What does a city wastewater department do when there are no crises to address? “The city council is focused on quality of life,” says Dave Crouch, public utilities director in Fairfield, Ohio, a city of 43,000.“That’s reflected in our public utilities,” he says. “Fairfield has some of the lowest rates for municipal services in southwest Ohio, and we want to keep providing good service for a reasonable rate for generations.” For Fairfield, that means a sound operating budget, judicious investment in maintenance programs like root control, and a long-range view that includes planning for projected growth. That kind of thinking
