Geneva-On-The-Lake Considering Erosion Options After Levy Vote Delayed

Ohio’s delayed primary has Geneva-on-the-Lake and neighboring Township Park reassessing options for halting severe erosion along Lake Erie.

The park service has a levy on the ballot that would aid in that effort, but the final vote on measure now won’t come until June.

Geneva-on-the-Lake and the park have seen dramatic erosion in recent months, and local governments are working with state and national officials to find funding to address the issue.

The levy is meant to provide an immediate response and cover costly, long-term preventative measures amounting to more than $1 million, said Township Park Trustee Amanda Briggs deLavini.

Engineers have proposed cheaper, more immediate options, she said, but they’d cost around $50,000.

“I’m still not sure that’s in our best interest, but we do need to talk to our engineering team and make sure that that spending makes sense, or, is it better to wait?” Briggs deLavini said. “Those are still questions we’re answering.”

Local officials had a meeting scheduled for after the levy vote, Briggs deLavini said, but had to postpone it due to the primary delay and coronavirus concerns. A remote meeting is set for later this week, she said, to discuss what other options are available.

The shoreline continues to erode in the meantime, with more than 55 feet in total gone at the worst points. The water is expected to continue rising through the spring, she said, making it hard to predict what the shoreline will look like moving forward.

“We’re very hopeful that this will maybe go away, or at least lessen quite a bit,” she said. “But just with what the predictions are, we’re kind of anticipating the worst.”