Huntingburg Board of Works: December 7, 2015

ByFree Press Staff Reading Time: 2 minutes

The Huntingburg Board of Public Works and Safety met Thursday and took the following actions.

  • Mayor Denny Spinner gave an update regarding 205 N. Walnut Street, a property that the county currently holds a tax sales certificate on. The property does not have a structure on it; the city deemed it unsafe and took it down in 2015. Between the city and county, the property has $10,022 in tax liens. The county is offering to give the property to the city at no charge. The board agreed that they would like the city to have the property so they can control how it is to be disposed of if the tax lien is not paid by the owner in the next 20 days. If it is turned over to the city, the board discussed donating it to a registered nonprofit like Habitat for Humanity but it also has the right to sell it. The board agreed to forward the issue to the council for approval.
  • Approved the market master committee members; City Planning Director Paul Lake, City Community Development Director Rachel Steckler and Huntingburg Chamber Executive Director Elizabeth Wirtman. The committee coordinates the market and ensures the it complies with state regulations
  • Approved purchasing a police package 2016 Dodge Charger for the police department from Sternberg Chrysler of Jasper for $24,835. Sternberg’s quote was $350 higher than Corydon-based John Jones Chrysler. City Attorney Phil Schneider advised the board they could consider the purchase for the higher amount if there was an objective justification for doing so like the ease of service on the vehicle. With the ease of service through the local company, the board decided to purchase the vehicle from Sternberg. The new vehicle is part of the department’s annual car replacement program and was approved in the budget.
  • Heard from Police Chief Art Parks that over 700 lbs of prescription drugs have been dropped off in the department’s drug drop-off box. The drugs are taken to a facility that specializes in incinerating the controlled substances.
  • Approved a request from Street Superintendent Jason Stamm to seek bids for a new fence at the city recycling center on First Street. Stamm said the fence will help decrease the amount of illegal dumping that occurs at the site after hours. He notified the board that construction materials are regularly left there and an installed camera was insufficient in determining who was dumping the materials. The new fence would include two gates, a manual and automated gate.
  • Approved a request for Stamm to seek bids on a paving project on Chestnut Street. The project has been put out to bid twice but due to the extent of the contract and the timeline involved, no contractors came forward. The bid package has been modified and Stamm hopes to receive bids by the February meeting with the project to start in April.
  • Approved moving the regularly scheduled February 4 Board of Public Works meeting to February 11 at 8:30 a.m. due to scheduling conflicts with the members of the board.
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