By JONATHAN SNYDER
Christmas in July is coming to Bluffton after the Board of Public Works and Safety approved the closing of certain roads in its Tuesday meeting for a car show to raise funds for the city in July.
Eddie Ferguson presented the fundraising idea to Board of Works members Scott Mentzer and Josh Hunt. The car show is on July 28 and the funds raised will help the city purchase new Christmas decorations for downtown. When the 23-year-old lighting decorations were first purchased, they were expected to last five years.
Market Street up to Scott Street and going down to Williams Street will be closed for the event, along with Johnson and Marion streets from Wabash to Washington street.
Frauhiger Distributing is sponsoring the event and will be paying for award trophies and other expenses, so 100 percent of the money raised will go to the city. Door prizes and dash plaques will also be awarded.
“Thank you Eddie for stepping up,” said Mentzer. “Always great to have Christmas in July.”
In addition to the car show, the board also heard two bids for demolition work at 418 Hale St. and 228 East Market St. Kareh Excavating bid $11,950 for the demolition work on Hale and $15,750 for the East Market project. Longenberger Excavation also bid, but it was unclear what the final number for the projects were. On the bid sheet, some numbers were crossed out and multiple numbers were visible, but none of them clearly stated the final bid total. The board will reconvene with Longenberger excavation about the final number and the bids will be heard at the next board meeting.
The board also approved a $25,000 repair cost for a Hi-Ranger bucket truck used by the utilities staff. The pedestal that sits on the hydraulic pole of one of the trucks is no longer usable and needs to be replaced. The dealership that the city bought the truck from stated that there is value in replacing it and that welding the pedestal is not a viable option for safety concerns. The repairs are estimated to be completed in four months.
“This kind of snuck up on us,” said Utility Director Jon Oman, who further commented that the repairs should extend the life of the truck beyond 2027.
Additionally, the board approved raises for two members of the 911 Dispatch Center. Deputy Director Andrea Garrett and Dispatcher Christine Bennett will be receiving $1 hourly raises for the new year. Bennett is the most senior dispatcher of the group and is very good with training new dispatchers, according to 911 Supervisor Mike Miller. Garrett is the second most experienced dispatcher and has helped with an internship program in the department.
“That’s (part of) an all-star crew right there,” said Hunt.
jonathan@news-banner.com
