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Park news

The first tournament at the Blacker fields was held this past weekend. The teams lucked out with some good weather. There was rain, but it was overnight on late Saturday and the fields were OK for Sunday. There were 30 teams participating.

New this year was an admission charge. Rensselaer had been the only venue used by the organizers of these tournaments that did not charge an admission fee.

There will be more tournaments for the next two or three weekends.

At the Park Board meeting on Monday evening, Mr Effinger explained that without the admission fee the teams had to pay a higher entrance fee, and that deterred some teams from coming to Rensselaer to play. There was concern that locals might complain about the fee if they only wanted to stop by and watch a game or a partial game and the fee might depress concession sales (which is where the Parks make money--the fees to use the fields cover the cost of preparing the fields). But with more teams coming for each tournament, the extra number of parents and players should more than offset the lost sales to those who are deterred by the entrance fee.

The Park Board also approved buying a sprinkler for the ball fields. Brianne Hooker from the Jasper-Newton Foundation said that she had donors who want to replace some of the playground equipment at Foundation Park and the Board encouraged her to support these efforts. The Board reviewed the accountant's report that showed that the Parks have operated in the black for the past four years. Softball should be getting started soon. Younger people seem to be uninterested in the sport. Pickleball has become popular at the new tennis courts.

Last week Brookside Park hosted a large group of students from the Kankakee Valley School system.

When I took the photo above I wondered what the purpose of the fencing was. I figured it out on Saturday when I stopped by to look at the baseball games.

Commissioners meeting

Near the beginning of the Commissioners meeting on Monday morning, Mr Bontreger mentioned the proposed carbon sequestration project. BP is apparently planning a test well to explore the rocks that lie beneath us. Newton County did not have the seismic testing that was done in Jasper County not because of something that their County government did but because there was data from the testing done before the landfill was put in and it apparently showed that the rock structures were too thin for significant CO2 storage. The Commissioners continue talking with BP and think that respectful dialogue is best at this point. All three commissioners oppose the project.

The meeting then proceeded with routine business. Two buried cable permits were approved for Carpenter Township and Remington,. The Commissioners approved lease contracts for postage machines for the Courthouse, Sheriff's Department, and the annex. New employee hours in the Health Department were approved as well as two new vehicles financed from a fund that the State wants the Department to spend down. A request from EMS to hire a full-time administrative assistant was approved. The Director is part-time (he has a full-time job in Valparaiso) and the salary for the Director is budgeted for a full-time director. Most of the money for the administrative assistant will come from unused funds for the director. The new EMS building will have an open house on May 23 from 4:00 until 6:00.

The Commissioners approved some conference requests and a vacation-extension request. The Sheriff received permission to replace two jailers and an officer who is leaving the Department after 20 years to work at Purdue. The leak in the jail roof was found under one of the condensers. There was a discussion of whether it would be better to put the air-conditioning equipment on the ground rather than have it on the roof and the Sheriff was told to proceed with planning for that change. The Commissioners approved a new application for a COPS grant. Last year the application was not funded because other departments were judged to have greater need for the funding. The Corrections Department received permission to replace a correctional officer. 

Two bids for outside contractor services were opened and both accepted. They allow the Highway Department to outsource work when the Department cannot perform it. The Commissioners accepted a bid of $2000 from Rensselaer Monuments to repair damage done by vandals in Makeever Cemetery. The County wants to transfer ownership to Newton Township and paperwork needs to be finished. The Commissioners also accepted proposals from Reliable Exterminators to service Corrections, EMS, and Animal Control.

In other business, it was noted that DeMotte is considering a speed limit for its buffer zone. The County Attorney said that they do not have the authority to do that, but they can make a request to the Commissioners. The Commissioners approved purchase of updated GPS equipment for the Surveyor's Office that will automate updating records. 

