Windmills and windows

Monday evening's meetings

The Jasper County Plan Commission and BZA usually meet starting at 7:00. The start was moved up to 6:00 on Monday, probably in anticipation of a long BZA meeting. I decided I should get there a bit early, but when I got there the seating was almost filled and there were some people standing at the back of the room.


The Plan Commission met first and was a short meeting. The first cause was approval of a 2-lot replat in Keener Township. The lot has a house on it and the owner would like to build a second house on the other part of the lot. Other lots in the area are similar. The request was approved and this one does not need to go to the Commissioners for final approval. The second item was amending the UDO with some changes in language. It had been discussed in the October meeting. It will go to the Commissioners with the recommendation for approval.

There was a short delay until 6:15 when the BZA meeting started. There was only one item on the agenda, a special exception for the location of 33 utility grade wind turbines (UWTs) with 2 alternative sites. The total project of the Carpenter Wind Farm will have 45 UTWs but twelve of them are in the Remington exclusion zone and they had been approved by the Remington government boards. The project will be built by EDP Resources, which was repeatedly referred to as EDPR, and will be owned and managed by them. NIPSCO has agreed to purchase the power generated. All will be constructed on land zoned A1, The presentation by EDP stressed the economic benefits of the project. Over the lifetime of the project there will be $70 million paid to landowners and $32 million in taxes, about half going to the Tri-County School system. In addition the project will make an economic development payment of about $6 million to the County. There will be about 150-200 jobs during construction and some permanent jobs because EDP plans to construct an operations and maintenance office in Carpenter Township. 

The presentation had a map showing the land that EDP had contracted for windmills, service items, or setbacks. The box in the lower left shows the area under the jurisdiction of the Town of Remington. The little circles show where windmills will be placed.

The Board members had some questions about tile damage and maintenance. I was surprised that most of the comments from the public were in favor of the project. Three union representatives mentioned how many of their members lived in Jasper County and might end up working on the construction. The head of the Remington Redevelopment Commission said that the City of Remington was in favor of the project. Again, the stress was on the economic benefits from the project. In contrast, a woman living near Remington said she just wanted to live a simple life that did not include windmills. I was very impressed by the EDP presentation. They clearly had done their homework, understood where the opposition to the project was coming from, and tried to disarm those arguments before they could be raised.

The Board then had to vote on several findings of facts. Those given by EDP were long and the Board did not want some of what was in them to be what the Board endorsed. Eventually they got together and edited out some sentences and paragraphs from the EDP copy and approved the edited findings. With the findings of acts approved, the special exception was approved. This was the final regulatory approval needed before construction can begin.

Scott Walstra, chair of the BZA, was elected to the County Council in the November election. He ended the meeting by announcing his resignation from the BZA. 

The next meeting will be on December 16 if there is an agenda.

After the meeting I had a couple of questions. I wondered if the $6 million economic development payment was contingent on getting a tax abatement and learned that the abatement had been approved in 2022. I also wondered about the legal notice shown below from page B8 in the November 14, 2024 issue of the Rensselaer Republican. I was told that it will be used to track overhead airplanes and will turn on the red warning lights on the turbines when a plane is overhead. Otherwise the lights will be off.

Joint Commissioners/Council meeting

The second Joint Commissioners/Council meeting of the year took place before the Council meeting on Tuesday evening. The first item on the agenda was a presentation by David Myers, Wheatfield Township Trustee, and Nick DeKryger of a proposed splash pad for northern Jasper County. Wheatfield Township owns a five acre parcel on SR 10 west of the KV High School that it plans to use for a future fire station. A number of DeMotte Rotarians have been planning a splash pad for the area and decided that this location would be an ideal location. It would be able to serve the whole population of the northern townships and it was big enough for both a park and a fire station.


The proposed splash pad is estimated to cost $2 million. They had prepared a pamphlet  that broke the cost into categories, and there are costs for infrastructure because there is none on the lot at present. They argue that the splash pad would improve the quality of life for the area and would be good for the community and the economy. They said that a splash pad is a low-maintenance amenity (at least compared to a pool) and that it would be free as the splash pad in Remington is. Fundraising for the project has just begun and they would like the County to contribute $500,000. If that happens, it will likely be from economic development funds that the Dunns Bridge II project has paid to the County. These funds have no restrictions on how they are used.

