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Warsaw-area drivers who complain about potholes on Frontage Road near Kmart will see a difference this year if the City of Warsaw takes over legal responsibility for the road.
Now called the "connector road" or the "Kmart access road," the street connects Frontage Road, on Warsaw's east side, to Commerce Drive, which runs in front of the Wal-Mart shopping center.
Warsaw's Board of Works Friday directed city attorney Steve Snyder to meet with the attorney for the shopping center's management company to finalize plans for a city easement. The city would agree to maintain the road but the management company, Wal-Go, would retain ownership of the road.
Winding in front of Kmart and around Blockbuster Video, the road has been in bad shape for some time, and already has a reputation for large potholes.
Warsaw's street department is often asked to fix problems on the road even though the road does not belong to the city, Mayor Ernie Wiggins said.
The management company gave the city a check for $5,000 as a partial payment toward repairs, Wiggins said, and Warsaw would take over responsibility for repairing and maintaining the road if the attorneys reach an agreement.
Wal-Go also is planning to install "ballast" along the road, as well as a height restrictor at the entrance to the shopping center that would keep semis from entering and parking there. Warsaw would have no authority over those developments, Wiggins said.
City Planner Pat Hudson got an unintentional laugh when he told the board the management company demanded that if Warsaw ends its easement rights, the city would have to restore the road to its original condition.
"You mean we'd have to put all the potholes back in?" asked Warsaw Police Chief Craig Allebach.
Snyder is scheduled to meet soon with Wal-Go's attorney to settle the details.
In other matters, the board:
• Approved a request from the Warsaw Housing Authority to apply for a grant for the owner-occupied rehabilitation program's revolving loan pool;
• Approved the police department's purchase of a fourth new police car this year;
• Approved the promotion of Warsaw police officer Steve Rockey from patrolman to corporal;
• Heard a presentation from Michael Moore, of the Kosciusko County Saddle Club, on emergency response training and equine rescue techniques. Moore said the training would benefit law enforcement personnel in cases of accidents involving horse trailers or horses that may be injured or trapped. Two training sessions are scheduled for April 26 at the Kosciusko County Fairgrounds, and the course is free.
The Warsaw Board of Works meets on the first and third Fridays of each month. It will meet next at 8:30 a.m. April 4 in the city council chambers.
