Trustees wait for revetment project bids

Will determine cost of erosion-control measure

Perry Township trustees must wait until early next month to see how much it will cost to perform an erosion-control project along the community’s Lake Erie shoreline.

Trustees have set a deadline of 3 p.m., Aug. 12, for sealed bids from contractors interested in constructing an armor-stone revetment behind the historic Parmly Mansion on the northern end of Perry Park Road.

A revetment is a protective covering built along a coastal cliff, bank or bluff to protect it from erosion. Armor stone, which comes from quarries, is commonly used as a component in revetments.

...leaders hope that construction of the armor-stone revetment will start by late summer or early fall.

The township’s project is intended to prevent further erosion of a bluff overlooking Lake Erie in the back yard of the Parmly Mansion, which also is known as the Lorimer House.

Trustees previously awarded a contract to KS Associates, an Elyriabased engineering firm, to design the armor-stone revetment, assist the township with seeking bids from contractors, and possibly provide constructionphase services, such as supervising the project.

Another key task that KS Associates completed was submitting a final application in June to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources for a temporary shore structure permit that would allow work to be performed on the property.

After ODNR approved the permit, Perry placed a legal notice in The NewsHerald that invited contractors to submit sealed bids for constructing the armor-stone revetment.

The overall project to prevent further erosion behind the building likely will involve grading and re-sloping the backyard bluff at a shallower angle, along with placement of armor stone to absorb and dissipate the energy of Lake Erie waves.

Last year, Perry Township secured funding for the shoreline-improvement endeavor when the community was awarded $200,000 as part of the new Ohio capital budget bill.

Perry Township government is spearheading the project because it has owned the Parmly Mansion and 20.5 acres of surrounding land since 2002.

Trustees have not been able to find a developer willing to buy and restore the house, which today sits vacant and dilapidated. It was built in 1834.

The community’s government leaders hope that construction of the armorstone revetment will start by late summer or early fall.

“We’re not going into the water, so we could do it (even later in 2020 or early 2021) if we had a mild winter,” township Administrator Karen Sundy said.