Groundbreaking

 On Tuesday morning, before the snow began falling, RWE Design Build and Rensselaer Pet Care had a groundbreaking ceremony for a new veterinary clinic on St. Gaspar Drive.

RWE Design specializes in designing and building veterinary clinics. The expected construction time is five or six months.

And then the snow began falling.

Walmart protected some of their plants with a cover.

The Rensselaer Tax Abatement Committee met on Monday morning. It reviewed tax abatements given in past years to see if the conditions on those abatements were still being met and approved continuing the abatements for Conagra, IMPA, and National Gypsum. There were four abatements for Indiana Face Masks and American Melt Blown, at least two of which were new. There is a new building being built north of Indiana Face Masks, but the owner is not Indiana Face Masks but a related company. They were approved for a five year abatement. Genova is also building and had been given an abatement at a special Council meeting. This Committee meeting The special meeting also approved an abatement for personal property provided that Genova provides an equipment list. The City Council must approve all abatements; the actions of this committee are advisory.

In the evening both the Jasper County BZA and Plan Commission met and I attended via Zoom. Unfortunately the sound quality was erratic, with some mics not working and some speakers not being close enough to the mic. The BZA approved a variance and a special exception for Calfland LLC, which, as the name suggests, raises calves. Their operation is a bit south of Fair Oaks. They currently have sheds for 6000 calves and if I heard correctly, they will now increase that to 12,000.

The Plan Commission approved a couple of rezones to allow construction or use of housing. The third item on the agenda was a proposal to develop land around a small gravel-pit lake several miles north of Rensselaer. The owners would like to erect cabins for vacation rentals, but what they want to do is not covered in the current planning regulations. The owners did not expect approval at the meeting and did not get it. The Commission voted to not take any action. During the discussion there were concerns about drainage and about whether the project would be able to get State and Federal evironmental approvals.

On Tuesday evening the Jasper County Council met and again I chose to attend via the Zoom option. Sound was better, though the Council's attorney was not near a mic when he spoke and I could not hear what he had to say.

The first item on the agenda was an abatement for a digester for the DeYoung de Jong farm that will be part of a methane pipeline project. The entire project will cost about $8 million and there will be one well-paid employee when completed. This is the first abatement proposal that was filled out using the new scorecard approach that the County approved last year. There is a cutoff date of May 17 to meet some kind of State deadline and there needs to be an advertised public hearing. The Council must also designate the area as an ERA (Economic Revitalization Area?) and pass the abatement. The Council at this meeting voted to move forward and have the needed paperwork prepared and the public hearing advertised. At the end of the meeting they did not adjourn but continued the meeting until May 14.

The proposal from the Prosecutor to have a detective position made full-time was tabled to see what the Commissioners decide on the matter. County Clerk Kara Fishburn presented a resolution that would allow her Election Board to investigate a change from precinct voting to voting centers. This proposal had been given to the Commissioners at their meeting and approved. Forty eight Indiana counties have already moved to voting centers, which allow county residents to vote at any polling place in the county. There will be a period for public comment, probably in June, that will be advertised by the Clerk's office. The Council approved the resolution.

The Council approved an amendment to the salary ordinance that changes some salaries. It also approved a Heritage Barn Ordinance. The State recently approved a measure that allows old barns that are no longer used for agriculture or business to be designated heritage barns and as such the owners pay a $50 annual fee instead of the property tax on the structure.

In public comments, Kendell Culp reported that 15,000 County residents had gotten at least one vaccination.

Despite all the equipment that the room has, sound continues to be a problem. The mics are very directional so that they do not interfere with each other, causing feedback. I wonder why there cannot be just one mic that hears the room in the same way that the human ear hears the room. 

The Jasper County Historical Society also met Tuesday evening. A video of their meeting is here. (Jump to 19 minutes for only the program of the evening.)

The Weston Cemetery Walk is planning to use Eventbrite for ticketing this year. Eventbrite is used by eMbers and Carpenter Creek for their ticket sales. You do not need tickets for the Fire Departments 125th Anniversary Open House on May 8 at 11:00. You will have to pay, however, for their drive-through fish fry on May 7 starting at 4:00.