David Kesvormas was re-elected president of the Hamlet Town Board, when it met Wednesday night. The other members of the board are Brian Earnest and Frank Lonigro.
The board accepted a bid of $12,000 for two vacant lots on West Davis Street, east of Rannells Funeral Home from Kris Rannells of the mortuary. In the offer, Rannells said he plans to develop the properties into a gravel parking lot with ADA compliant sidewalks. Continue reading
Starke County Health Nurse, Frank Lynch, presented a new fee schedule for the Commissioners’ final approval.
The fees to obtain copies of birth and death records have been slightly increased to a flat-fee of $10 each. Previously, the fee to obtain birth certificates was $8 for the first copy and $7 for each additional copy, while the fee for death records was $10 for the first and $9 for any additional copy.
A fine of $250 for food establishments operating without a permit has also been approved. This is a very important step in cracking down on food-related infractions, as David Kesvormas, the Starke County Contract Food Inspector, is conducting inspections and will now be able to issue these fines.
On the other end of the spectrum, fees for septic permits have been decreased significantly from $200 for a new install and $40 for repair to a flat rate of $60. This change is due to the retirement of the previous Environmentalist, David Singleton, who was certified and able to perform borings and soil samplings. Because he will no longer be doing so, contractors and home owners will need to hire a soil scientist to perform these procedures, which can get pricey.
David Kesvormas, the Starke County Contract Food Inspector, issued a report covering the first few weeks of his job. As of March 17th, Kesvormas had completed 26 inspections.
Infractions found included: Refrigeration doors not closing properly or not sealing due to defective seals, labeling and dating, cross contamination (meaning raw meat stored over items that are ready to eat), missing thermometers, inaccurate chemical sanitizer test equipment, and general cleaning and sanitizing.
One-third of the food handling businesses in Starke County are operating on expired permits. That fact was presented to the Starke County Health Board Monday night by Health Officer, Dr. Theresa Alexander.
That fact was discovered when going over the list of businesses to be inspected by new contract Inspector, David Kesvormas. Kesvormas told the Board that when he inspects a business that is operating on expired permits, he is notifying them and urging them to purchase the proper permit without a fine.