There was a brief discussion of the public defenders' office, which is supposed to begin operating at the beginning of the year. Apparently a head of the office has been selected but that information is not yet public. Still undecided is where the office will be located.

The Council has a moratorium on tax abatements for industrial solar and battery storage and Commissioner Bontreger wanted to know what the Council was thinking. The moratorium is being presented by Councilman Misch and he said he largely copied it from Wells County. There were suggestions that the same result could be obtained by tweaking the scorecard that had been developed several years ago to help businesses and the Council determine abatements. 

County Council meeting

The County Council had a bunch of additional appropriations that it passed. Most were technical bookkeeping. The County hires firms to supervise construction of a solar farm and a wind farm. The companies building these projects have agreed to cover the costs of this supervision. They pay the County, and for the County to then pay the supervising companies, the money must be appropriated.

The Sheriff had a number of salary changes, most due to people changing positions. They will be put into the salary ordinance in the December meeting and additional appropriations needed will be done in January. He mentioned that his department did not get the COPS grant it had applied for. Other places have more serious crime problems.

The Commissioners had approved a new position for the Health Department to help with the increasing number of Spanish-speaking people the Department sees. The Council approved a salary up to $49k depending on experience. 

The agenda had an item "Non-Exempt VS Exempt Status for County Employees. Whatever it was was made moot by a court case in Texas. The Council reappointed a person whose four-year appointment to the Remington Library to another four-year term.


There were two people nominated to fill Scott Walstra's position on the BZA. Scott Walker won on a 4-2 vote.

The Council then had a discussion of the moratorium mentioned in the joint meeting. The purpose of the moratorium was to send a message that the County does not welcome new solar investment. The attorney for the Council said that it would be better to have this done with a resolution rather than an ordinance, which was what Mr Misch was proposing. The main argument for it was that the Council members who had campaigned this year found widespread opposition from the public to additional solar farms. A motion to have the Council attorney draft a resolution passed with two nay votes.

The Council passed three changes to the 2024 salary ordinance. Jacob Taulman said that his search for a third deputy prosecutor had found a candidate with extensive experience and that he would be hiring her at the top of the amount the Council had allowed for this position. She will be part-time for four months so she can finish up her private cases. 

The meeting ended with an inconclusive discussion of where the EMS program should go next.

On the way to these meetings I took the picture below, showing the bare trees at twilight reflected in the River. It looked more impressive than what the picture captures.

New pool mural

At its last meeting the Park Board approved a new mural on the pool house at LaRue Pool. Last Saturday I caught Rein Bontreger working on it.

By Monday the mural was finished. Below is the left side of the mural.

And here is the right side.

More Christmas window art

Below are more pictures of window art. The first two show windows of Uptown Girls Styling Salon.

The next two are windows of Fenwick's Brewing.

Two windows of Cup of Joy.

Some windows of buildings that have multiple offices.

Express Employment.

Three paintings on the Beaver Law Office.

Unique Finds.

Four windows of Sorrel and Rye Mercantile.

Artists at work on DeMotte Carpet.

Two windows of the Lori James' office.

A window of First Merchants.

The window paintings are not finished so expect pictures of more in the future.

Miscellany Mid-November 2024

Some SJC news

On Wednesday the Rensselaer Chamber of Commerce held its final luncheon of the year at Strack & Van Til with a presentation from Ernest Watson about programs at SJC. He talked mostly about the building-trades program that recently started. That program has had problems finding high school students because of scheduling (the students need a three-hour block of time and some schools cannot provide that) and the foundation courses that are needed are not there. The program does have a student from the Indiana Ag and Tech school who would be willing to work every day if it were permitted.

It has taken a while, but SJC is now focused on hands-on training. Mr Watson commented that it has gone from higher education to hirer education, a focus on providing skills and certificates that make students ready for jobs. There is a demand for people in the trades and not enough young people are entering them. The CDL program limits classes to four students, much less than some programs north of us. The students learn on manual transmissions because then they can drive any semi. Students who learn on automatic transmissions cannot drive manual transmission trucks. 

