The Leipsic-Van Buren Port Authority said it is ready to sit down with county officials and hammer out a deal to create one port authority in Putnam County.

"This body remains open to negotiation. Our issue has always been we want an opportunity to have a say," said Mike Borer, the attorney for the Leipsic-Van Buren Port Authority, during its meeting Friday. "We offered the olive branch up before."

But Putnam County Commissioner Tom Price said it's a little late to start talking. "After they spend $50,000 on lawsuits and sue the county, now they want to talk," Price said.

He said county commissioners were trying to negotiate with the Leipsic-Van Buren Port before legal action against the Port Authority of Putnam County was taken.

"It didn't have to come to that, but they're the ones that filed the lawsuit," Price said. "All they wanted to do was create controversy to have elections go their way."

Commissioner Bob Riepenhoff said he talked with Putnam County Prosecutor Gary Lammers and said Lammers is willing to mediate the process.

Both ports would have to agree to disband their ports in order to create one, countywide port, Riepenhoff said.

Riepenhoff said Lammers would take proposals from both sides, have a public comment opportunity and form a port with a 31-member board.

There would be staggered term limits and an annual membership fee, which the county would match, in order to give the port startup money.

The Leipsic-Van Buren Port Authority said it is against the county signing a contract that would make Teddy Ryan Jr., Putnam County economic development director, an employee of Putnam's port.

Ryan suggested to both Putnam's port and county commissioners that no one should be placed in the director's position and Putnam's port should not be staffed until after a new port is created.

"We're in a small county and the county is split and we're not talking to each other," Ryan told commissioners Friday.

But Commissioner Vincent Schroeder said it should be a discussion with the Port Authority of Putnam County's board of directors.

"I think any time you go with one port, you're going to have the county model," Schroeder said. "It seems to me that all we're talking about is board members. We have a change in commissioners here and hopefully we can talk this out and get something that's good for everybody."