NEW RICHMOND, Ohio — Ohio EPA officials “seriously encourage” the Village of New Richmond to shut down its water treatment plant and buy its water from Clermont County.
The village's public water is safe. However, the 42-year-old plant has likely reached its lifespan and needs maintenance, repairs and upgrades, the state environmental agency concluded after an August 2024 inspection.
“The current water plant has multiple areas of concern regarding treatment and operational needs. The village must address ongoing production wells, basic treatment requirements, and much-needed maintenance,” OEPA environmental specialist Brian Chitti wrote in an Oct. 3, 2024, letter to village administrator Kathryn Bailey.
WATCH: How New Richmond is responding to the Ohio EPA's recommendation
Some of the noted issues were peeling ceiling paint over a clarifier contact basin, corroded weirs, an inoperable well, too much water loss and a ground storage tank that inspectors couldn’t access to examine because it was in an overgrown area.
“New Richmond Village should compare the cost effectiveness of purchasing 100 % of its water to the costs associated with operating, maintaining, and possibly expanding the treatment capabilities to meet new treatment requirements … it is recommended that you directly contact Clermont Public Water System and open a dialogue to see if they could supply the water necessary for the New Richmond Village,” Chitti wrote in his letter.
But village officials aren’t planning to close their plant, which supplies water to 1,200 residents. At least not now, said Village Administrator Kathryn Bailey.
“That’s a recommendation, it wasn’t an ultimatum,” Bailey said. “We do take what the OEPA says very seriously. And that recommendation is not being considered right now.”
Bailey said the village has made some repairs and upgrades and is actively working toward addressing all issues pointed out by the Ohio EPA. Village officials bought new equipment, repaired or replaced fire hydrants, trained more operators, cleaned and fixed wells, and did a slew of maintenance.
“Our focus now is to bring our water plant up to standard. So, the next time the EPA comes, they can say that we’ve done all these things to improve,” Bailey said. “We don’t have any danger here; we have great, safe water for our residents.”
If the village followed the OEPA’s suggestion and closed its water plant, “water bills would definitely go up for the customers here,” Bailey said.
The water plant allows the village to attract developers with offers of free or reduced water tap fees. Bailey said anywhere from 214 to 220 new homes, which are on the village water system, have been built recently.
“Having a water system is an asset for New Richmond. It allows us to grow, it allows us to annex, it allows us to put in new subdivisions,” Bailey said. “That’s how we’ve grown and become more fiscally sound in the last year and a half, by consistently adding new water lines.”
That new revenue is helping the village recover some of the lost tax money from the closure of the former Walter C. Beckjord coal plant in 2014.
“That was $15 million a year that came into our area here, that was schools, infrastructure,” Bailey said. “It literally brought New Richmond to their knees. It takes time to recover from that.”
New Richmond is not alone. Many older water systems and small communities face similar challenges with aging water plants that must comply with new regulations, said Ohio EPA spokesperson Dina Pierce, who noted the agency has funding to help with water regionalization projects.
“The village’s water plant and distribution system are old and need upgrades and maintenance. This is why Ohio EPA is encouraging the village to evaluate the costs of continuing to operate its own water system compared to connecting to Clermont County’s water system,” Pierce said. “This is the first time we’ve suggested in a letter the village consider purchasing water from another water system.”
The Ohio EPA did not consider the violations in New Richmond’s 2024 inspection to be “significant,” and no additional water sampling is required, Pierce said.
However, the agency will continue to follow up with the village to address violations and requirements. “Continued deterioration of the water system could result in additional action by Ohio EPA,” Pierce said.
Officials are working hard to revitalize this historic village. Last year, it won a $13 million state grant to create the Liberty Landing Redevelopment. With it, New Richmond officials plan to construct a river marina, a trail connecting to waterfront access, an amphitheater, a boat ramp, a natural landscape terrace, and connections to the US-52 bike trail.
The village is the new host of the Appalachian Festival on May 10 and 11. The regional celebration had been held at Coney Island until its closure.
In January, Cincinnati Children's announced its partnership with New Richmond Schools to open a campus health center, aiming to provide easier access to health care for more than 1,000 students in the district.
