The Knox City Council discussed the controlled burn to dispose of the collected brush and debris from the June and July storms.
Knox Mayor Rick Chambers told the council that the burn was supposed to take place earlier this week but the community has voiced its concern, so Chambers says he wanted to bring it to the council for further discussion. Chambers says the Indiana Department of Environmental Management has given the city its approval for the burn.
The Knox City Council this week approved the use of $15,000 from the Economic Development Income Tax fund to purchase the property at 64 E. Lake St. in Knox, better known as the old laundromat.
The city had been interested in purchasing the property several years ago, but at that time, the property was tied up in court litigation and consequently unable to be transferred to the city, but Mayor Rick Chambers says they believe that litigation has been settled. He says the city would purchase the property for $15,000 and demolish it to expand the small park area adjacent to it.
The city of Knox will be receiving a rebate from their life insurance company to the tune of $34,672.22, according to Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston.
Houston explained that the city had received a letter from Trustmark Life Insurance Company explaining that the city would receive the rebate as required under the Affordable Care Act. The company had spent more than 20 percent of its premiums on administrative costs, salaries, sales, and advertising, and as a result, that extra amount spent must be returned to the city.
The Knox City Council at their recent meeting approved an ordinance on its third and final reading amending the city’s sewer and stormwater rates.
Since the city has constructed a sewage system to collect sewage and waste, and convey it to a treatment plant for treatment and disposal, the city council approved the ordinance to establish a department to address the city’s stormwater needs. The ordinance also created a stormwater fund and established stormwater rates.
The Knox City Council met this week and heard from Viola Woods, the attorney for the new owner of 304 S. Main St. in Knox, more commonly known as Marsh Manor.
Woods had asked the council what needs to be done in order for her client to improve the property enough to bring it back up to liveable standards, as it had previously been condemned following a fire that destroyed a portion of the house.
Knox City Attorney David Matsey told the city council this week that Marsh Manor, located at 304 S. Main St., was recently sold in the county’s online tax sale.
Matsey says the woman who purchased the property was unaware that the building had previously caught fire, and he says she paid about $15,000 in a bidding war on the property. The back-taxes on the property are currently around $18,000.
A Knox business has hit a bit of a setback in the wake of the July 24 storms. NITLine CEO Jerry Shepherd approached the city council this week seeking “immediate approval” to establish a wireless internet tower on the city’s water tower. He said this is an emergency case because his tower near the NITLine building on Main Street had been critically damaged in the storms, and he needs to get his internet service up and running as soon as possible for his customers.
Shepherd requested approval to mount an antenna on the East Street water tower because of its central location. Several antennas have already been mounted on the water tower, including the Knox Community Schools communication equipment and a number of antennas for DC Technologies. Shepherd said his antenna would have no conflicts with the current equipment, and he says the liability would be covered.
The Knox City Council at their meeting this week approved the city’s match for the Kankakee-Iroquois Regional Planning Commission’s housing improvement project grant. The match for the grant is roughly 10 percent of the $200,000 total, coming out to $22,500 that the city must provide to improve housing for the 12 eligible households that have applied.
A motion was made and approved for their 10 percent share, and a motion was also made and approved to accept the 12 applicants into the housing improvement project.
The council also discussed their appointment to the Knox Planning Commission. This nine-member board consists of two appointments by the county commissioners, four citizens appointed by the mayor, and three appointments from the city council. The three appointments from the council need to be either city officials or employees, and Mayor Rick Chambers said he will go through their list of employees and see if anyone is interested in the position.
Several public hearings were held during yesterday’s meeting of the Knox City Council for a number of proposed ordinances.
The first public hearing held was in regards to the reestablishment of the cumulative capital fund, something Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston says they tried several years ago but it was never passed. No public comment was heard, and a motion was made to approve the ordinance on the first reading. This motion was passed, and another motion was made and approved to suspend the rules. Finally, a motion was made to approve the ordinance on its second and third readings, which was passed.
The destructive storm on July 24 caused massive amounts of damage throughout Starke County, especially Knox. More than 80,000 people were without power at one time, including most of the city of Knox. As a result, a number of events were canceled and rescheduled, and the Knox City Council meeting was one such event.
As a result, the meeting has been rescheduled for tonight at 7 p.m., and two public hearings will be heard. One hearing is in regard to reestablishing the cumulative capital fund, and the other concerns changes to the city’s water and storm water rates. The council will also hold the second readings of the water rate ordinance and the sewer and storm water rate ordinance.
