By DAVE SCHULTZ
Wells County Area Plan Commission personnel will make a few changes in its focus as 2022 begins, according to the 2022 Plan of Operations submitted to the APC members last week.
“Our primary project is the completion of the Wells County Vision 2035 Comprehensive Plan,” Michael Lautzenheiser Jr., the APC’s executive director who is also the manager of the county’s Geographic Information System.
The revised plan, which has been delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, may require an amendment to the county’s master land use ordinance, he said. The reason for that is to cover items that need to be updated, to help move along goals in the comprehensive plan, or to address state law updates.
The APC office will also hold two rural town cleanups in 2022, which has been done in recent years. The cleanups have proven to be popular, with one of them forced to turn people away because there was no more room to dispose of items. “We are hoping to further engage the Wells County Solid Waste District in this project,” Lautzenheiser said in his report.
Most of the items in the plan of operations have the word “continue” in them. The permitting system, director’s opinions, board packets, enforcement process, advertising, and employment levels will mirror what has been done in the recent past, the report said.
However, one of the purposes for the department’s $170,159 annual budget increase is to increase part-time hours. The department will also use the money for drone and furniture purchases, long-term planning expanses, and expansion of existing programs, as well as salary increases.
The report also noted that all three staff members are trained in site inspection work to spread out the workload.
When it comes to GIS, the budget is up nearly 30 percent over last year for software upgrades and increased software maintenance fees.
GIS projects planned for 2022 include efforts to increase property line data accuracy, using GIS to help put together the updated comprehensive plan, and “improve awareness of projects, opportunities, and issues that affect the general public,” the report said.
daves@news-banner.com
