(Toledo, OH) Toledo City Council could vote today on a formal request to have Lake Erie designated as an impaired waterway. Council members opened debate Monday on a resolution urging state and federal environmental agencies to make the declaration, citing the ongoing battle with toxic algal blooms. An impairment designation would green light more funding to help clean up the water.
Toledo City Council also may sell a downtown eyesore tonight. City council is expected to vote on a proposal to unload the Nasby Building to a Toledo developer for ten bucks. The deal includes a clause where the developer will pay the city a quarter-million-dollars if he fails to redevelop the vacant office building within a five-year time frame. The mayor also intends to purchase two TARTA-owned buildings, including a bus station to sweeten that development deal.
Toledo City Council is looking to lock up more than $4 million in an escrow account to pay off the debt on a downtown building. The set-aside funds have been sitting in the city’s capital improvement budget and will be used to pay down the city’s debt on a 20-year old bond issue that was used to redevelop the LaSalle Apartments. The city may save some bond interest in the transaction.
Toledo City Council is looking to hire a pair of private law firms as the first step in suing drug makers for the opiate epidemic. The legislation would only pay the two law firms a retainer if such a lawsuit is successful. Other Ohio cities also are suing the makers of prescription pain medication for negligent marketing and distribution of the opioids.