First of three parts

Nearly 12 hours of testimony from competing expert witnesses and piles of paperwork confront a Hamilton County Municipal judge who must decide which water company will provide services to three contested areas in Harrison Township and incorporated Harrison.

The protracted battle between Greater Cincinnati Water Works and Harrison reached a fever pitch in October when Judge Jody M. Luebbers was bombarded with scores of testimony during a summary judgment hearing.
She will not make a ruling before the first week of December.

GCWW sued Harrison in 2009, and obtained an injunction to prevent Harrison from continuing to lay water lines in an unincorporated area of Harrison Township.

Over two full days, separated by two weeks, the Reds losing in the playoffs, and the start of the World Series, Luebbers heard hundreds of reasons from each side staking claims to water provision rights.