Reagent Chemical and Research in Knox will soon be expanding, thanks to a series of tax phase-ins for the company. The Knox City Council at a special meeting last night approved the phase-in for Reagent, allowing the business a five-year deduction for new manufacturing equipment and a ten-year deduction for two real property improvements.
Mayor Rick Chambers explained that this is a mutually-beneficial agreement for both Reagent and the city of Knox.
Knox Mayor Rick Chambers explained a number of points to the city council this week, including an update from Park Superintendent George Byer on the status of winterization and fence repairs in Wythogan Park.
Byer explained that the winterization process will soon begin for the park, in which the park equipment will be prepared for the upcoming winter season to prevent any damage caused by the weather. Byer said they’ll also begin working on the repairs for the fence this weekend if weather permits, but if not, the repairs will have to wait until Monday morning. Byer said both fences will soon be repaired.
With the end of the year approaching, Knox Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston told the city council this week that he will soon begin working on the year-end reports to ensure all fund balances are in the black, and a number of fund transfers will need to be performed to guarantee that is the case.
A dangerous intersection in Knox received some attention by the city council this week as City Police Chief Clint Norem explained the intersection issue to the council.
Mayor Rick Chambers passed out a statement from the Knox Police Department that indicated the intersection at Portland and Lafayette streets is not as safe as it should be. Norem said drivers on Lafayette Street heading west that come to the intersection with Portland Street are forced to pull almost all the way into the intersection to see any southbound traffic. He explained that this is due in part to the design of the road and how it’s laid out, and residents at the corner have a fence and bushes that partially block the view as well.
The Knox City Council last night tabled a motion to allow a ten-year tax phase-in for Reagent Chemical and Research.
Plant Manager Tim Gunter asked the council to approve the phase-in to allow him to expand the business to the tune of approximately $2.5 million in manufacturing equipment, building expansion, and new construction. In addition, Gunter said Reagent would be adding at least 11 jobs with nearly $300,000 in new wages.
The Knox City Council will discuss a number of important topics at their meeting tonight, including a tax abatement request by Reagent Chemical and Research, LLC.
Mayor Rick Chambers explained that because he did not receive the paperwork for Reagent’s tax abatement until yesterday morning, it is unlikely that they will be able to approve the abatement at their meeting tonight. Chambers said that the city attorney, David Matsey, needs more time to go over the paperwork and ensure its accuracy.
Despite a number of complaints from residents who claimed they were adversely affected by ash and soot from the controlled burn conducted by the city of Knox in September, Mayor Rick Chambers told the city council this week that the Indiana Department of Environmental Management conducted an inspection at the site of the burn and found no violations.
Chambers explained to the council that he had received several complaints concerning ash and soot from the fire, and one resident had filed a police report regarding damage to his vehicle from burning ash that had fallen on the car.
The Knox City Council this week approved $175 from the city’s Christmas decoration money to be given to the top three Christmas decorators in the city. The first-place winner will receive $100, $50 will go to second place, and $25 will be given to the third best decorator.
Mayor Rick Chambers explained that the city has been doing this since at least 1998, and it goes a long way in giving people a sense of pride in their city.
The Knox City Council this week discussed the proposed agreement from Knox Gateway, Inc., which includes several buildings, improvements, and parcels that Gateway wishes to transfer to the city.
The agreement includes the former Nickel Plate railroad depot building, storage building, signal tower, watchman’s tower, signage, and 1970 caboose at 400 North Heaton Street on both the east and west sides of U.S. 35. The Fennema House, also included in the agreement, is located on West Water Street.
Knox Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston told the city council last week that the city’s audit has been completed by the state, pending official approval by the state supervisor. Houston explained that the audit, overall, went well; though he was unsure as to how city court fared with the audit. He said the only exception that the state took was that the deposits were not corresponding with what the books indicated was being deposited.
Houston explained that this was because some deposits were not listed as to whether they were cash or checks, so they could not be checked back on in the records. So, Houston said he has implemented a new form in his office that will be used to reconcile all cash and checks collected with the amounts deposited.
Knox City Attorney David Matsey told the council last week that the redistricting of voting precincts has been completed, but he said they made very few changes. Matsey explained that state law requires all municipalities to reestablish districts two years after the most recent census, so the city is required to complete the redistricting ordinance by the end of this year.
He said there are a number of requirements in the redistricting process, including a condition that all districts must be roughly the same size. However, Matsey said because the county will not be reconfiguring precincts, the city can retain the same districts. He presented an ordinance reaffirming the city’s current districts and suggested repealing the current ordinance and adding the new ordinance, worded exactly the same, before the end of the year.
A motion was made and passed to approve the ordinance on its first reading, and the council proceeded to vote to suspend the rules and approved the ordinance on its second and third readings as well, placing the new districting ordinance into effect immediately.
The Knox City Council this week adopted their budget for 2013, but Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston pointed out that they did hit a big of a snag. The state originally denied their intent to reestablish the Cumulative Capital Fund because the city did not publish the notice of adoption before Aug. 1 as required, but Houston said that was due to the fact that they did not have enough time to do so.
