STEUBENVILLE — Jefferson County Commissioners are mulling the wisdom of appropriating $10,000 to cover maintenance needs at property they own around the Youngstown State University educational center.

Commissioner Jake Kleineke requested the topic be put on the agenda for discussion at Thursday’s meeting, but didn’t offer specifics on exactly how the money would be spent. Commissioner Tony Morelli pointed out before any decisions are made he’d need to know how it was going to be used.

“I’ve heard on the streets we’re going to move guardrail, we’re going to put concrete blocks up, we’re going to do several things,” Morelli said. “I don’t know if that’s true but I’ve heard it.”

Morelli said he’d talked with their attorney, “and he doesn’t think it’s smart to do anything right now.”

“I think it’s premature. I think the grass, we can do that — we can hire somebody to mow the grass,” he said, asking Kleineke if that’s what they’d need just to cover the grass cutting.

Kleineke said the mowing hasn’t been advertised for bids “so we don’t know how much it’ll cost.”

“I did stop at the engineer’s office and talked to (him) about possibly starting to fill in the ditch (on the site) but we can’t do that right away, either, because of storm water mud, runoff mitigation,” Kleineke added. “But I did ask a couple of Steubenville Council people about, possibly, what their process is for us to get, for the commissioners to get, a permit and possibly start to fill that in up there. And maybe some of the costs associated with moving a guardrail to make a site to dump trees removed there would have to happen first.”

Morelli questioned the wisdom of appropriating money without knowing how it will be spent, but Kleineke pointed out they need to “start the process.”

“I’m okay with starting what you said, the permits and the trees and that kind of stuff,” Morelli said. “I’d like to think about the money, I just heard about it.”

He also said if it’s feasible, he’d love to see a walking trail along the creek so that “college students or anybody could” walk to businesses in the Lowe’s plaza.

“I think it’s something maybe to look at, if you guys agree,” Morelli said. “I just think dumping dirt’s a little premature but I get it, you just can’t order dirt when we do need it.”

Commissioners approved a task order for conditions assessments for the water department. Assessments for Areas A, G, J and O were authorized, each for $20,000. The total grant value is $80,000.

“This project includes detailed condition assessments for these areas,” Arcadis Engineering’s Aleksandra Dimova wrote. “Work will include field inspections, mapping and documentation of critical system valves, pressure reducing vaults and meter vaults, as applicable to each area. A list of critical assets will be developed, along with recommendations for repair or replacement. All findings will be incorporated into the district’s asset management system and capital improvement plan.”

Arcadis pointed out Areas A, G, J and O serve about 5,254 residents, businesses and community institutions, but many of the key components in each is “aged out of their useful life.”

Commissioners also:

*Agreed to have updated legal property descriptions for the Friendship Park property recorded. The park district’s 45-year lease with the commission has expired, and Friendship Park’s Mindy Nash said it’s “essential that the updated property descriptions be formally recorded … prior to execution of the new lease.”

*Hired Mitch Morelli to be Facilities Supervisor. He’ll eventually replace Patrick Boyles, who plans to retire and recommended the commission hire Morelli. The vote was 2-0, with Commissioner Tony Morelli abstaining.

Commissioner Jake Kleineke said Mitch Morelli had at one time been a township trustee and had a “boots on the ground” mentality and was often “out there, working, paving roads, tar on his boots and so on.”

*Approved purchase of five Meraki firewall advanced security licenses for just over $1,905. Auditor E.J. Conn said the services provided by Meraki are “proprietary in nature and are essential to our operations. Due to an increasing number of department’s utilizing the county’s centralized IT infrastructure, we have been able to greatly decrease the number of (the firewalls) that are required to be maintained, thus decreasing ongoing costs.

*Heard a presentation by Dr. Randi Pokladnick on health and safety issues associated with carbon capture technology, and Mingo Junction area resident Steven Popkie, who asked commissioners to have the water-sewer district staff inspect check valves annually “to make sure they’re working.”