the family from Hilliard, you can put a face to the numbers. Paid Advertisement
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Westside Messenger - April 9th, 2023

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