Knox City Council Members Agree to Light Up Lake Street with New LED Bulbs

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

After realizing the advantages of having more illumination on Main Street in downtown Knox, city officials have decided to purchase more LED lights for other spots around town.

When city council members met last week, Mayor Dennis Estok said an additional six lights will be purchased for Lake Street and suggested purchasing three lights for the community center parking lot. The mayor mentioned that each light and globe costs approximately $250, meaning that nine more bulbs and globes would be around $2,250.

Council members came to the conclusion that lighting in the parking lot is not really a priority right now, so they opted out of getting an extra three bulbs for that area. Continue reading →

Knox City Council Members Approve Proposal for IT Infrastructure Enhancements, Estimated to Cost More Than $17,000 in First Year

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

The Knox City Council members amended their meeting agenda to include a proposal for enhancements to IT infrastructure, when they met last Wednesday.

Mayor Dennis Estok informed council members that the City of Knox is not currently equipped with any “off-site backup”, which is a state-mandated requirement. He said that means that all city documentation, emails and additional information would be unsaved if their main system was to experience any major problems. Continue reading →

Knox Mayor Dennis Estok Reminds Residents to Take Care of Animals in the Winter Months, Announces Tree Pick-Up Date

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

Mayor Dennis Estok addressed a couple of reminders during his report at this week’s Knox City Council meeting. Mayor Estok announced that pick-up for live Christmas trees will begin on Tuesday, January 2nd.

He stated, “Basically, you dispose of them the same way you do with brush, you know front of the curb, front of the house, where we would routinely pick up brush during the summer.” Mayor Estok specified that the trees should not be bagged and they must be bare.

Additionally, the mayor issued a reminder about winter pet safety at Wednesday night’s meeting. He wants Knox residents to be aware that the city has ordinance that allows officials to enforce the humane treatment of animals. Continue reading →

Knox City Council Holds First Reading over Ordinance Eliminating Obstructions

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

Knox City Council members held the first reading over the amended ordinance regulating obstruction of sidewalks, streets and railroad crossings for the City of Knox when they met Wednesday evening. Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston mentioned that the ordinance was created by taking their existing sidewalk obstruction ordinance and combining it with additional specifications that are addressed in state statute.

The majority of feed back from council members was specifically about the section regarding placement of vehicles. Certain members were seeking clarification about the section which indicates that vehicles cannot be within fifty feet of the nearest rail of a railroad crossing. Continue reading →

Mayor Estok Announces Plans to Purchase More LED Lights for the City of Knox

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

You may have noticed a bit of a change in downtown Knox. Other than the Christmas decorations brightening things up a bit, 10 new LED bulbs are now lining Main Street.

Last Tuesday, Mayor Estok explained that the new lights that were able to be installed without any additional steps. Previously, there was a concern that the existing ballasts would need to be bypassed, but after communicating with the company, it was found that they could be installed as is. Continue reading →

Fire Chief Kenny Pfost Presents Annual Report to Knox City Council Members

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

Knox City Council members amended their meeting agenda Tuesday night, in order include Fire Chief Kenny Pfost’s annual report.

Pfost explained that the fire department’s year ran from December 1st of 2016 through November 30th of this year. He said there was a total of 256 calls which was up 60 runs from last year. He stated that 133 of those were medical-related, resulting in 28 more medical calls than the previous year. Continue reading →

Knox City Council Members Start Process to Revamp Side Walk Obstruction Ordinance

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

Knox City Council members reviewed changes to the city’s sidewalk obstruction ordinance when they met Tuesday night.

Mayor Dennis Estok stated that no official action would be taken on the ordinance last night, but he wanted to submit it to council members prior to first reading incase they had any suggestions.

Issues with vehicles parking on sidewalks and large vehicles blocking the roadways have been brought up as council items during various meetings over the past few months. Councilman Jeff Berg recently showed fellow members that a sidewalk obstruction ordinance is on the books for the City of Knox.

However, the ordinance only covered structures and didn’t directly address vehicles. Council members agreed to amend the existing ordinance to cover the topics that have been discussed. Continue reading →

Humane Society Agreement & Side Walk Obstruction Ordinance on the Agenda for Tonight’s Knox City Council Meeting

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

The Knox City Council members are anticipated to act on the agreement between the Starke County Humane Society and the City of Knox when they meet in City Hall at 7 p.m. tonight.

The agreement states that the Starke County Humane Society is the official housing center for the city’s stray animals. Mayor Dennis Estok explained that there has been a verbal understanding between the city and the Humane Society for quite some time, but this agreement puts all expectations and responsibilities into writing.

Council members will also discuss amendments to the city’s existing sidewalk obstruction ordinance. The ordinance will be amended to address vehicles more specifically. Continue reading →

SCEDF Helps Knox Officials Get to the Bottom of a CEDIT Account Deficit

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

Starke County Economic Development Foundation Executive Director Charlie Weaver spoke with Knox City Council members about an estimated deficit in the city’s CEDIT account at their meeting last Tuesday.

