Forgotten Paint Twp. Road not vacated

The Holmes County Commissioners held an emergency meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 26 in the Old Jail in Millersburg, with the main focus on a resolution to vacate a portion of public roadway in Paint Township.

Resolution #11-26-24-1 is a petition to vacate the portion of roadway on Township Road 665, an old logging road that hasn’t been used publicly for many decades but remains open.

A viewing of the property was held Sept. 30 at the site because one resident would be landlocked should the road be closed. Upon the recommendation of Holmes County engineer Chris Young, the commissioners agreed to deny the petition request. Thus, the road will remain open.

“This discussion has been going on for a long time,” Young said. “At this time it will adversely affect a property owner out there. Hopefully, in the future it can be settled.”

Young said while there was another way out for resident Mose Miller, it would be highly impractical.

The roadway is an old, platted street that remains unmaintained status and hasn’t been used for many years, yet the possibility that it could someday be reopened is not something many of the area landowners want to ever see come to fruition.

In a letter to the Holmes County Commissioners, local resident Alice Todaro politely explained the situation that has hung over the heads of residents in that area for decades.

Her letter said, “Township Road 665 was platted in 1820 — before motorized vehicles and even before Holmes County was created. It was to connect two towns by the name of Shanesville and Paintsville, now known as Sugarcreek and Mt. Eaton. The beginning of the road in Shanesville has been lost to history, and one can argue with reasonable evidence that the end of the road, the portion under consideration for vacation, has also been lost over the 200-plus years.”

Todaro said the threat of reopening the road, something that actually came about less than 20 years ago, is something she and others would like to see disappear.

“This road was never meant for modern-day travel,” she explained in her letter to the commissioners, “and would be a danger and detriment of taxpayer money if it ever opened up. Only a vacation would prevent that from happening.”

The commissioners said they appreciated Todaro’s letter and the spirit in which it was written, but because the vacation would essentially landlock Miller’s property and since it hasn’t been utilized as a road for many decades, they chose not to vacate at this time.

Young said there are portions of the road on which trees have taken over the road, and a pond is currently on the road.

“This is the third time this has come up in 30 years,” Commissioner Joe Miller said. “Most of the neighbors have made provisions to be able to reach Route 62 should the road be vacated, but Mose Miller has not.”

Commissioner Miller said he has spoken with Paint Township Trustee Matt Schneider, who said the trustees assumed Mose Miller had an alternate way out, and had they known he didn’t, they wouldn’t have brought the petition to the commissioners seeking vacation.

“I think someday they will work it all out,” Commissioner Miller said, adding the commissioners appreciate the politeness and kindness of everyone involved in the process.

In addition, the commissioners passed Resolution #11-26-24-2, authorizing the chairman to sign a request for release of funds and certification for federally funded state projects.

According to Commissioner Dave Hall, the funds are earmarked for the Berlin wastewater treatment plant the county has been working on.

“As we package this whole project together, this is another vital piece,” Hall said.

Chris Young, Holmes County engineer, said the funds were in the amount of $250,000, and he said he is currently working on the advertising to bid out the projects, noting the bid specs are being bid out in two bids, the first being the base work on the copper portion of the project and alternate No. 1 being on the rest of the treatment plant.

“That way, if we go to bid, we can recommend moving forward to award the copper since it’s in the original bid. Even though you don’t award it right away, if any time within that contract period, you can add to it,” Young said.

He said should the county secure additional grant funding it is currently seeking in the amount of approximately $3.7 million, the county won’t have to go through all the additional paperwork that would be required for a rebid.

The project is being done because of an inordinately high amount of copper located in the Berlin water that flows out through the system to the Doughty Creek. Young said the wildlife is a big concern because of the amount of copper.

The $250,000 grant funding is Appalachian Grant funding.

In other commissioner notes, Commissioner Joe Miller expressed his gratitude to the Millersburg Lions for their effort to add plenty of holiday spirit to Historic Downtown Millersburg by placing Christmas lights throughout the downtown area.

“It’s special because it takes time to do that and they come out on the weekend when it’s cold and do that,” Miller said. “They’re special people.”