18 September 2012 Dearborn County Commissioners Meeting Notes

18 September 2012 Dearborn County Commissioners Meeting Notes

Present: Jeff Hughes, President, Tom Orschell, and Shane McHenry

Also present: Gayle Pennington, Auditor, Teresa Randall, County Administrator, and Andy Baudendistel, Attorney.

Meeting was preceded by an executive session and started at 9:20 AM. Commissioners gaveBaudendistel and Randall permission to negotiate in county’s best interests. No more details.

OLD BUSINESS:

OKI Funding Contract Agreement- Teri Randall said there was no other MPO in the area and they need to be in this to get federal dollars. She tried to get OKI to modify the contract to fit our fiscal year. Options: Continue to operate without a contract or go to an 18 month contract. She said that her professional analysis leads her to recommend that we sign the contract as is. She thinks we need to work on our relationship with OKI more aggressively. We need to hold them accountable for things we think they did not handle appropriately and communicate more. Hughes said it’s unfortunate we have to pay to play. Hughes is having trouble with the water quality report. She and McHenry met with Hedrick about this issue and she thinks we need to work with our municipalities also. She thinks we need to move forward and fix the problem. Commissioners mostly agreed to keep the OKI agreement. Hughes seems to be against it still. Contract will come back at the next meeting. [ NOTE: Does our MPO include the entire county or just the populated sections?]

NEW BUSINESS:

Lifetime Housing- Carla Burkhart- Signatures for Lien Releases- 5 lien releases were presented for signature. Commissioners agreed to have Hughes sign the releases.

Planning and Zoning- Mark McCormack- proposed Changes to the Zoning Ordinance:

Article 17 Section 1720- Plot Plan Requirements – they changed the requirements so that 3 copies are no longer required. The scale is not specified but they want it in 8.5x11 or 11x17 and legible. They are putting these in digital format. They also eliminated some square footage etc. Proposing to eliminate driveway specs as it is on the driveway permit anyway. Mostly eliminated some minor requirements. Commercial developments require bigger plan sets still.

Commissioners passed these changes to Article 17 section 1720 with no public desiring to speak on it.

Article 25 Section 2516- Location of Accessory Structures or Uses- reworded on places where these poles barns and garages can be located. If a barn or garage is the first structure on a piece of land it is not accessory- as there is no other structure as primary. They are to be in the side and back yards of the primary structure. Variances are also an option for owners to request.

Commissioners passed these changes to Article 25 section 2516 with no public desiring to speak on it.

Article 21 nearly all sections affected-  parking requirements. Changed minimum loading spaces. Changed the authority to the technical review committee from the planning director on this section. Conflicting statements were removed. Commercial parking requirements changed with more items listed to give more direction. A few have one less space required. Nursing homes have half spaces previously required. Churches were increased. [NOTE: Is the Planning Director part of the technical review committee?]

Commissioners passed these changes to Article 21 with no public desiring to speak on it.

Proposed Changes to the Subdivision Control Ordinance

Article 2 Section 200- Subdivision Types (Exemptions)- this acknowledges a new type of subdivision. Divisions for federal street ROW, utilities ROWs, retracements of  a parcel to correct error etc.

Commissioners passed these changes to Article 2 section 200 with no public desiring to speak on it.

HIGHWAY DEPARTMENT: Todd Listerman, Highway Engineer- Bid openings:

 Paving- $158,365- Rowe- won the bid. O’Mara was higher at $159,533.30.

Striping bids were opened and all roads carrying 1000 vpd will be striped. 5 bidders.  Ind Sign and Barricade out of Indy $94,589.72 was lowest and was approved by commissioners.

Designs for 4 bridges approved at previous meetings: Replacement Plans Bridge 9 designed by Fuel Pettit Bender Berger- $35,700- approved. Barth and Associates for the other 3:

Bridge 5 Laughery Creek - $54,450- approved.

Bridge 29 Old North Hogan $56,050- approved

 Bridge 44 – Turkey Point -$56,500 approved.

Tim Grieve, Highway Superintendent- installing electric and need to grant REMC easement to put the box on their property. Baudendistel  reviewed at the meeting and said it was OK to sign. Commissioners approved the easement papers and membership in REMC and signed it.

Council decided to buy a new tractor to replace the old one that went out. $110,605.05 for new John Deere. Cab tractor- bigger boom. Better built mower. It will operate the brush cutter. Smith out of Greensburg low bidder.  Zimmer was $20,000 higher.  Commissioners approved the purchase from Smith Tractors in Greensburg.

