CLAYPOOL - Claypool Town Council approved signing a contract with HWC Engineering for the development of a strategic plan during a meeting Tuesday.
Allie Daugherty, business development manager for HWC Engineering, and Kosciusko County Community Coordinator Amy Roe attended the meeting. Claypool received a grant from the Kosciusko County Community Foundation for the plan's development.
Daugherty said there had been a delay in the contract's preparation as the town had been considering pursuing additional grant monies.
Council approved signing the contract as soon as possible, with Council President Benny Stage Jr., town attorney Rama Sobhani, and Clerk-Treasurer Pat Warner to review the contract prior to signing.
Purchase of New Work Machine
The council also approved purchasing a Toolcat utility work machine for the town. Stage said Claypool's certificate of deposit matured and that the town was in need of maintenance equipment. Attachments for the Toolcat would include a street sweeper, forks and a grapple.
"I would think we'd want to put some monies back into the CD to collect more, keep doing that," said Stage. "But we also need to take some of that money for things we need to use it for. This would be one of those things. If we withheld $100,000, we would be able to take care of (the Toolcat) and some bills that need to get paid (for the sewer project.)"
Stage said a Toolcat would cost the town $66,900 following trade-ins of a sweeper and old tractor, plus an additional discount from Bobcat and a government rebate.
"With not having two (town employees) anymore, it's something that the town needs," said Stage. "In this price, it's getting rid of a big street sweeper that we don't use because it's just not practical for use in this town."
Council approved using $100,000 from the CD to purchase the Toolcat, pay bills, and set up a separate account to pay for billing related to mowing violations.
Ordinance Discussions
Council was asked by a resident about the allowance of chickens within town limits. Stage said he did not have an issue with changing the ordinance to allow residents to keep a maximum of six laying hens in coops or cages, with no roosters.
Councilman Don Miller suggested the ordinance should specify egg-producing poultry rather than chickens if anyone would want to keep ducks. Councilman Gene Warner said the ordinance should also reflect a required distance from a coop to residences, and fines for any violations.
Sobhani said he would draft an ordinance for the council's June meeting. As a follow-up to prior conversations, he also told the council Claypool already has three ordinances for enforcement of residential yard maintenance.
"The original ordinance dates back to 1989," said Sobhani. "It was updated in 2013. Height limit was added at 9 inches. Owners will get five days to fix their violations, and then they can appeal it to the town council if they want to. In 2019, the rates were adjusted to $250 for the first hour of clean-up, and then $150 per additional hour, and then $750 if you have to go back and do the same thing again to the same property within the same year. Those are all active ... all you have to do is start enforcing them."
Sobhani also noted that while the town doesn't have an unsafe building ordinance, properties could be referred to the Kosciusko County Health Department for evaluation.
Reserve Deputy Marshal Paul Mullins told council Town Marshal Trevor Long sent out multiple ordinance violations to residents in May. Four vehicles in town limits in violation of Claypool's abandonment ordinance were also towed.
Wastewater Project Update
Ben Adams, project manager at Commonwealth Engineers, provided an update on the town's wastewater system project. Commonwealth pushed back the bid process by two days as there were multiple projects bidding at the same time.
Adams also presented a complete design summary for the project, with the plant to be changed from a controlled discharge to a new, continuous discharge facility.
"You're going from 33,600 to 56,400 gallons," said Adams. "So it's not quite double, but it's considerably more than what you guys have right now."
Treatment will also change from chlorine to UV.
"Instead of having special meetings, you'll be able to run through the new rates at your regularly scheduled meetings in June and July," said Adams. "Once we receive bids, we'll put together a final project cost summary ... we'll use that to formulate rates."
The town will also need to have a redevelopment commission meeting to adopt a TIF resolution since the town is pledging TIF revenues toward debt repayment.
The council's next regular meeting is at 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 17 at the Claypool Lions Club building. At that meeting, the rate ordinance will be introduced, with a public hearing on the new rates to take place at the council's July meeting.