The Knox County Commission has established the permanent assessment base for the North Branch of the Ford Street Ditch at $57,192. This decision was made during its meeting on December 23.
According to a meeting video, County Administrator Jason Booth said that this amount adheres to regulations set forth in Ohio Revised Code 6137.03. Booth explained that the permanent assessment base was determined based on the county engineer's estimate during a reevaluation of the project, which considered current prices for excavation, clearing, seeding, fertilizer, and mulch. The total cost amounted to $285,960.35, with the code permitting a cap of 20% of that figure, equating to $59,192.
A Mount Vernon News article reported that Knox County conducted a public hearing on December 16 to reassess the maintenance cap as part of its responsibilities for inspecting and maintaining ditches. During a meeting on November 6, Knox County Soil and Conservation District Program Administrator Rob Clendening informed commissioners about statutory limits regarding funding accumulation for each ditch project.
According to Deputy County Engineer Clint Cochran in a November 10 article, estimates could be revised based on original projects. He noted that this particular ditch was constructed in 1977 and would require an estimated $285,000 for reconstruction.