Changes to the Solar Ordinance will be discussed in the May Plan Commission meeting. Among the many changes will be the elimination of the requirement to plant trees or bushes for screening. Instead the setbacks will be increased and the land in the setback will be used for crops. There is currently no provision for battery storage facilities; the changes add some.

At a previous meeting the County Coroner expressed concerns about the speed limits on SR-10 as it approaches and goes through Wheatfield He said the State had been unresponsive to his request and Wheatfield's request for change and wanted the Commissioners to add their support for changes. He also gave the Commissioners updated and improved plans for a new building he would like built to house the mortuary. EMA Director Karen Wilson wanted a vehicle for EMA and the Commissioners approved transferring one from the Sheriff;s Department.

A number of citizens sat through a couple of hours of the meeting waiting to make public comments and most were about the proposed carbon sequestration project that BP has proposed. One speaker said that her communication with State officials said that the County had considerable authority to regulate both a CO2 pipeline and wells. Another speaker suggested that the Commissioners draft a resolution stating that the Commissioners were opposed to carbon sequestration. Mr DeYoung then made a motion to have the Attorney Beaver draft to that effect. Mr Bontreger then asked what effect that would have on IBEC, which is currently sequestering CO2. They were apparently told that they had to do this or they would be shut down. Further, IBEC provides a major market for the corn grown in Jasper County, so what happens to them may affect the farmers. The motion was then tabled until May 20 and Mr Beaver was asked to determine exactly what the County can and cannot do with the issue of carbon sequestration. After almost 3 hours, the meeting was continued to May 20 at 8:30.

Other meetings

I was not paying attention to the time on Monday afternoon so arrived at the Rensselaer Redevelopment Commission meeting fifteen minutes late. The meeting was over by the time I got there. I learned that the Commission had approved $60,000 for Apple Seed. The cost of running the Appletree Center is a bit over $600,000 and the revenues are a bit under $400,000, so a bit more than $200,000 must be raised each year to keep the Center open. The money from the Redevelopment Commission fills about a quarter of the gap.

The other item on the agenda was the building on the corner of Clark and Cullen that was once a bottling plant. The Commission would like it demolished.

The Drainage Board met after the Commissioners meeting. They decided to reject a request for a variance that would allow a garage to be built on the right-of-way of a ditch. The Surveyor needs the right-of-way if the ditch is cleaned. This issue had been discussed at previous meetings. They approved a request for a culvert placement and approved a fiber-cable request to cross County drains in Remington. A homeowner wanted three 18-inch culverts removed from a neighbor's driveway because she said the runoff was threatening the foundation of her house. After some discussion, Mr DeYoung told her to arrange a meeting with the adjoining property owner or owners and  together with him, the Surveyor, and the Highway Department, a solution would be worked out. A woman had a question about her drainage bill and was told that the overcharge was due to the computer program used by the Auditor and Treasurer. She was told to take the matter to their offices.

Brick street pictures

Work continues on the Brick Street project. Last week the workers were installing a couple of manholes on Harrison Street.

The sidewalks along Harrison Street were removed about a week ago.

This is a view of Van Rensselaer Street taken on Tuesday.

Odds and ends

The first farmers market of the summer took place on May 4. Only one of the booths had garden produce, some asparagus. 

I wonder why there is no rhubarb for sale. Is it because there is no demand for it or is it because no one is growing it?

A tree fell across the Iroquois River along Weston Cemetery. 

Property tax bills are due May 10. 

The primary election held on Tuesday had a number of contested County races on the Republican side. Emily Waddle defeated John Potter 52.61% to 47.39%. Diana Boersma won easily in a three-way race in the County Auditor race with over 50% of the vote. The two Commissioner candidates who will be on the ballot in November are Ryan Hilton (District 1) and Craig Standish (District 2). The race in District 2 was extremely close, with Standish edging Jeff DeYoung by six votes, 1617 to 1611. The three Republican candidates for County Council in November will be Brian Moore, Jacob Misch, and Scott Walstra. Complete results are here.