Pulaski County BZA Tables Solar Farm Decision until Next Month

An audience member shares his concerns in this screenshot of the video stream from Monday’s Pulaski County BZA hearing.

The Pulaski County Board of Zoning Appeals wants more time before deciding whether a solar farm proposal can move ahead with its permitting process. After almost two hours of public comment Monday, board members voted to table the Mammoth Solar special exception request, to give them more time to research the project’s potential impact on the environment, ecology, and wildlife, as well as residents’ health.

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Pulaski County Officials Considering Social Distancing Protocols for BZA Solar Farm Hearing

A proposed solar farm in Pulaski County is expected to draw a crowd to next week’s board of zoning appeals meeting. How to keep everyone safe from COVID-19 was a topic of discussion during Monday’s county commissioners meeting. A company called Mammoth Solar is seeking permission to build solar arrays on more than 4,500 acres of farmland. The project would be in portions of Jefferson, Beaver, Rich Grove, Franklin, and Monroe townships.

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Pulaski Commissioners to Hold Hearing on COVID-19 Response Grant Application Today

Pulaski County Commissioners: Mike McClure, Jerry Locke, Kenny Becker

Pulaski County residents have a chance to weigh in on a proposed small business relief program during this morning’s county commissioners meeting. A public hearing will be held on the county’s application for $250,000 from the state’s COVID-19 Response Program. If approved, that money would then be used to provide grants to Pulaski County businesses, similar to a program that recently took place in the City of Knox.

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Knox City Council to Consider Budget Adjustment, Tax Abatement Compliance Forms

A few budget adjustments will be up for the Knox City Council’s approval tonight. Council members will consider granting permission for more money to be spent out of the cumulative sewer treatment fund, as well as for appropriations to be transferred within that fund. A reduction of appropriations in this year’s general, motor vehicle highway, and park funds for the 2021 budget will also be up for approval. Residents will have a chance to weigh in on those proposed changes before the council votes on them.

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Questions Raised during Oregon-Davis HVAC Project Hearing

Oregon-Davis School Board

The Oregon-Davis School Board has decided to keep moving ahead with planned heating and cooling upgrades, despite some surprise at the potential cost. Board members had been under the impression that bringing the HVAC systems at the two schools up to date would cost a total of $6 million. But the list of projects presented Monday by guaranteed savings provider EMCOR totaled almost $13.2 million.

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Resolutions Approved to Issue Bonds for N.J.-S.P. Elementary Renovations

Financial arrangements are in place for North Judson-San Pierre Elementary School’s $10 million renovation project. Bonds will be issued using the lease-rental process, in which the ownership of the property is transferred to a legally-separate building corporation and leased back by the school, with the rent covering the cost of the bond payment.

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Pulaski County Commissioners to Hold Hearing on COVID-19 Response Grant Application

Pulaski County Commissioners: Mike McClure, Jerry Locke, Kenny Becker

A potential COVID-19 relief grant program for Pulaski County’s small businesses is expected to be discussed during tonight’s county commissioners meeting. The county is asking for $250,000 from the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs’ COVID-19 Response Program.

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Federal Rules May Exclude Barbershops, Hair Salons from Knox COVID-19 Grants

Knox businesses will soon be able to apply for COVID-19 response grants from the city, but some of those hit particularly hard may not qualify. The city was recently awarded $250,000 in federal funding through the state’s COVID-19 Response Program. That money will be used “to provide working capital to local businesses for job retention.”

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