Three villages and seven townships in Wood County will decide Tuesday if they want to be included in an aggregation program for purchasing electrical power.

Voters in Millbury, Walbridge, and Portage are being asked to decide ballot issues that would, if passed, allow their councils enter into aggregation agreements to purchase electrical power on their behalf.

Walbridge residents will also decide an aggregation ballot measure for purchasing natural gas.

Under an opt-out aggregation program, residents and small business owners can choose to not participate and buy power from another supplier.

“That’s the beauty of it,” said Walbridge Mayor Dan Wilczynski. “It doesn’t force anybody to go along with any one company.”

He said Walbridge, if the ballot measure passes, would join the Northwest Ohio Aggregation Coalition, which was formed in 2001 by several communities in Toledo Edison’s service territory after the state legislature approved de-regulating the electrical industry.

The unincorporated area of Lake Township is already a member of NOAC.

Millbury Mayor Michael Timmons said FirstEnergy is offering rate reductions of 6 percent for residential customers and 4 percent for businesses in aggregation agreements.

Asked why the village didn’t put an aggregation issue before voters years ago, Mayor Timmons said some officials were uneasy about it because they were unclear about details of the plan.

“I think there was a sense it was too new then and people didn’t really understand it,” he said. “Now we figure we can join now and always change if we decide to later.”

Customers can decide to opt out immediately or every three years, the mayor said.

The townships of Grand Rapids, Milton, Montgomery, Perrysburg, Plain, Troy, Webster, and Weston will also vote on electrical aggregation.

School issue
Voters in the Eastwood Local School District will decide the fate of a 4.3-mill, 5-year renewal emergency levy.

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