SJC has developed useful relationships with WorkOne and United Way of Northwest Indiana, both of which have funding to help people upgrade their skills. SJC will have an open house on November 21 from 6:00 until 8:00 for anyone interested in knowing more about their program.

There is a chance that SJC will host a school for training linemen. Let's hope it happens. Saint Joe has its winter newsletter on-line. The subdivision that will gradually emerge west of Halleck Center now has a name, the "Waugh Estates".

Finally, the recently-hired CEO, Rachel J. Lattimore, who was hired this past summer, is leaving. She gave her notice in September and will leave before the end of November. I talked to her briefly and she said her vision of the future was not the same as the vision of some Board members. She did not go into details, but my guess is that she is interested in exploring new opportunities while some on the Board still want to resurrect the past.

Annual Prairie Arts Council Holiday Sale

The Prairie Arts Council Holiday Sale began on Thursday and will end on Saturday. There is a lot of stuff for sale—the gallery is packed with things. There are several jewelry exhibits.

Of course there are paintings.

I am not sure what these are.

More paintings and glassware.

If you have not stopped by, Saturday is your last chance.

The Celebrating Photography show that was scheduled to run through December has been canceled because of building maintenance.

A mystery tree/bush

This summer I noticed a strange little tree or bush that was growing in my yard next to the street. I used to be able to identify almost all the trees around town, but this one was a complete mystery to me. It had very ordinary leaves but strange pink-red fruit that was oddly shaped.

My curiosity finally made me search for it. It is a European Spindle. It is not native to North American but so far has not spread enough to be declared an invasive species. Its berries pop open and reveal a hard seed. The whole plant is poisonous. You can find more here and here.

Rensselaer Redevelopment Commission meeting

The Rensselaer Redevelopment Commission met Thursday afternoon. On their agenda was a public hearing for a resolution that would a) enlarge the Drexel/Fairgrounds economic development area, b) establish the Van Rensselaer Residential allocation area, and c) amend and restate the Drexel/Fairgrounds economic development plan. There were several people who asked questions about what this meant. The Drexel/Fairgrounds TIF district connects via roads two areas, one on the east side of US 231 across from SJC and the other west along SR 114 from the old City limits to the Interstate. Any property tax revenues from new development in these areas goes to the Redevelopment Commission and they are supposed to spend them to provide infrastructure such as roads and utilities. The resolution establishes a new TIF area, a two block tract north of Van Rensselaer and a strip along Elm Street east of Melville Street. This is a residential TIF, something new allowed by the State.The resolution both expands the area in which the Commission can spend money and the things on which the Commission can spend. After the comments, the Commission passed it and this is the final vote that it needed. (The City Council previously approved it.)

The Commission continued the Façade grant program with funding at $100,000 for 2025. It loosened the timing of the spending, so more than $25,000 can be spent in one quarter if it is taken from another quarter.

Finally, the Commission approved a 2025 spending plan. During that discussion, Superintendent Craig from Rensselaer Central Schools reported on how the $25,000 given to the Schools last year helped the Corporation's pre-school, which enrolls 43 kids this year. There is no State funding for pre-schools. This year the Corporation is requesting another $25,000, but for school supplies instead of pre-school. The State gives schools $156 per student for supplies, but Rensselaer spends more than that. I am not sure if the vote to accept the 2025 spending plan also approved that request or if it needs a separate approval.

Odds & ends

Saint Augustine had its annual turkey dinner and bazaar on Thursday. Preparing dinners for hundreds of people takes a tremendous amount of work and I respect those who do it.

Below is the finished window painting on the window of Gallina Insurance. (The previous post had the sketch.)

On Monday and Tuesday there are some County meetings that may have substantial audiences.

Peak color?


Enjoying Autumn

We are either at or slightly past peak color. Tuesday was very windy and a lot of leaves left the trees. It was fun watching them race down the north-south streets. Trees that are spectacular one day can be partially bare a couple days later, so enjoy what we have because it will not last long.

Tulip trees turn golden in the Fall.

Some oaks have pretty fall leaves, but my oaks just turn brown.

Have a candy-filled eve of All Saints' Day.

