Commissioners: Salt prices remain high

MANSFIELD – It appears it will remain costly to keep local roads free from ice again next winter. Bids for road salt that County Commissioners opened on Thursday had prices that were within just a few dollars of what salt cost last year when it was available.

Cargill Deicing Technology of North Olmstead was the apparent low bidder at $79.13 per ton while Compass Minerals America Inc. of Oberlin Park, Kansas was the only other bidder at $80.76 per ton. The county paid 78.67 per ton last year and $38.00 in 2013.

Last year, the county received no bids on its initial advertising for road salt. A Detroit company was the lone bidder on the second try but limited the amount of salt it would sell to half the amount the county requested.

“Based on the $80.77 per ton price ODOT recently received for salt, the bids we received were what we expected,” said the Richland Country Engineer’s chief deputy Adam Gove. “It’s not good for us when we have to pay double what we’re used to paying.”

Specifications for Thursday’s bid asked for 3,750 tons of salt, which included product for townships that have a joint purchasing agreement with the county. Gove described the amount as “summer fill,” so the county has salt on hand for the start of winter. He said the county will seek bids again in late summer or early fall for the rest of winter.

“It’s hard to say what’s going to happen this winter until we receive that second bid,” Gove said. He pointed out that Richland County will be in better shape this coming winter because the county bought new brine making equipment to treat grit that is used in combination with or instead of straight salt.

In other business, Commissioners authorized Dayspring director Bill Cunning to enter into an agreement with business division of Armstrong Telephone for telephone and internet service at the assisted living and care facility. The contract will provide up to four more phone lines and better band width internet service at nearly half of the cost it is paying for service with CenturyLink.