LISBON — Columbiana County Engineer Bert Dawson submitted his 2025 annual road resurfacing report to commissioners, noting last year’s chip and seal program resulted in the resurfacing of 110 miles of county, township and village roads.

“This is a testament to the hard work of the crews and the extensive cooperation between the county engineer’s office, township trustees and village officials to provide the best roadways for the traveling public within all of Columbiana County,” Dawson wrote.

He added that “the overall condition of the county roads, bridges and culverts are the best they have ever been. The dedication of the engineer’s office employees, roadway crews and the cooperation of Columbiana County Commissioners has enabled us to reach this goal.”

County roads resurfaced with asphalt included: Sprucevale, 1.92 miles, $390,973; Calcutta Smith Ferry, 1.14 miles, $268,719; Parkway Avenue, 1.81 miles, $357,179; and Middleton, .60 miles, $122,062; for a total of $1,138,935. County chip and seal roads included: Bye, 0.55 miles, $15,899; Old 344, 1.782 miles, $52,359; Buckeye, 1.05 miles, $30,354; Stookesberry, 1.93 miles, $55,794; and Anderson, .69 miles, $19,947; for a total of $154,408. The line striping program totaled $293,039, with 44.6 miles of polyester paint and 57.1 miles of waterborne paint. The Bonesville School Road bridge project in Fairfield Township cost $416,242.

In his report, Dawson explained that the upkeep of roads and bridges is financed primarily by highway user fees such as motor vehicle fuel taxes and license registration fees, averaging $7 million annually. Supplemental funds (voted bond issues and levies and fines) are available to specific highway improvements.

The report also said that Ohio Revised Code allows for counties to receive donations from groups or individuals for the maintenance of roadways traveled by animal-drawn vehicles, in what’s called the buggy road maintenance fund. The county engineer received donations from the Amish Steering Committee for $3,825 in 2925, with those funds used for the striping and maintenance of Middle Beaver Road, Sprucevale Road, Crestview Road and Salem Grange Road.

Projects planned for 2026 include county bridges on old state Route 45, Mechanicstown Road, Hunston Road and Hadley Road and the bow string arch support project in Center Township at the fairgrounds. County roadway improvements planned include 7.97 miles of asphalt and 12.21 miles of chip and seal. The roads for asphalt include Old 344, Columbiana Lisbon Road, Calcutta Smith Ferry Road (Parkway to State Line) and Old Fredericktown Road. For chip and seal, the county roads are Teegarden, Middle Beaver, Clarkson and Bye.

During the meeting, commissioners accepted bids opened for the Hunston Road bridge replacement in Unity Township and referred them to the engineer’s office for a recommendation. The low bidder was BOG Construction, Inc. of Salem for $870,030. Other bids were submitted by Marucci & Gaffney Excavating Co., Youngstown, for $997,710 and A.P. O’Horo Company, Youngstown, for $954,000.

Commissioners also authorized Dawson to advertise for bids for the 2026 bituminous materials program for liquid asphalt emulsion. Electronic bids will be opened at the engineer’s garage on April 1.

In other business, commissioners granted the annexation of 6.279 acres to the city of Columbiana from Unity Township for Lakefront Preserve, LLC which is adjacent to the Links at Firestone Farms, LLC, according to the petition documents. The city already passed resolutions consenting to the annexation and outlining city services that will be provided to the property.

Commissioner Roy Paparodis, president of the board, read a proclamation commissioners approved to proclaim March as Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, saying this year’s campaign, “The Power of Support,” “emphasizes fostering inclusion, independence and advocacy through community connections.”

According to the proclamation, nearly 1,000 people with developmental disabilities are served by the county Board of Developmental Disabilities and their families, friends, neighbors and coworkers “encourage everyone to focus on the abilities of all people.”

“When families, staff and supporters come together, individuals gain confidence, discover new possibilities, and continue building lives filled with purpose and connection,” the proclamation said.

CCBDD Superintendent Bill Devon attended the commissioners’ meeting and said a lot of activities are planned, including the always popular basketball game between the staff and the clients. Pete and Penny Penguin from Youngstown State University will be on hand at the game at 5 p.m. March 25 at Lisbon David Anderson High School. Next Tuesday, March 10, will be the employee recognition dinner at the Columbiana County Career and Technical Center. There will be a petting zoo, too, at the Robert Bycroft School. He said clients have a lot more opportunities now than they did before for work and for their lives.

Devon described the month as a “celebration of the great things happening in Columbiana County.”

The commissioners entered into executive session behind closed doors with county Department of Job and Family Services Director Rachel Ketterman to discuss employee discipline. When they returned to open session, commissioners agreed to take action discussed in executive session. When asked about the situation, Ketterman said a public assistance employee was suspended for one day for breach of confidentiality for sending confidential information to a party that was not permitted to have the information.

The next meeting of county commissioners will be 9 a.m. March 11 in the downtown courthouse.

mgreier@mojonews.com