Thursday, October 31, 2013

Specialized Transportation Grants Awarded

The Specialized Transportation Program operated by ODOT has announced its recent round of awards. In the TMACOG region, the Anne Grady Foundation in Lucas County and the Wood County Children’s Services Association received funding. The Anne Grady Foundation will receive funding for a passenger van and Wood County Children’s Services will fund a passenger van and a radio system.

The federal Specialized Transportation Program provides 80 percent of the cost of equipment that serves the transportation needs of the elderly or disabled population. Applicants must be non-profit organizations and must come up with the additional 20 percent funding through local sources. 

Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments | www.tmacog.org

MEMBER NEWS - Regional Public Works Association

Guest article by Amy J. Wood, Commissioner of Special Projects, City of Toledo

The American Public Works Association (APWA) has recently established the Northwest Ohio Branch chapter.  The northwest Ohio chapter includes the following counties: Allen, Auglaize, Crawford, Defiance, Erie, Fulton, Hancock, Hardin, Henry, Huron, Lucas, Ottawa, Paulding, Putnam, Sandusky, Seneca, Van Wert, Williams, Wood and Wyandot.

We would like TMACOG members to consider joining the APWA if they are not already members. The benefits of membership are vast.  Some are listed after the jump:

MEMBER NEWS - Webinar about Water Infrastructure for Small Communities

Helping Small Communities Meet 
Their Water & Wastewater System Needs
Presented by Small Communities Environmental Infrastructure Group
Tuesday, December 3, noon – 1:30 p.m.

Small Communities Environmental Infrastructure Group (SCEIG) is a consortium of state and federal agencies, and independent organizations that provide loan/grant funding and technical assistance. Learn about funding options available to local governments for improvements to water and wastewater systems. There will be opportunities to ask questions during the webinar. 


Information on joining the live webinar will be sent to regional communities in a follow-up e-mail.  For more information, contact Joyce Gray, Ohio Rural Community Assistance Program (RCAP) at 440.331.6804 or jrgray@wsos.org.  Ms. Gray can be reached after Monday, November 18. 

Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments | www.tmacog.org

Student Watershed Watch - Testing the Waters

TMACOG’s Student Watershed Watch annually brings hundreds of junior high school and high school students out of the classroom to experience environmental field work, learn to analyze their data, and to present it to a group of their peers. The goal of the long-running program is to create the next generation of environmental stewards and show young people careers in environmental fields, from university instructor, to EPA disaster clean up team, to snake expert on the Lake Erie islands.

Students collect testing supplies.
 Testing day for students was Thursday, October 17. Testing day is when students collect samples and make measurements. With direction from trained teachers, the students check for water turbidity, temperature, dissolved oxygen, and pH. They measure nutrients including phosphorus and nitrogen, and measure the amount of bacteria. In the stream, students measure the depth and width of the waterway, speed of the water, and collect benthic macroinvertebrates from the stream bed.  Back in the classroom, all the data is reviewed and analyzed. In many cases, schools have data going back more than a decade that they can use to judge trends.

The Student Summit is November 21 at the University of Toledo’s Scott Park Campus. The keynote speaker for the 24th annual summit is Greg Lipps. He studies hellbenders, a type of aquatic salamander historically found in water systems draining to the Ohio River. The species is listed as endangered by the Ohio Division of Wildlife.
 
Using a seine to collect macroinvertebrates 
living in the river's bed.
Hundreds of students will gather to hear from Mr. Lipps and to hear presentations from participating classes, see tabletop poster displays, and attend workshops. Judges will evaluate the spoken presentations and present awards for most informative, most creative, and best overall. Students evaluate and determine awards for the table top displays.




Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments | www.tmacog.org

New and Improved tmacog.org

The TMACOG website has launched with a new look and new features. The re-design makes it easier for users to find committee information, meeting dates, reports and documents in fewer steps. The new home page is a tidy set of tabs and links that take you quickly to what you are looking for. A calendar on the home page will have meeting agendas and minutes linked. You are invited to review the site map and then spend some time checking out the new and improved site. Let us know what you think at public_info@tmacog.org

Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments | www.tmacog.org

TMACOG Nominations Invited

TMACOG has grown in influence and in value to its members through strong, committed leaders. It’s that time of year where members consider how they can best serve their communities through their work at TMACOG. Each January, members select new committee assignments and elect TMACOG leadership at the General Assembly. Nominations for councils, committees, board of trustees, and leadership are now being accepted.  Bring your energy, concerns, and challenges to the TMACOG forum and help build a strong and cohesive region.