Paul Rowe won the chip seal contract and they are working on Mt Pleasant now. McHenry wanted to be sure emergency vehicles can get thru if needed. Grieve said they could – but prefer they use other routes.

ADMINISTRATOR: Teresa Randall- had Mark McCormack to join her on this. $58,500 form DCF grant to study EMS issues. Fire and EMS was lagging when she came on board. Fire is trustees responsibility and EMS is Commissioners responsibilities. She said that the data they are recording on run times is not based the same. They are not comparing apples to apples. Two pieces that she wants to bring up to get guidance on this. She has gotten a grant extension to October 31^st.  $22,000 approx is the cost of phase 1 and 2 and is done. She said that she can’t get consensus on this next step. She said that this project is to large for her to handle. She wants to modify the scope and get the consultant to help with this. She said once they modify they scope she will come back and ask for guidance. The information is telling a different story and they may need to go in a different direction. She thinks she understands this problem better than before. She wants to form a new board to work on this. It needs people from all factions.  911 and EMA board have a gap between them on this problem. They will want an attorney on that board for the legal issues. Baudendistel said a committee first and then see if they need a board. Probably have a group of 9. Randall will try to get an idea of areas and people to appoint.

Kendall from Hrezo Engineering- the water line in Hardintown has been installed and now hooking up services to properties there. Hope to have it all done by this week to next. McHenry said feedback is positive there.

Kendall gave an update on Votaw Building  saying they are ready to go to advertise for bids. They plan to bid the demo and then bid the fill and excavation work. They are bidding Shumway as an alternate. There may be some savings in doing it now.  Commissioners approved going to bids for demolition of 230 West High Street. Cleary plans on not having court the day of the demo.

Hoosier Square stairs look fantastic- much safer.  Fiberoptic is moving along with CSX fixing glitches.

Randall wants to have Planning and Zoning in the same area as Environmental and Building Inspection. She thinks they can do this without having a lot of renovations in the building. By next meeting she will have a plan on where folks would move. 

AUDITOR: Gayle Pennington- minutes approved for Aug 21 and Sept 4. Pennington apologized for getting behind while they did budget.  Claims approved with Orschell abstaining on some as he hadn’t had a chance to review some of them.

ATTORNEY: Andy Baudendistel- nothing

COMMISSIONER COMMENTS- McHenry had a concern about moving voting into the courthouse and all going thru the metal detector. They may be able to limit access to one room and eliminate the detector. This starts in early October.

LATE ARRIVAL INFORMATION- none

PUBLIC COMMENT- Carol Wessler read a thank you for the grindings they received on her road. No sealer was put on the road. They did not ditch the road. She said she fears they will lose the grindings. She pushed hard for sealing. She asked about Lutz rd compared to hers. Grieve and Listerman explained that Lutz had other surfaces applied to it in years past. New milled roads have loose millings until they set up. They plow the road light with a pick-up truck and they do not use as much salt as the road cannot take it. Wessler said her taxes are the same as others and she wants it to be sealed. Mr Steinmetz brought in large soft ball size balls of chip seal and said these are not rolled in. Wessler is about ½ mile. He agrees that if it’s done right they won’t have to come back for a long time. He asked about the paving contracts- and was told that was for thru roads. He restated that it needs to be chip and seal to hold it. Listerman asked if commissioners wanted him to go back to Council for money to chip seal Wessler. Listerman said council did not fund any of their capital projects for 2013. Council gave them operating budget only. They cut all capital improvements out and they will have to go back and ask in the spring. Wessler said she’s a taxpayer and she wants to see that the grindings are not wasted. Listerman said they have a pavement preservation program. They get to look at thru roads as priorities. Repeated discussion- but Council said they are BROKE and they have to wait. McHenry said to go to Council and ask for Wessler Road. Orschell asked- are we going to stick to priorities or not? Hughes said he will send his brother on Council out to look at the road. November is the next Council meeting. October 9 is just for budget adoption- no additional money requests per Pennington. Have to advertize by Nov 1.

Bill Black- EMA- letter from the state requiring signatures for salary reimbursements from the state for Elwood, Mary and himself. They did do the training and got all the certifications. Commissioners signed it.  Black signed his own name for Elwood and noted that he passed away Sept 1.

Meeting adjourned at 11:20 AM

Christine Brauer Mueller

Lawrenceburg Township