6 JANUARY 2025 DEARBORN COUNTY COMMISSIONERS MEETING NOTES
Present: Jim Thatcher, President, Duane Bischoff, and Kevin Turner
Also present: Connie Fromhold, Auditor, Andy Baudendistel, Attorney, and Sue Hayden, Administrator
TITLE VI STATEMENT FOR COMPLIANCE was read by Baudendistel as legally required.
Livestreams can be found @
https://www.youtube.com/@DearbornCountyGov-47025/streams
REORGANIZATION OF BOARD
1. Election of Board President- Jim Thatcher- Approved
2. Boards Commissioners Serve (All serve on Solid Waste, Drainage Board & Board of Finance)
ALL REAPPROVED as below
Commission of Public Records (Jim)
Emergency Management (Kevin)
Juvenile Board (Jim)
OKI (Kevin)
Personnel Advisory (Jim)
Plan Commission (Jim)
Region 9 Workforce (Duane)
Southeastern Indiana Regional Plan Commission – SIRPC (Duane)
Justice Reinvestment Advisory Council – JRAC (Kevin)
Aurora Emergency Rescue Unit Board – (Jim)
Property on Westside Dr., Aurora- one bid in and closing 14th and review bids on 20th - then schedule a public hearing over Baudendistel
Use of "old County ROW" / Dog Ridge Rd. - Dennis Kraus, Jr., Surveyor (tabled from Oct 21, 2025)- noted that they had opposition to this approval. Has a deed from 1857 that states public road. Later stated that they built a new road. No evidence of it ever being vacated. There was another moved action showing another vacation.
Jared Ewbank represented the Grafs and Seavers on this and Grafs now own the property. Came up with up with something to help Mr Baudendistel work up procedure on these ROWs. This is not a win win but definitely not a lose lose. Grafs have agreement on this and the usage of the property. If you have maps and physical evidence and it and a property that would be landlocked, then this should be in an apparent ROW statute. I gave nuts and bolts process on how to do this. I am willing to work with Mr Baudendistel to set this up. They want the ROW granted. Graf Properties are still in opposition. Their attorney. Hylands are opposed to this still. Dogridge is not a private convenience- it is the access for Graf and Seavers.asking for minimal improvement.
Grant Reeves for the Hylands etc, The vacation was denied. But there was nothing that approved the ROW at the last meeting. Wants to be sure it is not set up just for now but for the future. In 1903 the alternate route was put in.This appears to have been abandoned for decades. Starting in 1903 there is no evidence this was used in the public way.It effectively constitutes taking from the two landowners that this passes through. Using the statute for a private use rather than the public use it was intended for.?? You are effectively grating a private contract for them to maintain it. If that fails to happen it comes back to you the county. I think it will take a legislative solution to fix this law.
Ewbank came back to the agreement.He went through these points. Restrictions on development- it is only for one house. And restrict it to 33 ft width etc… Thinks this was road before this was a county even. Gives everyone the ability to sue us in this agreement. They can take it to court. Asking for a public hearing to get a decision.
Reeves said they need to see the document to see this.
Hyland asked if the private drive is still on the table. We thought they were asking for a private drive.
Kraus we were asking them to build a private drive in a public ROW.
Baudendistel thought they should TABLE this for them to negotiate and also to allow Baudendistel to get a statute in place. He has reached dot to county attorneys for help on this. He has also gotten a lot of - if you figure it out, let me know. TABLED till February 17th meeting to review and allow discussion.
Board Appointments
Community Corrections (SERCC) - continue tabled for some of them Approved the ones Hayden presented.
Cemetery Board – Joyce Bear- APPROVED
Regional Sewer District – Steward Cline & Russell Beiersdorfer- APPROVED
2026 Litter Initiated - Celeste Calvitto- 11 years of this- APPROVED the roads as below from 9-when done- usually takes 1.5 hours. Highway and sheriff on board. Volunteers can see a lie on the county FACEBOOK page:
March 14 - Logan / Whites Hill. Weather alternate March 21
March 28 - Cole Lane. For the first time Weather alternate April 18
April 11 - State Line
May 9 - York Ridge
May 16 - Jamison
Sept. 12 - Georgetown
Use of "old County ROW" / Old Houston Road off of Bloom Road - Sean York- 50 acres they owned and it was used 60 years ago. The neighbor uses part of this too. All we want is an address to the property. There is a barn and a cabin and residence. Baudendistel shows a panhandle off Bloom Rd that has topographical issues. He has also asked McCabes who live back there and they pretty much own the whole road. He put $20,000 of gravel on it. Like the above Dog Ridge Rd case- TABLED until the Feb 17th Meeting.
Lawrenceburg Conservancy District Election- Sue Hayden has cast their votes in the past and we recommend to her our choices. APPROVED Justin Bilig and Randy Tyler on the ballot for them to select. These are Greendale candidates and County votes as they have property in Greendale
ADMINISTRATOR – Sue Hayden
2026 PAWS Contract- $170,000 annual but paid monthly. The report is sent each month before they get paid. They need exhibit A with teh layout of Animal Control and B - their standard of care and insurance with county named as insured. APPROVED.
2026 Contracts for 1st Responders (Dillsboro, Friendship, Miller-York, New Trenton) Outstanding from St Leon still to be sent in. All are for $20,000 except $10,000 for Trenton. Approved.
AUDITOR – Connie Fromhold -Claims/Payroll and December 16th Commissioners Meeting and Minutes for Vicious Dogs-APPROVED
ATTORNEY – Andy Baudendistel- nothing more except if you wanted to express opinion on making the breaded tenderloin sandwich the official one for the state- pass your ideas on to Senator Maxwell.<Laughter>
Per Andy Baudendistel.- Jason Sullivan had concerns about how to issue a reprimand to someone at Manchester Fire Dept regarding how they had handled an EMS call. Approved to issue it.
COMMISSIONER COMMENTS:
LATE ARRIVAL INFORMATION: Sue Hayden - said Health dept wants to approach their board to be Drug tester for county. Approved to approach Health Board.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
Robert Rauen- brought up that on Benning Road the solar energy company has Linnea Energy Company is solar energy. In just over 1 week we have over 750 signatures online and 150 physical signatures Article 19 was put into our Zoning code years ago. Review this before permits are issued. This company shows this as their site on their webpage as if it is done already in postal code Sunman IN.
Jim RedElk- lives on Amm Rd- only had a few days to think about this I put together. We have no installations yet. But list of info is submitted. There are contracts for underground lines to this across several farms. When possible site work goes on in advance- then they make a rush to get this thru Planning and Zoning. Tax credits ended on Dec 31, 2025. But there is still a lot of money in their pots. If construction begins before July 4, 2026. Suggests that they be in Industrial or Commercial. In Ag or Ag H - they can use it as conditional use. He delineated the disadvantages of the solar fields.Wanted to convey all our concerns.
Constantine Koumoutsos - lives in Lake Tanbo neighborhood, works with energy- and evaluate the savings cost in this room for the commissioners. New Mexico University has pages of data on this. The 105 Mega watts they are burying will leave dead grass above due to electromagnetic field. If you need a consultant for this matter- I offer my services. They gave $5,000 to 4 H
John Wrototinski- This company considers themselves to be scrappy- rapid deployers of energy. Backed up by $47 billion investment portfolio. We do this to get an advantage on purpose.
Marvin Benning also- opposed- cattle farm there on good uncontaminated land. This could affect their farm.
I had to leave at this point ( 10 AM) for another appointment.
ADJOURN- 10:13 AM
Christine Brauer Mueller
Lawrenceburg Township
