NEWS: Kyle Dreyfuss-Wells to be appointed CEO, sees "opportunity to build upon successes"

Leadership, passion, commitment among words used to describe Dreyfuss-Wells as CEO Ciaccia prepares for February retirement

Kyle Dreyfuss-Wells will be appointed Chief Executive Officer effective February 11. Dreyfuss-Wells will succeed Julius Ciaccia who, after more than nine years as CEO, will retire on February 10, 2017.

Kyle Dreyfuss-Wells addresses
the City Club, 2016

"Under the leadership of CEO Ciaccia, the Sewer District has become one of the most renowned progressive environmental organizations in the nation," Dreyfuss-Wells said. "I would like to thank the Board of Trustees for giving me the opportunity to build upon those successes."

Dreyfuss-Wells has been with the Sewer District since 2008, and currently is the Deputy Director of Watershed Programs. In addition to her leadership role in the development and implementation of the Regional Stormwater Management Program, Dreyfuss-Wells played a critical role in the negotiations with the federal government of Project Clean Lake, the Sewer District’s program to significantly reduce the amount of raw sewage discharging into the environment.

She has led on the Sewer District’s Green Infrastructure Program, including the implementation of the grants program, which is designed to remove stormwater from the combined system as redevelopment activities occur.

NEWS: "I can happily announce my intent to retire," CEO Ciaccia to leave a clean-water legacy

Ciaccia has served the Sewer District since 2007.

Julius Ciaccia, Jr., has announced his intent to retire from the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, effective this coming January. Ciaccia has led the organization since 2007.

Ciaccia joined the Sewer District following a 30-year tenure with the City of Cleveland, serving as Director of Public Utilities and Commissioner of Water. Throughout his career, he has been extremely active with water and wastewater organizations, serving as President of Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA), Water Utility Council Chair for American Water Works Association (AWWA), Chair at Water Research Foundation (WRF), and as President of the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA). He currently serves as a US Water Alliance board member and locally on the Cleveland Water alliance board.

NEWS: Board officers are re-elected for 2014-2015 term

On July 3, the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District Board of Trustees re-elected Darnell Brown as President and Ronald D. Sulik as Vice President. The Board has also elected Walter O’Malley as Secretary.

Brown was first appointed to the Board by former Cleveland Mayor Michael White in 2001 and currently serves as Chief Operating Officer for the City of Cleveland. He previously served as Board President 2005-2011.

Sulik previously served on the Board from 1985-1994, was re-appointed in 2002 and most recently served as Vice President for 2010-2014. He represents the Sewer District’s 61 suburban communities and has held the positions of President, Vice President and Secretary throughout his 19-year tenure.

O’Malley, current President of IBEW Local 38, was appointed to the Board in 2009 by Cleveland Mayor Frank G. Jackson. He previously served as Acting Secretary, replacing former Secretary Sheila E. Kelly following her retirement in March 2014.

“We've had many important issues in front of us [in the last year],” Brown said. "We'll have many more. We must do our due diligence on green infrastructure, and get closure on stormwater [management]. Those are two key issues for us."

"We want to do all we can to ensure that this agency continues to maintain its national and regional reputations," he added.

Board appointees serve five-year terms and the complete list of Board Members is available online.

UPDATE: Storm clean-up, costs, communities, and why a regional #StormwaterProgram is critical

Storm debris clogs the Cuyahoga River under Alexander Road in Valley View May 13, 2014.

Could $20 million in inaccessible funds have helped local communities respond to storm damage following Northeast Ohio's torrential downpour earlier this week?

That's a question we raised here May 13. Communities are facing storm clean-up challenges while $20 million sits frozen in escrow as a result of a September court ruling that the Sewer District does not have the authority to implement a Regional Stormwater Management Program.

Much has happened this week, and we presented an update to our Trustees yesterday. The report and conversation deserves to be highlighted.

After the storm

Throughout the week, Sewer District crews have assessed the storm damage throughout the region. Debris removal and maintenance is estimated to be nearly $1 million, and erosion control and repair costs are estimated to be millions of additional dollars. This is in addition to the existing costs to maintain and repair stormwater infrastructure.