City Council meeting

At its second October meeting, the Rensselaer City Council passed a salary ordinance that increases pay by 2%, increases longevity pay, and increases contributions to the HSAs. It also sets on-call terms to one week with a stipend for the week. There were about ten City employees at the meeting and I think they came to see what the salary ordinance would do. The Council suspended the rules that require two readings so the ordinance could be passed with only one.

The second item on the agenda was an amendment to the golf cart ordinance. UTVs that are registered will be grandfathered in but no new UTVs will be registered. The maximum fine was reduced from $300 to $250 because the violations bureau cannot collect fines larger than $250. Again, the rules were suspended so this ordinance would be passed with one reading.

Two items from the Plan Commission were next. The Saint Joe property had no zoning. Now it will be zoned B2, a business zoning. College Woods will be zoned RS, residential suburban. The second item was to allow non-conforming uses to continue when ownership changes and to allow rebuilding if the building is damaged or destroyed. Both passed, with Mr. Watson abstained on the first item.

An ordinance to close the Scott Street rail crossing was next. One reason given was safety. The crossing has no lights. There was a motion to suspend the rules to allow the motion to pass at this meeting, but Mr Armold voted "no" and a motion to suspend the rules must have unanimous consent. The matter will be on the agenda of the next meeting.

The Rensselaer Redevelopment Commission wants to make changes in the TIF areas, creating a new residential TIF and expanding the area in which TIF funds can be spent. Included in the proposed resolution is a list of properties that the Redevelopment Commission may want to acquire in the future. Redevelopment Commissions no longer can use eminent domain to acquire properties, but they still must list them before they start trying to purchase them. The resolution was approved and now goes back to the Redevelopment Commission, which will meet on November 14.

The Council approved some transfers of funds for the Cemetery and Parks. It also approved changes to the entryway of City Hall. It will add power door openers and heating. No dollar figure was given for these changes.

Supply bids for gas and diesel were opened. There were two bids and they were taken under advisement. The Council approved Grimmer pay request #8 for $377,582.42, The Brick Street Project is now 97% complete. A few punch-list items are being completed.

The Council moved the Nov 11 meeting to Nov 12 because of Veterans' Day. The City is seeking applications for a new Gas Department superintendent. (Carol Lockridge is retiring in early January.) The Council will try to stream its next meeting. Two new squad cars are now in service. The first class using the new fire tower is set and it has full enrollment. Gutters are now on the Gas Department building.

Odds and ends

On Tuesday a final asphalt layer was added to what will be new pickleball courts in Brookside Park.

We continue under a no-burn ban. I tried to dig up some plants in my garden but gave up because the ground is too hard.

I learned why workers were tearing up a new sidewalk. The panel they were removing had cracked and the City wanted it replaced.

It feels like autumn

Short takes

Last Wednesday I noticed workers jackhammering the very new sidewalk on the corner of Harrison and Van Rensselaer. I do not know why they were destroying a new sidewalk but maybe I will find out at the next City Council meeting.

Notice how nicely the grass has come in behind them. That lot lost its grass when it was used for storage during the replacement of bricks.

The old tennis courts at Brookside Park were taken out last week.

Below is what the site looked like on Saturday.

The old courts will be replaced by four pickleball courts. Pickleball has become very popular and the new tennis courts are much more used for pickleball than for tennis.

What I thought might be vandalism on the side of the shed by the Roth Field was permitted graffiti. 65 members from the class of 2025 spent a day in the parks cleaning, repairing, painting, etc. Their names are on this wall.

The Saturday Farmers' Market is winding down. There were only a few vendors when I stopped by on Saturday. Maybe more came after I left.

The Mexican grocery that opened on Washington Street is gone. The store opened in late June or early July.

Also closed is Janet's Kitchen. One of the owners died at the end of September.

Remington has a video touting its revival of the downtown.

The Rensselaer Republican put a note on Facebook that RCHS might be leaving the Hoosier Conference. The conference has a very large range of school sizes.

 Rensselaer Plan Commission meeting

The Rensselaer Advisory Plan Commission met Thursday afternoon. Under old business it discussed what the Commission wanted before it approves the plat for the St. Joseph's Building & Trades subdivision. They decided that if the City completes the sidewalk along Sparling (which currently stops at the Fr. Banet substation), the subdivision also needs to have a sidewalk along Sparling. Curbs and gutters will not be needed, but street signs and street lights will be. The item was continued to the next meeting.

