Staff photo / Chris McBride Hubbard Township Trustee Jason Tedrow discusses state negotiations and dam maintenance during a Friday Trumbull County commissioners meeting, where officials from Hubbard and Brookfield, had discussions on lingering questions before deciding whether to support the Western Reserve Land Conservancy’s effort to buy land around Coalburg Lake and address its aging dam.

WARREN — Trumbull County commissioners and trustees from Brookfield and Hubbard townships showed support Friday for a plan to buy land around Coalburg Lake and to save its old dam, agreeing to review resolutions next week that could help get state grant money without putting local governments on the hook for costs or risks.

Officials said Trumbull County Assistant Prosecutor BIll Danso needs to check the language to keep liabilities off the county and townships before the entities pass resolutions. Hubbard Township plans to meet Sept. 9, Brookfield Township could have a special meeting Sept. 8 if needed, and commissioners will talk about it during a workshop Sept. 9.

The Western Reserve Land Conservancy, which is leading the effort, needs the backing by Sept. 12 to apply for Clean Ohio grants to buy the 338-acre property.

Commissioners Tony Bernard, Rick Hernandez and Denny Malloy hosted the special meeting at the county administration building. They met with trustees from Hubbard and Brookfield, along with the Western Reserve Land Conservancy and the Community Foundation of Western Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio. The talk focused on the private land that spans both townships, including the lake, three wetlands and Little Yankee Run stream.

Alex Czayka, chief conservation officer for the Western Reserve Land Conservancy, explained the plan. His group has a deal to buy the land for about $1.3 million, which is lower than its $1.8 million to $2.2 million value. They aim to use state grants to cover most costs, with no money needed from taxpayers or local governments.

Czayka said the conservancy would own most of the land and give 15 to 17 acres around the dam to the Community Foundation. That group would raise money to study and maybe fix the dam.

“We have been engaged on this on and off for many years as an organization,” Czayka said. “The biggest and the most important key step here is that somebody gets control of this property to address the dam, right? Because that is a lingering liability.”

He pointed to past work on McKelvey Lake near Youngstown, where they bought land, fixed a dam issue and turned it over to the city.

Kyle English from the Community Foundation said they want to see if the dam can be saved without huge costs. “It’s not, let’s save the dam at all costs,” English said. “…We just wanted to have a study done to see if the dam could be saved.”

He added that if repairs are too expensive, they might remove the dam and still make the land a park. English said his group would create a separate entity to handle insurance and liability for the dam.

Hubbard trustee Jason Tedrow updated those present on talks with state officials.

“They gave us an extension until 2026. I believe it’s Sept. 30,” Tedrow said, adding that monthly reports on maintenance like mowing and water levels have kept things on track. He said the owners might remove just the spillway if no one buys the land, as it’s cheaper than full repairs.

Commissioners and trustees voiced concerns about risks.

Hernandez asked if the foundation had insurance ready. English said, “We would create an entity that would have the insurance in place to be able to take on that liability.” Malloy worried about what happens if the dam fails, noting a similar case in Girard where breaching a dam created wetland problems.

Brookfield trustee Dan Suttles asked about costs if the lake is drained. English said the land’s value might not drop much, and the focus is on making it a community spot either way. “The lake itself only makes up about 57 surface acres, right? The entire property is 356, so there’s 300 more or 299 acres in excess of this,” Czayka said.

Danso warned about wording in resolutions to avoid liability.

“A lot of it’s going to depend, I think, on, frankly, what the language of a resolution for a letter of support would say what you’re agreeing to,” Danso said. He noted a current court order on the dam that could pull in anyone who helps block its removal.

Trustees like Monica Baker from Hubbard asked if townships would be safe.

“The bottom line is, should you do this? Should we agree? Should you do the ownership property, if the musical chair stops and someone’s left holding the bag as you two, commissioners, trustees, we have no liability,” Baker said. Czayka confirmed, “Us and the Community Foundation are taking out all the risk here.”

Brookfield trustee Mark Ferrara said the meeting cleared up questions.

“This meeting is very important. We had questions. We didn’t know. Number one, we had no finances to commit to,” Ferrara said.

He added his support as long as legal checks protect them.