Houston said that they were behind schedule because they did not learn of the time requirement until June, and since governmental entities are required to publish the notice eight days ahead time, then hold a hearing and go through other time-consuming processes, they simply were unable to meet that deadline. He said a number of other towns and cities are in the same boat, and as a result, the Department of Local Government Finance reconsidered and accepted the city’s reestablishment of the Cumulative Capital Fund.
In an effort to adhere to new state policies, the Knox City Council this week entered a list of city employees into the official record. City Attorney David Matsey noted that this is in reference to the newly-required nepotism policies, which requires a list of current employees that are grandfathered in to employment and thus exempt from the new policy.
Mayor Rick Chambers said they had to revise the list nearly a dozen times to keep it up to date and accurate. The list consists of every employee currently employed by the city since before July 1 of this year.
The council in June passed a motion adopting a policy regarding conflicts of interest and nepotism of office, which Matsey said was the first step required to conform to Indiana’s new guidelines. The council adopted the minimum provisions required by state statutes for nepotism, prohibiting a person from supervising a direct relative. Matsey pointed out that the law does not prevent grandparents from supervising grandchildren in office, and it only affects direct supervisors.
Knox Mayor Rick Chambers told the city council this week that he has heard of a number of problems that have developed with the brush drop-off service available at the compost pile behind city hall. He said the pile has received an unexpectedly large amount of brush, requiring the city to take nearly one truck load per day from the site. More than 100 loads of brush have been removed from the compost pile so far this year.
Chambers said this might be due to a large number of people from out of town using the compost pile to drop off their brush, despite the fact that the service is only provided to residents of Knox. He said he has seen a number of out-of-town dump trucks deliver loads of brush to the site, and he is not sure what to do about the situation.
He said that the city does not want to fence in the area and it would be too costly to dedicate a patrolman to monitor the pile. The council decided to monitor the site’s activity for another year before deciding what action to take to cut down on out-of-town drop-offs.
The Knox City Council last week discussed the old laundromat building at 64 E. Lake St., which will soon be demolished. Mayor Rick Chambers says he has already gotten a few quotes on its demolition, but they are still waiting on the necessary paperwork to be completed before any quote can be accepted.
Chambers told the council that if the paperwork is completed in time, the Board of Works will likely discuss and possibly choose the winning bid at their next meeting.
A number of people in the city of Knox have called the city to report suspected fraudulent calls from companies selling insurance on water lines, but Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston says the offer might not be a scam.
According to Houston, the city is responsible for the main water line, but the lines running to the home and inside is the homeowner’s responsibility. As a result, it is possible to legitimately insure those lines, but he discourages the idea. He says there have only been a few times when that line has actually broken, and he feels it probably wouldn’t be worth insuring.
These insurance companies are typically not affiliated with utility providers, and Houston encourages all residents who are approached with such an offer to do some investigating before making their decision. The city of Knox does not endorse any water line insurance provider.
The Knox City Council this week discussed the results of their controlled burn to dispose of tree waste from the June and July storms. Mayor Rick Chambers explained to the council that he had received several complaints concerning ash and soot from the fire, and one resident had filed a police report regarding damage to his vehicle from burning ash that had fallen on the car.
Chambers told the council that he sent the incident report of the damage to the city’s insurance company. The man is claiming $492 in damage, stating that the car requires a “wash and buff job,” and while Chambers feels that’s a little expensive for such a job, he has forwarded the information to the city’s insurance company to allow them to deal with sorting it out.
The Indiana Department of Environmental Management granted the city’s burn permit on Aug. 9, allowing the city 30 days to conduct the burn. According to the permit, the city was allowed to conduct the controlled burn at the Starke County Highway Garage, Knox City Dump, or Wythogan Park, and the council decided that the dump was the safest place for the burn.
The Knox City Council this week approved a resolution to establish a Special Event Fund for the city. Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston told the council that he had spoken with the auditor for the State Board of Accounts who will be conducting the audit for Knox, and Houston had asked what to do with donations received for specific events, such as the Fourth of July fireworks.
According to Houston, the State Board of Accounts recommended creating a Special Event Fund to hold donations earmarked for a specific purpose. This fund will be separate from the city’s Donation Fund, which Houston says is used for donations to organizations or departments, such as police.
This new fund will be used to keep track of donations received for special events, but Houston emphasized that all donations going into this fund must be labeled for a specific purpose.
The council approved the resolution creating the Special Event Fund.
Step by step, the demolition of two buildings on North Main Street in Knox is becoming a reality. Two buildings, 2 N. Main St. and 4 N. Main St., are dilapidated and many feel they pose maintenance and safety concerns for the city.
According to Mayor Rick Chambers, the Starke County Economic Development Foundation has been looking to have the buildings torn down. The foundation was previously located at 4 N. Main St., but later moved to 1915 S. Heaton St. in Knox. The building at 2 N. Main St. has been abandoned for nearly 15 years.
Wythogan Park in Knox is still closed as work remains underway to clear the debris and remove precariously-balanced branches dangerously dangling overhead. Park Superintendent George Byer told the city council this week that the contractor who has been hired to do a lot of the clearing will begin on Monday.
Despite Monday, Sept. 3 being a holiday, Byer says the contractor is anxious to get started on the cleanup. The walkway has been cleared and a very large amount of branches, limbs, logs, and other wood has already been hauled out, but they’ve got a long way to go.
