Warsaw Mayor Joe Thallemer (R) swore in Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory firefighter Kyle Martin (second from right) on Friday. Martin’s wife and children also were present for the ceremony at the Warsaw Board of Public Works and Safety meeting. Photo provided.
Warsaw Mayor Joe Thallemer (R) swore in Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory firefighter Kyle Martin (second from right) on Friday. Martin’s wife and children also were present for the ceremony at the Warsaw Board of Public Works and Safety meeting. Photo provided.
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Warsaw Board of Works members Mayor Joe Thallemer, George Clemens and Jeff Grose were all present at the Friday meeting. Most of the agenda item presenters attended the meeting virtually.

Jacob Johnson and Kyle Martin, however, were in attendance and sworn in as Warsaw-Wayne Fire firefighters by Thallemer. Both men’s wives and children joined them during the ceremony.

The board also approved a maintenance contract with Zoll Medical Corp. for the fire territory as presented by Fire Chief Mike Wilson. The K21 Health Foundation purchased Zoll Monitors for the department and other fire departments in the county in 2020. The agreement is to provide required maintenance as necessary to the territory’s four units, at a cost of $1,020 per year.

Wilson said this makes the company responsible for any malfunction of the units.

Larry Plummer, parks superintendent, presented the contract for Wayne Township’s payment of $75,000 for township citizens’ use of the parks system, which was approved.

Economic Development Coordinator Jeremy Skinner presented a pay application for preliminary engineering design work completed by Structurepoint on the Anchorage Road project for $8,374.40. The city pays 20% of the project’s costs and the state pays 80%. Construction will start in 2022, Skinner said.

Justin Taylor, city planner, presented an easement request by NIPSCO to install a utility pole and guy wire at the southwest corner of Canal and Detroit streets. Taylor noted there are park signs directly behind the easement and part of the agreement is for NIPSCO personnel to contact the planning department for final placement approval so the signage isn’t blocked. The easement request was approved.

Taylor also presented pay application No. 1 for the Lincoln Neighborhood Sidewalk project for right-of-way services from the Troyer Group for $28,042.50, which was approved. The project will eventually provide sidewalks on Sheridan, East Clark and East Fort Wayne streets between Colfax and Cook streets. The Indiana Department of Transportation will reimburse 80% of these costs.

The police department’s deputy chief, Bryan Sherwin, presented and recommended two taxicab permit applications from David Cesaretti to operate as AA Taxi with two vehicles and as Fast Cab with eight cabs in Warsaw. The fee is $50 per vehicle. The permits were approved.

Ryan Workman, stormwater coordinator, presented a contract with the Grace College’s Lilly Center for Lakes and Streams for community education and involvement programs in an amount not to exceed $17,600.

Workman said this agreement is $10,000 more than the 2020 agreement because the annual Lakes Festival was cancelled because of the pandemic. Last year, the city paid the Center $7,600 for programming.

Instead of a Lakes Festival in 2021, the center’s staff will provide a series of workshops.

The city, as an urbanized area, is required to maintain a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permit for its municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4) and is mandated to provide community education and involvement to its citizens. The Lilly Center’s programing fulfills these obligations.

Brian Davison, wastewater utility superintendent, presented pay application No. 86 from NV Grant Services for $1,170 to monitor payrolls and pay application No. 87 from Kokosing Industrial in the amount of $411,786. Both invoices for the wastewater treatment plant expansion project were approved.

The board approved an agreement with Medstat to provide occupational health services to city employees, as presented by Human Resources Director Jennifer Whitaker.

The board approved hiring Shane Newsome as a wastewater utility maintenance technician for a raise to $18 per hour; Christoper Brown, Michael Damjanovic and Justin Lewis as patrol shift differentials with Brown making $2,160.65 biweekly and Damjanovic and Lewis, $2,060.62, biweekly; and Terry Roberts as a street department mechanic for $20.75 per hour.