Pulaski County Highway Department crews will start their work days at 6:00 a.m., beginning April 23. That’s in spite of concerns raised by County Commissioner Mike McClure that it’s too dark that early.
Pulaski County won’t be taking any formal action on wind turbines until the end of May. County officials have been researching the topic, so they can make some recommendations about how to adjust the county’s Unified Development Ordinance going forward.
A temporary speed limit on Pulaski County Road 1550 West near Medaryville could become permanent. The County Highway Department has lowered the speed limit to 30 miles per hour between 150 North and 300 North, while nearby U.S. 421 is closed for a bridge replacement.
Pulaski County is looking to get some federal help to repair flood damage. Representatives from FEMA and the Indiana Department of Homeland Security met with various local officials last week, according to Pulaski County EMA Director Sheri Gaillard. “We really don’t have any information. They couldn’t tell us if we met the threshold or not,” she told the county commissioners Monday. “They just went over our dollar amounts and praised us for our documentation. Everything was good there. The next step is to turn it over to the governor to see if the State of Indiana meets the threshold. If we’ve met the threshold, they will then give all that information to FEMA.”
Drug-related crimes kept Pulaski County Sheriff’s Deputies busy this past weekend, according to Sheriff Jeff Richwine. “They served some search warrants, found a pretty big meth house,” he told the county commissioners Monday. “There were like 13 what they call one-pot labs in there. It took the State Police drug team almost seven hours to clean that mess up, and they arrested one or two people out of that. And then they got another person up at Monterey that was definitely selling meth.”
The Pulaski County Commissioners will meet in regular session tonight.
Discussions on wind turbines have taken center stage in Pulaski County over the past few weeks. The Pulaski County Plan Commission members and the Pulaski County Board of Zoning Appeals members heard from several citizens last week about their opposition of any large scale wind turbine farms or the placement of super turbines on any land in the county. The Pulaski County Commissioners have the topic on their agenda tonight.
The Pulaski County Farmers’ Market continues to expand. Rather than alternating between Winamac and Francesville each week, a weekly market will be held in both communities this year. “This year, they will be every Saturday in Winamac and every Thursday evening in Downtown Francesville,” Community Development Commission Executive Director Nathan Origer told the county commissioners last week. “So they’re expanding the opportunities for the market, and they’ll just be consistently in Winamac on Saturdays.”
Several residents are anticipated to attend the Pulaski County Board of Zoning Appeals and Plan Commission meetings tonight to gather more information on wind turbine discussions.
The fate of one of Pulaski County’s ambulances remains up in the air. The ambulance was significantly damaged in an accident on Christmas Eve.
Pulaski County will try to sell some county-owned land in the Monterey Resorts area. The county commissioners approved a contract Monday with SRI, to sell various parcels in the area. “They will do a commissioners’ deed sale and do all of the properties at one time, take care of everything, for 15 percent of what they collect,” County Attorney Kevin Tankersley explained.
Pulaski County EMS still doesn’t have enough paramedics to handle all the ambulance transfer requests from Pulaski Memorial Hospital. EMS Director Bryan Corn told the county commissioners Monday that his department took five transfers during the month of February, but ended up denying 11. He said most of those denials were due to staffing issues.
Pulaski Memorial Hospital is asking for the county’s financial assistance to help pay for its new MRI building. Director of Business Development Gregg Malott told the Pulaski County Commissioners Monday the hospital is asking for nearly $800,000 out of the county’s Cumulative Building Fund, between now and 2027.
Pulaski County officials are finalizing arrangements for IT services during this year’s elections. IT Consultant Willie DeGroot and the county’s in-house IT director, Matt Voltz, are both expected to help out during the May primary and November general elections.
A Pulaski County commissioner wants the county’s highway department to do most of its work during daylight hours. Highway Superintendent Terry Ruff asked the commissioners Monday to approve his department’s seasonal switch to a work week of four 10-hour days.
Pulaski County officials continue to gather information about wind turbines. Community Development Commission Executive Director Nathan Origer told the county commissioners Monday he plans to put together an informational meeting on the topic. Continue reading
Campaign sign regulations are causing confusion for Pulaski County candidates. The county’s updated Unified Development Ordinance that took effect at the beginning of the year appears to include some rules for campaign signs, but no one’s entirely sure, according to election board member Laura Bailey. “We have had, in the last 10 days, multiple contacts from concerned citizens, which then went out to various candidates, had all sorts of panic with the candidates because of the Unified Development Ordinance that you guys passed on December 18,” she told the county commissioners Monday. Continue reading
An update on wind turbines will be given to the Pulaski County Commissioners this morning. In the past several months, a number of filings have been made with the Federal Aviation Administration for possible wind turbines in the Francesville and Star City areas. County Attorney Kevin Tankersley has been looking into writing an ordinance that would regulate them.
Preparations continue for the replacement of the Pulaski County Courthouse elevator. Maintenance Supervisor Jeff Johnston told the county council Monday the project is going well. “All the material has been ordered,” he said. “The demolition is going to actually begin the end of this month, the last week of this month.”
Pulaski County is a step closer to getting its security committee back up and running. The county council Monday appointed council member Ken Boswell as its representative. The county commissioners appointed Jerry Locke last week.
A wrecked police vehicle has led to an insurance payout of over $20,000 for Pulaski County. “The pickup truck that was involved in the accident – it’s probably been three or four months ago now – that thing was totaled,” Sheriff Jeff Richwine told the county commissioners last week. Continue reading