The Commission approved a five-acre split from a larger parcel north of Donaldsons. The approval was needed for a building permit to be issued.

Earlier in October the Redevelopment Commission passed a plan for the Rensselaer Drexel/Fairgrounds Economic Development area that adds to the area in which TIF funds can be spent and also establishes a small residential TIF area. It was approved and will now move to the City Council.

Jasper County Plan Commission meeting

I decided to attend the JC Plan Commission via Zoom on Monday evening. It was a frustrating experience at the start because all I had was a dark screen with the names of the other people who were using Zoom. It turned out that the meeting did not have a quorum when it was supposed to start. After about twenty minutes enough members were found and the meeting started. Then I had audio and no video. Video came on twice during the meeting for a few minutes each time, but the camera was not aimed at the front of the room. I believe Vince Urbano presided based on the voice.

There were three causes on the agenda. The first was a rezone from A1 to R1 in Walker Township. The parcel is 8+ acres and the petitioner wants to sell off part of the parcel for housing and develop three smaller lots. He said the land was not used for agriculture. The request was approved and will now go to the Commissioners for final approval.

The second cause was a request to add four parcels to the existing Wind Farm Overlay District in Carpenter and Jordan Townships. That overlay district had been approved in May but there was some additional land needed for underground wiring and a turn lane. There was one comment from the audience, a neighbor wondering how the change affected him. I could not hear some of the response but it seemed he was not affected. The request was approved and will be on the agenda of the November Commissioners meeting.

The final item was an amendment to the UPO. The members received a handout with the proposed changes that eliminate some things not used and clean up language. No action was taken at this meeting. The members were encouraged to review the changes and the changes will be considered at a future meeting. The meeting adjourned a few minutes before 8:00.

Continued Commissioners meeting

The continued Commissioners meeting on Tuesday dealt with routine matters. The Commissioners formally approved memoranda of understanding with the Soil & Water District for funding a position. There were two memoranda, one for this year and one for next. They heard an update on the medical plan renewal, which they approved. Total costs will go down by 0.86% and the dental benefit will increase from $1000 to $1500. They formally approved the new canteen service agreement with the Sheriff's Department. The cost of meals will increase by 10¢ per meal. The average number of inmates at the jail has been 88, though on Tuesday it was only 76. The Commissioners extended the burn ban for another seven days.

They approved financial commitment letters for the Highway Department seeking grants for safety funding. The commitment is that the County will provide a match if the grant is awarded. The proposal is for pavement marking and a sign inventory. The head of JCEDO requested that she be approved for a license on the Beacon mapping system that would allow her to see what County licensees see. She said the information would be useful in promoting economic development and the request was approved. The Commissioners approved a repair bill for Community Services. 

The Surveyor noted that Comcast has been boring without getting approval for boring under County drains. He told them to stop. He also noted that a drainage plan that had been approved in 2012 at the Roselawn exit had never been finished and the business involved now wants to add a Burger King to its site. 

The Coroner is working with Hamstra to design a new forensic center. He talked about an incident without really explaining what it was. Apparently there were privacy issues. He noted that there have been three traumatic cases recently.

The meeting lasted about 45 minutes.

More Scarecrow Trail Pictures

I have shown some of the scarecrows in Milroy Park in the past few posts. I think the collection below gets the ones I have missed.

First, from McDonalds.

ASG is an employment agency in the same building as Fifth Third Bank.

White Castle.

The City of Rensselaer. 

Rensselaer Parks

Donaldsons

A fall festival

The Faith Pentecostal Church and Seeds of Hope sponsored a free fall festival on Saturday at Brookside Park. They had a small bounce house and two rings in which small children could run to make the rings roll.

People could take a hayride around the Park.

They served a free lunch and a lot of people enjoyed it.

They also had a band. I did not take a picture from the front because I was afraid the sound from the loudspeakers might injure my hearing. The music was very clear several blocks away.

More pictures can be found here.

Autumn leaves

The maples are at their peak color this week.