PLAIN CITY – The Plain City Village Council and the Madison County Commissioners agreed Monday at a special meeting to file a petition with the Madison County Court of Common Pleas to establish what will be called the Mid-Ohio Water and Sewer District, a quasi-governmental organization that will monitor, regulate and collect fees for water usage and tap fees, as well as construct and operate central water and sanitary sewers along new lines that will run down the U.S. Route 42 corridor, starting in Plain City and heading south toward West Jefferson. Mid-Ohio will have its own budget, will be granted the right to apply for grants and loans and may act independently in many situations.

Ordinarily, this would be a matter for a lone local government, but as Plain City straddles the Madison/Union County line and part of the village will fall into the Mid-Ohio Water and Sewer District, both a quorum of both governments were required to be at the table Monday.

Established water and sewer districts are not uncommon in Ohio, especially for areas such as southeast Union County and northeast Madison County which are experiencing a massive influx of population. These districts, if property managed, can make sure that local governments can continue to keep an iron the fire and make appropriate decisions for their constituents as long as the population continues to multiply.

The Council and Commission were also told Monday that with new facilities and lines will ultimately result in cost savings to future customers and consolidating facilities and eliminate discharge wastewater emptying into both the Little and Big Darby Creeks.

The Mid-Ohio Water and Sewer District will act as its own governing body, with the following restriction: Trustees of five-person board which will oversee the Mid-Ohio Water and Sewer District will be appointed, rather than elected. Two of the appointees will be from the Village of Plain City and two more from the Madison County Commission. The fifth member will then be appointed by the first four.

Monday’s vote to file the initial petition to the court to establish the District is just the first of a long series of petitions, paperwork and red tape that the both the village and the county must wade through to eventually establish the Mid-Ohio Water and Sewer District. Many more meetings and hearings will be conducted, at which time one, or both, of the local governments may pump the brakes on the project.

Madison County Commissioners Mark Forrest and Chris Wallace were both present at Monday’s meeting and both voted favor of filing the petition. Frank Reed, a Council Member of the PCVC, cast the lone “no” vote on the evening as both resolutions passing with super majorities.

Next stop for the petition is the Madison County Court of Common Pleas, where the petition is expected to be filed prior to the end of the year.

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