T-L Photo/ROBERT A. DEFRANK Shadyside Councilman Nick Ferrelli Monday points out the chlorination system in the village water plant. The village is clashing with Litman Excavating about the water system upgrade, with Litman believing the work is complete and wanting to be paid, and the village holding that the work is unsatisfactory. A meeting is being scheduled for Thursday.

SHADYSIDE – The village is clashing with Litman Excavating concerning a water system upgrade that began in 2022.

A meeting is being scheduled for Thursday with the Rural Community Assistance Partnership and possibly other entities to discuss the state of the water system and options for the future.

On Monday, Councilman Nick Ferrelli said Litman Excavating considers the project to be completed and is asking to be paid in full. He said the work was unsatisfactory and that numerous issues remain to be resolved. He said the village will make a payment of $122,000, with about $146,000 remaining to be paid.

Ferrelli said Village Administrator Erica Tamburin has secured a grant of about $300,000 through the Ohio Department of Development. However, the village is dissatisfied with Litman Excavating and the consultant firm ADR & Associates.

“The number one biggest is the chlorine system,” Ferrelli said, adding that Litman has claimed ADR did not correctly engineer it while ADR said Litman did not correctly install it.

“Bottom line is the thing don’t work right. It hasn’t worked right since the day it was put in in May. Our employees have had to babysit the thing every day to make sure that our water gets properly chlorinated. You can’t just leave the system run because it doesn’t work right. I don’t care whose fault it is, somebody’s got to fix it,” Ferrelli said. “Basically what everybody’s come down to is that it was a bad design to begin with.”

He did not speculate on how much additional work would cost.

The project had been an extensive one, including 76 new valves to isolate different areas of the village in order to shut off water service in a particular area in the event of a line break. In addition, a backup waterline was run from wells on the opposite side of the railroad tracks to replace one dating from 1965. The unused water softener system was also removed.

After Monday’s council meeting during a tour of the plant, Ferrelli pointed out the chlorine system that replaced the prior use of chlorine gas with liquid chlorine for safety reasons.

He said a 300-gallon chlorine container could not be placed inside the water plant, and the smaller barrels of chlorine and pumps have been moved from their designated room in an unsuccessful effort to address the problem. Ferrelli said employees must come to the plant two to three times daily to monitor the process.

“You can’t trust what it’s going to do, because the pumps aren’t right,” he said. “Nobody’s ever narrowed it down and figured out exactly what the problem is, but it’s just wrong. It doesn’t work.”

In other business, Village Attorney Thomas Ryncarz gave his legal opinion about the village’s obligation regarding a tree on 44th Street and Highland Avenue that is proving to be a nuisance. Council noted the tree has pushed up blocks of sidewalk and created a tripping hazard. Ryncarz said from his research, if the tree proves dangerous, the village could have the responsibility to remove it, but the village could also assess surrounding property owners to recoup the cost.

However, the village is still awaiting a risk assessment report from LaRoche Tree Service.

Councilman Sam Carpina said this should not become a habit.

“We don’t want to get in the business of having to cut trees down,” he said.

Also, the company Kruger Exploration has expressed an interest in oil and gas leasing for 13 acres under Hillview Drive. Ryncarz said he has looked into the company on the Ohio Secretary of State’s website and it seems the company may not have a license to do business in Ohio. Council voted to contact attorney Eric Schramm to explore leasing options.

In other matters, resident Jay Johnson brought up the issue of unmaintained properties, trash on some streets, and graffiti on the bus stop at the north side of the village and asked that more effort be made to keep Shadyside clean.

The village Christmas Parade is set for 7 p.m. Dec. 1. A Small Business Day will be held Dec. 16.