Discussion of three salary ordinances for appointed employees, the clerk-treasurer’s office, and elected officials is also on the agenda, and they will discuss their appointment to the planning commission.
Two ordinances were passed this week at the meeting of the Knox City Council on their first readings. The first ordinance increased the water rate for the city in two phases: the first would increase the rate by $2.35, and the second would raise it an additional $2.35, effectively making a total increase of $4.70.
The second ordinance passed was an amendment to the sewer and stormwater ordinance, increasing the rate by $1 this year and an additional $1 next year.
An additional appropriation was also approved at the meeting. The appropriation moved $140,000 from the Cumulative Sewer Fund to rebuild the lift station located on Claybaugh Drive in Knox, near the South Side Fire Station. Another $27,301.08 was moved from the Sewer Improvement Fund, and $21,000 in EDIT funds were also appropriated for the project.
Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston says the council will also be reestablishing the Cumulative Capital Development Fund in the near future.
Knox Mayor Rick Chambers announced this week that he and Chris McLaughlin of Werks BMX in Knox will be forming a committee to discuss ideas for improving the skate park – this after McLaughlin informed the city council that they need to find a way to raise funds to maintain the skate park.
Chambers said that the skate park had only been designed with a five-to-eight year life expectancy before it would need some heavy maintenance, and that deadline is quickly approaching. It was pointed out that there are grants available that the city can look into to have the skate park redone, but the price of such a project is pretty steep.
Two important meetings are scheduled to be held this week in Starke County.
The first, the Knox City Council will be meeting on Tuesday to discuss their proposed water rate increase. Discussion will be held over Umbaugh and Associates’ recommendation to increase the water utility rate by $6.70 a month and the council will vote on whether or not to approve an ordinance increasing the water rate. A public hearing will also be held, and the meeting will take place at Knox City Hall at 7 p.m.
A special meeting for the North Judson Town Council will be held on Thursday at 4 p.m. CT to discuss the North Judson Industrial Park. According to Clerk-Treasurer Donna Henry, expected attendees include Town Superintendent Marshall Horstmann, Charlie Weaver and Larry Wickert of the Starke County Economic Development Foundation.
The Knox City Council last week passed a motion to adopt a policy regarding conflicts of interest and nepotism in office, a policy required by new state law as of today. City Attorney David Matsey says this is the first step required to conform to Indiana’s new guidelines, and they will next pass a resolution and draft an ordinance reenforcing the policy.
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.
The law only applies to future hirings, and Matsey told the council that a list of all employees will need to be made to note employees that are related.
The Knox City Council this week approved a motion to use $4000 from Riverboat revenue to put in a handicap ramp on the west side of the courthouse. The committee planned to use funds out of the 50/50 sidewalkfund, but work that had been done in front of city hall and expenses as part of the city’s leaf pick-up had drained the sidewalk repair fund.
After tabling the matter twice, the Knox City Council this week finally signed documents stating that Hoosier Custom Plastics is in substantial compliance to the terms of their tax abatement.
Council Attorney David Matsey said they were hesitant to sign the forms because documents that were necessary to ensure they were in compliance had been sent to the wrong department – some documents went to the clerk-treasurer’s office that should have gone to the auditor’s department, and vice versa. However, the council ultimately agreed that the company is in compliance, and approved the forms.
Applause filled the room at this week’s meeting of the Knox City Council, as they approved a motion to allow an exercise group to resume use of the community center at no charge.
The group had been using the Knox Community Center free of charge since 1998, but were recently asked to move operations to the Girl Scout Cabin in order to avoid paying a fee to use the center. Virginia Wireman-Duncan, the leader of the exercise group, said they felt they should be able to use the center free of charge because they did not charge any of their members any kind of fee in order to exercise with the group.
In an attempt to make the Knox Water Department more self-sufficient, the Knox City Council is considering a rate increase of $6.70 a month. The increase would be spread out over two years, and, if approved, could mean a monthly increase of $3.75 per month as early as August.
Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston explained the hike, which was recommended by Umbaugh and Associates, would ensure the water department could continue regular operations.
“The reason I wanted this rate study done was to make sure we had enough money to pay for our bonds, and other financial obligations. Basically, I wanted to make sure the water department was on sound financial footing,” said Houston.
For the second time, the Knox City Council tabled a request to approve tax abatement forms for Hoosier Custom Plastics. The council again noted that the company is in compliance to the terms of the abatement, but Council Attorney David Matsey questioned some of the dates and other pertinent information on the forms.
The Knox City Council responded to a request from Community Services of Starke County for $500. The organization told the council that the money would be used to provide services for senior and low income families within the city.
