Commissioners Find 'Win-Win' Solution to Winona Lake Request
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Jordan Fouts-
Three property owners along Lakewood Avenue at the southwest corner of the lake had requested at the Oct. 22 meeting that land between them and the beach designated as a public promenade be vacated. The request had been unanimously denied by the Area Plan Commission.
Commissioners approved today what President Ron Truex called a win-win, vacating the promenade but leaving open two strips of land bordering the properties to allow public access to the water.
“These landowners are being taxed as lakefront properties ... It’s time to treat these people in the fashion they’re being treated from a tax standpoint, and that’s to give them complete control,” attorney Steve Snyder said in presenting the compromise.
There are five such access strips between properties along the stretch of lakefront commissioners identified, each at least 25 feet wide. Truex noted the decision will be precedent-setting in keeping public land open as other property owners along that stretch seek to clarify their own lakefront land ownership.
“We’re clearing up an area that’s been a mess since 1920, all over the county,” remarked County Tax Assessor Laurie Renier.
But Area Plan Director Dan Richard disagreed with Truex’s assessment of the compromise.
“That’s a lose. How can you call it a win when the public is losing out?” Richard asked, though he agreed the compromise was preferable to the public losing all water access around the three properties.
Commissioners also heard this morning from county Emergency Management Director Ed Rock that much of the damage from Sunday’s storms – which spawned a confirmed tornado near Silver Lake – occurred in the southern part of the county. Rock said the county is recovering well, despite lingering power outages in a few areas, and urged residents and business owners to report uninsured losses to the state through in.gov/dhs
He said reporting damage to the state will prevent duplicate efforts and helps the county in seeking federal assistance for recovery.
“I expect the state of Indiana will reach its own threshold, now it’s up to the county to meet” its $260,000 threshold for uninsured loss, he told commissioners. He said a lot of things can count toward uninsured loss, including cleanup costs to towns such as overtime pay and equipment use.
“Anything you lost as a business or resident that cost you basically out of pocket,” Rock said.
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Three property owners along Lakewood Avenue at the southwest corner of the lake had requested at the Oct. 22 meeting that land between them and the beach designated as a public promenade be vacated. The request had been unanimously denied by the Area Plan Commission.
Commissioners approved today what President Ron Truex called a win-win, vacating the promenade but leaving open two strips of land bordering the properties to allow public access to the water.
“These landowners are being taxed as lakefront properties ... It’s time to treat these people in the fashion they’re being treated from a tax standpoint, and that’s to give them complete control,” attorney Steve Snyder said in presenting the compromise.
There are five such access strips between properties along the stretch of lakefront commissioners identified, each at least 25 feet wide. Truex noted the decision will be precedent-setting in keeping public land open as other property owners along that stretch seek to clarify their own lakefront land ownership.
“We’re clearing up an area that’s been a mess since 1920, all over the county,” remarked County Tax Assessor Laurie Renier.
But Area Plan Director Dan Richard disagreed with Truex’s assessment of the compromise.
“That’s a lose. How can you call it a win when the public is losing out?” Richard asked, though he agreed the compromise was preferable to the public losing all water access around the three properties.
Commissioners also heard this morning from county Emergency Management Director Ed Rock that much of the damage from Sunday’s storms – which spawned a confirmed tornado near Silver Lake – occurred in the southern part of the county. Rock said the county is recovering well, despite lingering power outages in a few areas, and urged residents and business owners to report uninsured losses to the state through in.gov/dhs
He said reporting damage to the state will prevent duplicate efforts and helps the county in seeking federal assistance for recovery.
“I expect the state of Indiana will reach its own threshold, now it’s up to the county to meet” its $260,000 threshold for uninsured loss, he told commissioners. He said a lot of things can count toward uninsured loss, including cleanup costs to towns such as overtime pay and equipment use.
“Anything you lost as a business or resident that cost you basically out of pocket,” Rock said.
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