Jail safety equipment to come sooner than expected
While Sheriff Scott Holliday had originally been told fire dampers would take 13-19 for delivery, he updated the commissioners that they may deliver as soon as early November.
These fire dampers are required before they can face inspection and move into the jail addition.
Construction overall continues to move forward. Holliday said the garage door for the new sally port is up, and warm water is running through all parts of the building.
He added that it’s been helpful to have population numbers lower slightly. As of Tuesday, 84 inmates were housed in the county jail. Of those inmates, 29 are pre-trial holds for Wells Superior Court, 30 are pre-trial holds for Wells Circuit Court, 15 are Level 6 felons and three are from the Indiana Department of Correction.
Surveyor approved higher board approval threshold
At the last meeting, Surveyor Jarrod Hahn had asked the Wells County Drainage Board to entertain a higher limit price threshold for requiring board approval. On Monday, the board unanimously approved raising this amount from $5,000 to $10,000 in a 2-0 vote.
Commissioners Blake Gerber and Mike Vanover were present; Jeff Stringer was absent.
According to Hahn, the $5,000 threshold had been in place for at least 18 years.
“I want to make sure there are checks and balances, but also want to have the agency to be able to handle emergencies quickly,” Hahn said.
Gerber expressed his support of giving Hahn this financial room in his projects and said they could re-evaluate the threshold in a year. Hahn said he would continue to update on projects under this threshold for transparency.
Driveway permit fees conversation continues
County Engineer Nate Rumschlag and Highway Department Supervisor Shawn Bonar had previously discussed adding driveway and oversized load permit fees to offset the cost of that work.
At the request of the commissioners, Rumschlag provided statistics on how many applications the county receives. According to Rumschlag, there have been 10 road-cut permits in 2023, and over the last four years, there have been 113 driveway permits. He noted that there are varying available metrics because some data hasn’t always been recorded.
County taking bids for 2023 highway materials
Rumschlag announced that the county will begin taking its annual bids for highway materials, including stone, oils, dust control, steel, pipe, structures, timber bridge product and diesel fuel.
Rumschlag added that he was working on a model for the conversion of County Road 700N, which Bonar hopes to start by the end of the month.
Solid Waste Management District gives 2023 raise
Following the decision by the County Council, employees for the Solid Waste Management District will be receiving a seven percent wage increase for 2023.
Also following the county’s decision on board pay, district board members will also receive $65 per meeting. These changes were unanimously approved by the board members.
Recycling Center Manager Kevin Polling reported several thousand in savings from selling recycled metal materials. Additionally, he was able to save some money on a forklift repair by getting a spare part from a former coworker. The Solid Waste Management District board thanked Poling for his hard work.
They also approved the following meeting dates for 2023. They will be as follows: Jan. 17, Feb. 21, March 20, April 17, May 15, June 20, July 24, Aug. 21, Sept. 18, Oct. 16, Nov. 20 and Dec. 18. The board also noted there will be a vacant position for 2023.
— Compiled by Holly Gaskill