[PICS] After the storm: The regional impacts of a Northeast Ohio storm May 12, 2014nt_051314_r2 from Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District

Under the Regional Stormwater Management Program, the Sewer District would have been mobilized to assist communities and address these problems. Unfortunately, because of litigation, the Sewer District is unable to do anything to fix these issues.

NEWS: Mayor Robert Stefanik, Sharon Dumas appointed to Board of Trustees, will be sworn in March 6

Mayor of North Royalton Robert A. Stefanik and Sharon A. Dumas, Director of Finance for the City of Cleveland, have been named to our Board of Trustees.

Mayor Stefanik was elected by the Suburban Council of Governments and Ms. Dumas was appointed by Frank G. Jackson, Mayor of Cleveland.

These changes are effective March 6, when both are sworn in prior to the Board meeting.

TRUSTEES: Mayor DeGeeter sworn in, O'Malley and Sulik reappointed

Timothy J. DeGeeter, Mayor of Parma, has been appointed to the Sewer District's Board of Trustees by Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald. In addition, Ronald D. Sulik and Walter O’Malley have been re-appointed for additional five-year terms by the Suburban Council of Governments and City of Cleveland Mayor Frank G. Jackson, respectively. These changes are effective today, when they were sworn in prior to the Board meeting.

Mayor DeGeeter has served as Mayor of Parma since 2012 and was previously the longest consecutive-serving member of the Ohio House of Representatives. A graduate of John Carroll University and Cleveland Marshall College of Law, Mayor DeGeeter also served as a Parma City Councilman.

UPDATE: Tunnels going down, building going up, and progress goes on and on

Since August, crews at the Nine Mile Creek shaft site—the starting point of the 18,000-foot-long Euclid Creek Tunnel project—have excavated an additional 75 feet, bringing the total depth of the shaft to 110 feet as of today. The finished tunnel will lay 250 feet below the surface.

Brown, Sulik, DePiero are re-elected for 2011-2012

(L to R) DePiero, Brown, and Sulik are sworn in at this afternoon's Board of Trustees meeting

Today, the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District Board of Trustees re-elected Darnell Brown as President, Ronald D. Sulik as Vice President and Mayor Dean DePiero as Secretary for the 2011-2012 year.

Report on public meetings' turnout provided to Trustees this week

During April and May, six public meetings provided customers opportunities to hear and react to the Sewer District's proposed 2012-2016 rate schedule and new affordability program. More than 490 residents attended, and a summary report will be provided to District Trustees this week.

Rates, new affordability programs will be focus of public meetings

To keep the public informed about anticipated sewer rate increases for 2012 through 2016 and new affordability programs, the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District has scheduled a series of public meetings that will begin next month.

2010: From stormwater to sewage and everything in between

The last 12 months have been filled with clean-water progress and projects that affect every one of our customers and one million Northeast Ohio residents. Here are just a few of our 2010 accomplishments:

Trustees OK improvement plan to reduce sewage discharges

Today, the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District (NEORSD) Board of Trustees agreed to enter into a consent decree with the federal government, which details the long-term plan for reducing raw sewage overflows into the environment, by a 5-2 vote. Mayors Dean DePiero and Gary Starr cast dissenting votes.

Public meeting in Parma tonight, Board presentation tomorrow

About 40 residents attended last night's public meeting at the Gunning Park Rec Center, and a larger crowd is anticipated tonight in Parma for the District's sixth public meeting regarding rates and Project Clean Lake. A similar presentation of the consent decree and project details will be given to the District's Board of Trustees Thursday, November 18 at its 12:30 p.m. public meeting at the McMonagle Administration Building.

Board President Brown issues response to Mayor Starr statement

Today, the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District Board of Trustees released a statement expressing its disappointment with fellow Board member Mayor Gary Starr’s press conference (held without the Board’s knowledge), in which he expressed his personal views rather than follow the public process observed by the entire Board. The Board reaffirmed its support for the Sewer District's ongoing negotiations with the US EPA regarding the plan to reduce 4.5 billion gallons of raw sewage from entering local waterways. Read the full statement.