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Council Minutes of 5-21-2019 <br />to improve over time. With Cleveland having economy of scale in project work and <br />technology, it would be wise for North Olmsted to tap into the Cleveland Water system <br />network as it looks to maintain the network as one big connection. He said it would be <br />surprising to him if the assets in North Olmsted would have a dollar value that is tangible <br />to what a building or vehicle would have so there is not much of a downside of the assets <br />being transferred to Cleveland Water. <br />William Brake <br />24881 Kennedy Ridge Road <br />Mr. Brake said he wanted to voice his support for 2018-90 and to offer some perspective <br />for Council to consider in addition to the work Councilwoman Hemann and the <br />committee has produced. He said after a 30 year career in heavy industry one aspect that <br />often gets overlooked is preventative maintenance for aging assets. It's common for asset <br />owners to continue to repair and replace as necessary, but it's another to go out and <br />proactively spend more capital dollars to protect the asset and to avoid the replacement <br />and surprise breakdown. He said one of the attractive things he finds about this program <br />is the employees of Cleveland Water are professionals at predictive and preventative <br />maintenance. They are also professionals at managing large networks of underground <br />assets, which are unique skills and talents. He said those are great tools to have on the <br />City's side. He said the money is there, the City may get some now, and some more next <br />year and into the future, but the money is there and getting involved in the program now <br />avails the City of near term money and helps remove the surprise and uncertainty of <br />repairing the same pipe again and again. With the cooperation of the technology and <br />expertise of the City of Cleveland's Water District, the City of North Olmsted is in a <br />much better place to proactively manage our water infrastructure. Mr. Brake also wanted <br />to offer some perspective on the non -compete requirements of the deal. The communities <br />participating have limitations on what they can offer firms. He said one of the things <br />businesses like the most is for the cities to believe the enemy is other cities. If you look at <br />recent businesses and how they choose their sites, business owners will work two cities <br />or more against each other. What happens is the business postpones the final decision <br />until they can get the most squeeze out of a city. He said as he understands the language <br />of the proposal stops that and really forces the cities to have a position that say no more. <br />When cities compete against one another it's a race to the bottom. He said the backstops <br />in the agreement stop that and align the area as a regional economic district. <br />Bruce Robinson <br />24302 Gessner Road <br />Mr. Robinson asked Councilwoman Hemann to clarify the litigation Westlake has with <br />the water system as he did not understand what it is. <br />Councilwoman Hemann responded she would give a short explanation before deferring <br />to the Director of Law. She said fundamentally North Olmsted's water is supplied by the <br />treatment plant in Westlake. She said the water can be shifted here or there, but 80-98 <br />percent of the water comes from the treatment center and through lines located in <br />Westlake. The City of Westlake is in litigation with Cleveland Water because they want <br />to participate with Avon Lake Water and that began litigation over the costs and the <br />5 <br />