By JONATHAN SNYDER
After groups have met to discuss a Wells County Vision 2035 plan, the Markle Town Council questioned its lack of inclusion in the process.
Vision 2035 includes a section for coordination with Markle, however, Executive Director Mike Lautzenheiser notified the council that the town is not in the jurisdiction of the APC.
Markle, being located in both Huntington and Wells Counties, chose Huntington County’s agency for planning and zoning decades ago, reportedly because Wells did not have a building inspector.
“We like Wells County, it’s just that for consistency purposes they did this so they can have a building inspector,” Operations Manager Mike Grant said during the council’s meeting Wednesday. “You could build a house on one side of the county line and have zero inspections, but if you pull the permit on the opposite county line you have a completely different set of rules and inspections as construction progressed.”
Grant noted, however, that ideal expansion for Markle are due east, farther into Wells County. Grant said that Lautzenheiser invited Markle representatives to provide input in meetings, but that they could not hold voting power in the master plan process. The plan aims to give the county an in-depth roadmap for community improvements in each of the represented areas in Vision 2035.
Because they’ve not been included thus far, Grant and the council decided to send a representative to the next APC meeting in November. Grant also proposed going to Wells County commissioners or council meetings.
“Common sense would say that they need to represent the taxpayer of their county,” Council member Nicolas Lund said.
The steering committee meetings are being led by the The Veridus Group of Indianapolis. The group was contracted for $87,000 — $50,000 of which was covered by a grant through the Wells County Foundation. Wells County contributed $18,000 and Ossian, Uniondale and Bluffton also financially committed to the study in March.
The town of Markle has not joined with Wells County for economic development after the county’s partnership with the Wells County Chamber of Commerce dissolved.
Also during the meeting, the council also approved the budget for 2025. Clerk Treasurer Stephenie Hensley said the assessed value of Markle was left intentionally lower by state budget representatives, which is why the adopted tax rate was higher than expected. Hensley added that the rate will be calculated by the state when they receive Markle’s proposed budget and that council can only approve the number of dollars they planned.
The approved budget totals $1,990,450, with $1,177,450 approved for the city’s general fund. Additionally, the council approved an appropriation reduction of $121,500 from the town’s current budget, which will be rolled over into next year’s funds.
“I appreciate the work that you (Hensley) did on the budget,” Council member Matthew Doss said. “We as stewards of the finances of Markle, we have got to watch this carefully and make sure it’s going to the right places.”
The council also approved two resolutions involving proposed drinking water improvement projects. The first authorizes Doss to make applications for SRF loans, and the second resolution accepts preliminary engineering reports for the drinking water projects. No official SRF application was made at the meeting.
Additionally, the council approved a quote from Culy Contracting to line a manhole near I-69. Hydrogen sulfide gas in the manhole was starting to erode the concrete near the area, according to Grant. Grant noted that if the $5,888 quote was not accepted, a total replacement would have been required.
Town Marshal John Markley also had two requests for the council, which were approved. The first involved purchasing a refurbished $2,526.65 radio from Sun Communications to replace a radio in one of their police cars. Markley stated that the refurbished route was the cheapest option, as brand new radios cost around $6,000.
Markley also requested funds that would secure a new piece of playground equipment for the Park Board. Markley, the Park Board Secretary, announced that they raised $95,000 for a $129,000 expense through grants and donations. Markley also noted that $25,000 is still pending grant reviews. The council approved a motion that will cover the remaining difference post grant review, with Hensley noting that the $207,000 remaining in CEDIT funds could be used for that expense.
A complaint involving stormwater flow was also heard by the council. Drainage issues in the 100 block of West Mercury Street have led to rain pooling in ditches for multiple days and standing water in backyards, according to one concerned resident. Lund stated that there is a precedent of the town helping with stormwater issues, but that a deep evaluation of the stormwater flow, ditches, elevation levels and areas where the county is responsible for drainage will be needed before any action is taken.
jonathan@news-banner.com
