In order to spruce up the downtown area and various spots around town, North Judson officials are looking into the possibility of getting some decorative planters.
Deputy Clerk Peggy Paulich is going after a grant to get the planters and told Town Council members about some research she’s been conducting when they met for their final meeting in January.
She said she coordinated with officials in the Towns of Winamac and Rochester and received some valuable feedback. Paulich noted that she was advised to steer clear of the concrete planters as they do not age well.
She said a Rochester representative told her about self-watering planters and Paulich felt that those would be a valuable investment. She explained that flowers in self-watering planters thrive better because they are apparently less likely to get diseased since they’re being watered from underneath and the roots are receiving it directly.
Deputy Clerk Paulich mentioned that the woman she spoke to said the planters can hold up to about 20 gallons of water she would just drive by in a fire truck every now and then to refill them.
Paulich said one thing that they’ll have to monitor is the pH level of the Town’s water since it could potentially negatively impact the plants.
Fire Chief and Town Superintendent Joe Leszek noted that he would be willing to have the Fire Department water the planters as needed and stated that the Utility Department tests pH on a regular basis.
When asked how many planters they should get, Town Council President John Rowe suggested getting around 12 to start with and stated they could always get more in the future.
No official decisions were made during the meeting but Paulich will continue to update the Council about this process as things progress.
