District paid $27K per acre for all Eagle Creek basin land

DEFIANCE — The Maumee Watershed Conservancy District, Defiance, paid a flat $27,000 per acre to owners of farmland needed to build the proposed Eagle Creek flood basin in 2020. So far, the conservancy district has refused to release the purchase price for each of the four parcels, a total of 416.8 acres, citing executive privilege due to ongoing negotiations. In all, the conservancy district paid $11.25 million for the property. That's about half the land needed to build the basin. However, the purchase price appears to be based on appraisals sought by the Blanchard River Watershed Solutions group in May and October of 2019, which set the per-acre value of each of the four properties at $27,000. The Blanchard River Watershed Solutions group includes businesses, government and private citizens, along with representatives of Hancock United for a Better Blanchard, or HUBB, and Citizens United for a Better Blanchard, or CUBB. The group has consistently advocated for construction of the basin, despite an earlier decision by the conservancy district to abandon a basin plan due to the cost and concerns about public support. The district board is expected to ask the Maumee Watershed Conservancy District Court to include construction of the $60 million basin in its work plan on Friday. The 15-judge panel, which oversees the operations of the conservancy district, will convene for its annual meeting at 10 a.m. via teleconference. Public viewing will be made available at the Defiance County Courthouse, 221 Clinton St. Limited seating will be available, and masks will be required. The basin, which is expected to range in size from 600 to 800 acres, will be dry most of the time. However, during a flood, the basin could hold enough stormwater to drop floodwater 1.5 feet on Findlay's Main Street during a 100-year storm, like the flood of August 2007. Once constructed, it will cost about $100,000 annually to operate and maintain the basin. Upkeep would include mowing, debris removal, maintenance of the basin's outlet and emergency spillway, and maintenance of public access locations. So far, there has been no recommendation on how operating and maintenance expenses should be addressed in the future, but property tax assessments have been discussed. Any taxes levied to support the basin project would need the approval of the court. Planning for the basin has continued, including a preliminary study of the project by Stantec engineering, despite pushback from the judges during the court's annual meeting in 2020. The meeting was delayed from May until September due to the pandemic. The conservancy district serves Allen, Auglaize, Defiance, Fulton, Hancock, Hardin, Henry, Lucas, Mercer, Paulding, Putnam, Shelby, Van Wert, Williams and Wood counties. Common Pleas Judge Reginald Routson represents Hancock County on the conservancy court. During the September court meeting, Routson pressed the conservancy district's leadership for answers on the court's authority, and the conservancy board's ability to move ahead with land purchases for a project not yet approved by the court. He said there are concerns about the project and the "massive expenditure" of tax dollars. State funding, over the course of several years, is being sought to pay for the construction. Money to pay for the property already purchased was taken from a $15 million grant from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. Another $15 million was awarded to the project by the State of Ohio, as part of the capital budget, in December. In January 2020, the conservancy district purchased a 264.329-acre farm owned by former Hancock County commissioner Steve Oman, valued at $7,137,000 by the appraisal. The farm is bordered by Eagle Township Road 49 to the north and straddles Eagle Creek just west of U.S. 68, near Eagle Township 168. Oman was once a vocal opponent of flood control in Findlay, arguing in favor of only cleaning the river and preserving the farmland. In July 2013, with the fight over flood control reaching a fever pitch, Oman helped lead a group of about 30 people — most representing the farming community — in crashing a private meeting of regional officials, including U.S. Sen. Rob Portman and U.S. Rep. Bob Latta, to lobby for cleaning the river as a method of flood control. Oman then ran for Hancock County commissioner in the 2014 Republican primary on a similar platform, and lost to incumbent Phillip Riegle. A second parcel, with 59.918 acres, was given a market value of $1,618,00 million in the appraisal, again at $27,000 an acre. It is bordered by Eagle Township Road 77 to the west and stops short of a meandering Eagle Creek to the west near the Hancock County 172 intersection. The former owner is listed as a trust, with Joe E. Brown as trustee. The third parcel, consisting of 26.667 acres, was valued at $720,000, or $27,000 per acre. The property is located at 13338 U.S. 68, Findlay. The former owner is listed as 400 Main Street LLC. According to the Ohio Secretary of State's business listings, Douglas W. Huffman, a Findlay attorney, 200 W. Sandusky St., is the statutory agent for the LLC. The file itself is labeled as the "Guglielmi Appraisal." The fourth parcel, consisting of 65.879 acres, was valued at $1,779,000, or $27,000 per acre. The property is located at U.S. Route 68, bordered to the east by Eagle Creek and U.S. 68, just west of Eagle Township Road 77 and north of Eagle Township Road 49. The former owner is listed as D & M Alexander Inc. The Ohio Secretary of State's Office lists Mervin L. Alexander Jr., 411 Huron Road, as the statutory agent for the corporation. All four appraisals were prepared by Larry E. McCormick of Midwest Appraisal, Inc., 400 W. Sandusky St.