Clickhere to review a complete list of committees and councils on which you may serve. Anyone may serve on a council or committee and TMACOG needs people with a variety of skills and interests. Self-nominations are due no later than Monday, December 2, 2013. Call and request the nomination form. Voting and assignments will take place at the General Assembly Wednesday, January 29, 2014 at the Perrysburg Holiday Inn French Quarter. 

Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments | www.tmacog.org

Welcome New Member

TMACOG welcomes CT Consultants as a new non-governmental member. CT Consultants is an engineering, architectural, and planning firm headquartered in Mentor with several offices including Akron, Columbus, North Canton, Youngstown, and Toledo. They work in transportation and environmental planning as well as urban revitalization and site development. Contact the northwest Ohio office at 1690 Woodlands Drive, Suite 200 in Maumee. Phone: 419.897.7922. Kent A. Bryan, P.E, is the regional manager of the firm’s Toledo office. 

Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments | www.tmacog.org

Gas Cap Testing and Replacement Report

Although people in northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan are not required to have environmental checks on their cars, hundreds of drivers volunteer every year to have gas caps on their passenger vehicles tested for leaks.

TMACOG and the City of Toledo Division of Environmental Services partner on the summer project which has been ongoing since 2000. The goal of the testing program is to share information and encourage actions that reduce auto emissions that can lead to smog. Testing and replacing leaking gas caps reduces the amount of pollution emitted into the atmosphere.

Local partners included Krogers, Barney’s, and Circle K gas stations. These partners volunteered the use of their property for a few hours of testing and invited drivers in with signs and posters. There were 22 testing events in Lucas and Wood counties and one in Lambertville, Michigan.

In 2013, 59 of 627 tested gas caps (9.4 percent) were replaced with new gas caps. Better fitting caps prevented approximately 11,741 pounds of pollution from entering the atmosphere. 

Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments | www.tmacog.org

Clean Ohio Funds - Howard Farms

A new park – which will be the second largest park in the Metroparks of the Toledo Area system – was funded in part by Clean Ohio funds. Howard Farms is about 1,000 acres in Jerusalem Township near the Lake Erie shore, adjacent to the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge and near Metzger Marsh. Oak Openings Preserve, the largest metropark in the system, is 3,765 acres.

A public meeting is scheduled for Thursday, November 7, 7-9 p.m. at the Jerusalem Township Hall, 9501 Jerusalem Rd, Curtice. Staff of the Metroparks and contractors involved in the restoration and park development will discuss plans for the property. These plans incorporate comments collected at an earlier public meeting.


The Metroparks plan calls for the Howard Farms property to be restored as wetlands, providing habitat to waterbirds and other wildlife. The property was purchased with a combination of funds including the Clean Ohio fund, Ducks Unlimited, and the Metroparks land acquisition fund created through a tax levy. Ducks Unlimited will be working with developer SmithGroupJJR to restore the agricultural land to wetland. For more information on the public meeting, contact Scott Carpenter at the Metroparks: 419-407-9700.  

Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments | www.tmacog.org

Millions Allocated for NW Ohio Transportation Projects

On September 26, ODOT’s Transportation Review and Advisory Council (TRAC) met and approved the “Final 2014-2017 Major New Program List” of projects. The list includes the projects previously approved by the Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission (OTIC) to be financed with turnpike bonds. The final list of projects approved in the TMACOG planning area includes the following:
  • McCord Road grade separation; $31.6 million estimate, TRAC allocates $3.3 million, FY 2014 start construction
  • I-75 widening from SR 199/SR 25 (Perrysburg) to CR 99 (Findlay); $195.4 million estimate, $193 million TRAC (OTIC bonds), FY 14 start construction
  •  I-75/I-475 Interchange upgrade phase 2 (Jeep Split); $175.9 million estimate, $163 million TRAC ( OTIC bonds), FY 15 start construction
  •  I-75 widening from Phillips to I-280; $51 million estimate, $45 million TRAC (OTIC bonds), FY 15 start construction
  • I-475/US 20 interchange upgrade (Central Ave. interchange); $59 million estimate, $44.0 million TRAC ( OTIC bonds), FY 15 start construction

The total cost of the above projects is $512.9 million with a TRAC funding commitment of $448.3 million programmed for 2014 and 2015 fiscal year construction.  Of the total $970 million available from the sale of OTIC bonds, $422.9 million will be committed to projects in the TMACOG MPO planning area of Lucas and Wood counties.

The Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments

Welcome New Member

TMACOG welcomes CT Consultants as a new non-governmental member. CT Consultants is an engineering, architectural, and planning firm headquartered in Mentor with several Ohio offices including Akron, Columbus, North Canton, Youngstown, and Toledo. They work in transportation and environmental planning as well as urban revitalization and site development. Contact the northwest Ohio office at 1690 Woodlands Drive, Suite 200 in Maumee. Phone: 419.897.7922. Kent A. Bryan, P.E, is the regional manager of the firm’s Toledo office. 

Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments | www.tmacog.org

Upcoming Events - November 2013

Pollution Prevention & Good Housekeeping Workshop
Tuesday, November 19, 8:15 a.m. – 3 p.m. at the Lucas County Sanitary Engineer Facility, 1111 S. McCord, Holland.
Contact: Kari Gerwin, 419.241.9155 ext. 103

Student Watershed Watch
Thursday, November 21, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m., at the University of Toledo Scott Park Campus
Contact: Matt Horvat, 419.241.9155 ext. 123

Water and Wastewater Infrastructure: Presented by Small Communities Environmental Infrastructure Group
Tuesday, December 3, noon-1:30 p.m.
Contact: Joyce Gray, Ohio Rural Community Assistance Program (RCAP), 440.331.6804

TMACOG Leadership Retreat
Wednesday, December 18, 2:30 – 4 p.m. at the Grand Lobby of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza
Contact: Tony Reams, 419.241.9155, ext. 179

TMACOG General Assembly
January 29, 2014 at the Holiday Inn French Quarter, Perrysburg

Contact: Tony Reams, 419.241.9155, ext. 179

Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments | www.tmacog.org

Thursday, October 3, 2013

Upcoming TMACOG Events

Passenger Rail Forum
Monday, October 7, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. at the Toledo Club, 235 14th St.
Contact: Diane Reamer-Evans, 419.241.9155 ext. 117

TMACOG Tech: Collaboration and Shared Services
Wednesday, October 16, 2:30 – 4 p.m. at the Grand Lobby of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Plaza
Contact: Peggy Ricard, 419.241.9155 ext. 105

Environmental Law Enforcement Workshop
Wednesday and Thursday, October 30 and 31 at the office of Northwestern Water and Sewer District: 12560 Middleton Pike in Bowling Green
Contact: Susie Harpham, 614.325.9710

New Transportation Staff

The TMACOG Transportation department is pleased to welcome Lance Dasher who was hired in August as a transportation planner. Dasher previously spent two summers at TMACOG as an intern working in traffic counting. In his new full-time position, he will be working with senior staff on the Transportation Improvement Program, on bike and pedestrian issues, and with rail and transit programs. Dasher is working on his master’s degree in geography and planning at the University of Toledo. He has a bachelor’s in the same field from UT. He chose his field because, he says, “The work is about helping a community better itself, taking practical steps to improve the future. That’s what I want to do.”

Member Highlight: Toledo Trucking Association

It’s been a busy time recently for members of the Toledo Trucking Association. They participated in the 2013 Ohio Conference on Freight in September, and September was Truck Safety Month with local members organizing outreach activities. Even without special events, things are always moving in the trucking industry. President of Toledo Trucking Association David Black said that increases in the amount of freight and changes in regulations mean that truckers are always working at full speed.

David Black described the regional trucking business as solid but in flux.


“The trucking industry in northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan is robust. There are many small- to medium-sized companies with niche markets.”


There are firms that specialize in delivering food, and others that move only auto parts. He said that there is plenty of freight to be moved but lots of challenges to the industry, from cost of equipment, to training of personnel, to regulations.