Back in October, Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston mentioned that he received a notification from the Department of Local Government Finance indicating that there would be a projected loss of revenue of $34,908 for next year. He told members that sometimes those figures can be off but also assured them that the SCEDF was working with representatives from Umbaugh to get to the bottom of it.

At the most recent council meeting, Weaver informed members that after speaking with the city’s financial advisor Todd Samuelson of Umbaugh and Associates, he had a better understanding of why next year’s numbers are lower than the figures from  2017. Continue reading →

Mayor of Knox Informs Council Members of Delay with Main Street Light Replacement

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

Yesterday evening, Mayor Dennis Estok informed Knox City Council members that the installation of the new light bulbs on Main Street has been delayed due to a delivery issue.

Mayor Estok explained that the bulb that was initially installed as an example came without any ballast. Since the existing light fixtures contain their own ballasts there were no issues with that installation. However, the nine additional bulbs that were purchased came with ballasts inside the bulbs.

The mayor said that in order to install those bulbs, the existing ballasts would need to be bypassed during installation which would cost some additional money for labor. If they want to send these bulbs back and get the same ones as the example, they will be charged a restocking fee. Continue reading →

Knox City Council Meets Tonight

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

The Knox City Council members are anticipating an update from a representative with the Starke County Economic Development Foundation when they meet tonight.

The agenda for tonight’s meeting is pretty light but Mayor Dennis Estok said during his report he will touch on a few items that have been discussed in the past such as the city’s contract with the humane society and the new bulb installation on Main Street.

Mayor Estok said he’ll also be talking to the council members about the renewal of the Parks and Recreation Department 5-year Master Plan. Continue reading →

Knox City Council Receives Estimate for Community Center Flooring Renovations

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

The Knox City Council members received a few updates about the Nancy J. Dembowski Community Center renovation project when they met last week.

Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston informed council members that work on the roof is complete and the satellite was reinstalled. Mayor Dennis Estok went onto say they received the estimate for the flooring work that will be tackled in the near future. Continue reading →

Starke Pulaski Habitat for Humanity Thanks the City of Knox

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan
 

At a Knox City Council meeting last Tuesday, Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston told members that Starke Pulaski Habitat for Humanity sent in a letter thanking the city for their help on the McIntire home that was recently being constructed in Knox.

“We waived the water and sewer taps and the building permits and gave them a variance on the lot size,” Houston said, “so they wanted to thank everybody and they said it was a hand-up not a hand-out.”

The City of Knox wasn’t the only one to help with the construction of the new house. A variety of volunteers from all over have given countless hours to help complete the structure. Continue reading →

Knox City Council Talks Plans to Alleviate Side Walk Obstruction Issues

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

The topic of vehicles obstructing sidewalks has been discussed during council items at a few Knox City Council meetings recently.

In past meetings council members discussed the possibility of creating an ordinance to prohibit parking on sidewalks. At their meeting last Tuesday, Council Member Jeff Berg presented everyone with an existing ordinance that addresses side walk obstruction. Continue reading →

2018 Holiday and Meeting Schedules Unanimously Approved by Knox City Council

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

Knox City Council members unanimously approved all proposed 2018 schedules when then met Tuesday evening.

Mayor Dennis Estok said the schedules are essentially the same except for a couple of adjustments. For instance, on the proposed holiday schedule, rather than having Christmas and the day after Christmas off, in 2018 city employees will get Christmas Eve and Christmas Day off and return to work on December 26th. Continue reading →

Knox City Council Approves New Vehicle for Building and Code Compliance Officer

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

The purchase of a new vehicle for the Knox Building and Code Compliance Officer was approved at last night’s city council meeting. Compliance Officer Kenny Pfost has been utilizing his personal vehicle since the old city-issued vehicle broke down.

Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston mentioned that the $36,000 needed for the vehicle purchase will be split up between three separate accounts. He said that $10,000 would come out of the cumulative capital development repairs and maintenance fund, $8,600 would be from rental registration and $17,400 will be come from the edit account for the Knox Industrial Park. Continue reading →

Knox City Council Meets Tonight

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

The Knox City Council will discuss funding for a new building and code compliance vehicle when they meet at 7 p.m. tonight. They will also consider the 2018 Holiday Schedule as well as the City Council and Board of Works meeting schedules for next year.

The council will receive a report from Ron Gifford of the Starke County Economic Development Foundation. Mayor Dennis Estok and Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston will also provide reports. Continue reading →

Mayor of Knox Has Meetings Scheduled to Address Stray Animal Population

Posted on Author Jacque Ryan

Mayor of Knox Dennis Estok is scheduled to have a meeting with the Humane Society as well as the company Neuter Scooter, to discuss the stray animal population problem within the city.

He told Knox City Council members last week that he plans to draw up a contract with the Humane Society in order to have a place to take the animals that they receive calls about. He said there is a possibility they will need to hire an individual to fill the role of animal control since there is currently no one in that position. Continue reading →