MILFORD - Milford Town Council used the first meeting of 2008 to take care of several items of both new and old business, in what turned out to be a full agenda for the beginning of the year.
The first order of business was the swearing in of council members and the election of council officers for 2008.
Robert Cockburn will serve as president, with Gary Hurd as vice president. Douglas Ruch will continue to serve as council representative to the local EMS. Charlotte Siegfried also was sworn in as clerk treasurer.The council approved the contract between the town and the local fire department for service during the upcoming year. The Interlocal Cooperative Fire Protection Agreement between Milford and Van Buren Township also was approved.
The council approved the Milford Area Development contractual services agreement, which provides for upkeep of the community building.
A transfer of funds was approved, allowing $566.57 to be transferred from maintenance to the trash removal fund, and $742.27 to be transferred from the motor vehicle equipment fund to the sidewalk fund.
Milford Town Marshal David Hobbs requested approval to adjust police department work schedules as needed. Hobbs sought permission to arrange a 40-hour work week over a period of seven days instead of five. This would enable the department to provide coverage for weekends and time off. Approval was granted.
Hobbs also requested $10,000 to cover the cost of part-time officers, when needed, to cover for those attending the law enforcement academy and during vacations.
Utilities Superintendent Dallas Winchester reported there had been a water main break on Maple Street, but it posed no problem and was quickly taken care of.
Also, the water department has applied for a stage two waiver on byproducts testing. There are certain requirements that must be met before the Environmental Protection Agency can grant such a waiver. According to Winchester, Milford has met those requirements and the waiver can ultimately save the town several thousand dollars.
Winchester also reported some homeowners are operating what amounts to illegal sump pumps. It is illegal to pump ground water run-off into a sanitary sewer system. Although there aren't that many homeowners doing this, Winchester did estimate that there could be as much as 100,000 gallons pumped into the system daily by illegal sumps. What this excess amount does is speed up the treatment process, and makes it inefficient.
There is an existing local ordinance prohibiting the pumping of ground water run-off into a sanitary sewer system. The water department will be contacting homeowners who are doing this by letter.
The first item of old business left over from last year involves the parking issue on Catherine Street. Jay Rigdon, town attorney, planned to present a review document that could serve as the framework for an ordinance. But the specific time when parking would not be allowed was not included, as it was unclear how it would affect churches located on the street.
What the council discussed was making the section of Catherine Street from Henry Street to Higbee Street (Ind. 15) "No Parking" on both sides, from Monday 2 a.m. until Sunday 2 a.m. This would allow for church parking on Sundays. Rigdon plans to have specific wording of the proposed ordinance in place for presentation at the February meeting.
Rigdon also notified the council that a lawsuit has been filed against Charles Poe regarding the property at 310 E. Williams St.
Last summer, Poe sought a continuance from the council for a mobile home placed on the property as a temporary structure while work was being done on a permanent structure at the same location. Poe did not meet the necessary deadline, and has not cleaned up the site. The suit seeks the removal of the mobile home and clean-up of the area.
The idea of changing over to an "at-large" council district instead of the three voting districts now in place in Milford was briefly discussed. But the council decided to wait until more information could be gathered.
