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BOURBON – The Bourbon Town Council began its February meeting with a moment of silence for the late attorney Mark Wagner.
Wagner, who had served as the town’s attorney for a number of years, passed away last week.
The council ended the meeting by voting unanimously to rename a Bourbon Street in his memory. It had been a running joke between board members and Wagner as to why the town has a Frank Street when no one could remember for whom the street was originally named. The street name will be changed to Wagner Way.
Board members shared comments about their interactions with Wagner over the years.
Larry Wattenbarger said, “It was a total shock that we lost such a fine gentleman.”
President Les McFarland said, “What an honor to know that guy.”
“To me he wasn’t the town attorney, he was a friend,” said P.J. Hanley.
All three indicated that they look forward to working with Wagner’s son, Tony, who will assume the town attorney position. In remembering how Wagner and family members help to judge the Christmas decorations for the annual contest, McFarland said he hopes the Wagner family will continue the tradition.
Council members also recognized the contributions of Street Department Superintendent Roger Terry. Terry has served the town for 27 years, with 25 of those as the superintendent.
A certificate of appreciation as an outstanding citizen was given to local resident Jeremy Meadows. Presenting the certificate was Steve Stacy, wastewater superintendent. Stacy said Meadows’ quick action in reporting a fire that broke out in a home on East Pine Street saved the home from being a complete loss. Stacy said if the fire had gotten any larger, there would have been a strain on the water available to contain a fire.
He said, “Jeremy is always looking around the town and he is an outstanding resident.
After a presentation by four members of the Community Destination Imagination Team, council members voted to donate $1,000 to a project spearheaded by the students to erect a headstone in the cemetery that will be engraved with all of the names of those who are buried that they can verify. Making the presentation were Matthew Hefner, Jacob Farley, Jessica Music and Caitlyn Ihnen. It was noted that the team members have worked for at least three or four years in the cemetery to make improvements.
Kim Berger, Bourbon clerk-treasurer, said the cemetery belongs to the town and there is a line item in the budget for upkeep. In addition to the council donation, the group will be applying for grants to help cover the expected $2,000 to $3,000 cost. So far, they have collected between $400 and $500 for the project.
The students said their research shows 51 names need to be engraved to a marker.
Architect Brent Martin and Habitats for Humanity representative Dean Byers appeared before the council to offer their services to possibly have houses built on a Center Street property that the town purchased. A home in severe disrepair was leveled on the property last year and the town had hoped to sell it for housing. They did have at least two offers by potential buyers who wanted to build storage facilities, but the council turned down the offers. Martin said the houses could be similar to a Harrison Street housing project that was completed in Plymouth several years ago.
Martin and Byers outlined how grants could be used to build three homes on the property for low-income families. According to Byers, applicants would have to meet a number of criteria to be considered for grants. As an example, Martin said a family of four would have to have a minimum yearly income of $24,600 and a maximum of $48,900 to qualify.
Byers pointed out the restrictions such as employment, credit rating and “sweat equity” ability to qualify.
The council voted 3-0 to pursue the grant process.
The town could get as many as 10 to 11 streets paved and several feet of sidewalk repaired or built as a part of the Community Crossings $400,000 grant that was awarded to Bourbon. The council awarded a bid to Niblock Excavating of Bristol to perform the work at a cost of $294,600. Terry, said it is a huge undertaking.
