Walmart gets EPA Go-ahead for Copley Township Store

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency has approved a plan to clear acres of wetlands in Copley Township for construction of a new Walmart and Sam's Club. Stores in Fairlawn, approximately two miles away from the new site, will close.

According to the permit, the Ohio EPA has issued a water quality certification to LRC Copley Investors LLC which will allow developers to fill 1.59 acres of wetlands and affect 1,498 feet of streams on the property. The permit requires the developer to mitigate the wetlands, which essentially means to create the aquatic resources that will be lost on the Copley Township property at another location within the state.

According to the report, most of the mitigation will take place in Stark County at the Wilderness Center's Fox Creek-Miller Tract north of Wilmot. Stream restoration will take place in Norton along Wolf Creek. All the sites are in the Tuscarawas River watershed.   

The developers must still receive approval from the Army Corps of Engineers, which generally follows EPA approval, and resolve traffic issues with the Summit County Engineer's office.  A representative for the developers has said before Fairlawn Council and Copley Township Trustees that a plan to resolve traffic issues is in the works. 

Ohio EPA Spokesman Mike Settles said the wetlands on the Copley Township property were of low and moderate grade that the agency classifies category I and II. 

Rejecting a proposal to affect wetlands is rare, Settles said. 

"It is rare to deny a permit outright," he said. "Part of the reason for that is because most developers work with consultants who know what is needed. We try to see what can be worked out."

After an approval is given, a permit can be appealed to the Environmental Review Appeals Commission. The project generally goes forward while an appeal is considered unless a separate stay is granted by ERAC.

The city of Fairlawn has been against the move since it was announced, and has voted to close two streets to prohibit Walmart traffic from driving through the city's neighborhoods.  Mayor did not return calls Tuesday seeking comment, so it is unclear whether the city will appeal the EPA decision. 

Citizens for a Better Montrose co-chairman Don Yoder said his group would support an appeal by Fairlawn -- or the group will consider filing its own appeal if the city does not move forward.

"We think lots of other things are a much better fit in a residential area," Yoder said. "The big thing is the traffic impact, which will be devastating.

"At this point we'll have to reorganize. We didn't even know we could appeal until today, so we'll take it day by day and try to do what we can." 

An appeal must be filed within 30 days to be considered.