City, county solve cash flow snafu

11/30/2000

After receiving checks totaling more than $5 million from the city of Toledo, Lucas County officials say they are pleased to return to a more normal business arrangement between the entities.

Commissioners had suggested they might not enter into any more agreements with the city without at least partial advance payments, because the city owed more than $6 million.

Sandy Isenberg, president of the county commissioners, said yesterday that county and city administrators will work to conclude contracts earlier in 2001 and monitor payments “so that neither the city administration, city council, or the county” realizes late in the year that the debt has swollen.

She said that also should give council time to ask questions about the pacts.

Most all of the debt was related to the criminal-justice system, and Mrs. Isenberg said the county only recovers its costs for such things as housing prisoners and doesn't profit from its agreements with the city.

James O'Neal, an assistant county administrator, said that although the city still owes about $1 million, “we have meetings set to discuss the issues,” adding that any remaining problems should be worked out.

Those funds are for public defender fees, and there are some contractual issues to be dealt with and for computer services from the Northwest Ohio Regional Information System.