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If at first you don't succeed - try, try again.
Priscilla Rhode, Syracuse, took that philosophy to heart Tuesday when she and Josh Lantz, of Bonar Group, requested the Kosciusko County Commissioners sponsor their planning grant application to the Indiana Department of Commerce.
Rhode, along with many Syracuse senior citizens, want a stand-alone senior citizens center.
Previously, Rhode asked the Syracuse Town Council to sponsor the application. The requested was defeated by a 2-2 vote. Syracuse councilman Paul Stoelting abstained from voting.
Lantz said the grant would help the senior group determine if a senior citizen center was feasible, how much it would cost and the likelihood of receiving other grants for the project.
"We've been working on this since 1996," Rhode told the commissioners. "We're willing to start small and grow."
Lantz said the application would not cost the county anything as any matching funds will be paid for by the senior citizens and senior-oriented groups. The center would be built north of Oakwood Park in Syracuse.
Rhode said they are anticipating a user base from outside and inside of Syracuse.
County Commissioner Avis Gunter said, "I was just thinking about why the county should get involved."
Eddie Creighton, commissioner, said the center doesn't have a broad-based support in Syracuse and he does not want to overstep the Syracuse town council especially since the support isn't there.
Lantz responded by saying that the Department of Commerce does look at how much support a project has when they give community focus funds, but at this time, all the seniors are asking for is a planning grant to show that a senior center can work. After they review the planning, Lantz said Syracuse might then decide to go after construction dollars for the project.
Creighton said he doesn't personally object to the project or what they want to accomplish. He wants to see issues about the project resolved at the local level before it's brought to the county.
"I'd like to see it resolved at the local level because they are the people involved," Gunter said.
Commissioner President Brad Jackson said he likes to see government kept as local as possible. "In this case," he said, "the town board is the most local."
In other business:
• County Prosecutor Chuck Waggoner asked the commissioners to support his efforts to apply for additional grants to add a paralegal and prosecutor to the prosecutor's office who would focus their efforts on helping victims of violent crimes.
The commissioners said they were concerned about how the positions would be funded once the grant money dried up and asked Waggoner to supply more information about his office. No decision was made by the commissioners.
Waggoner wanted the commissioners' support before he approached the county council with a grant application request. He said the number of violent crimes, especially domestic violence, is on the rise.
• Bob Momeyer, county computer administrator, said the recorder's office wants to upgrade their imaging equipment so documents can be scanned.
"It's an efficiency factor involved there," Momeyer said. It will also allow for duplicate copies to be made and the recorder's office can phase out microfiche. The contract will cost $34,000 with additional expenses of $30,000 for hardware. The money will come from recorder's funds.
"It'll bring us into the 20th century," commissioner Avis Gunter said.
The old equipment, Momeyer said, will be used in another office. No decision was made.
• Approved the request of County Highway Engineer and Superintendent Rob Ladson who said Silver Lake wants to close a few roads for Silver Lake Days and have the traffic steered onto county roads.
• Approved an ordinance which will allow 50 cents from each dog tag sold to be directed toward the animal shelter. The cost of each dog tag will not increase.
• Tabled a rezoning item until April 25 at 10 a.m. The petitioners requesting a continuance are C. Alan and Sandra Rovenstine, along with Ken and Brenda Collins who want to rezone 18.72 acres from an agricultural district to an Industrial II district. The property is on the south side of U.S. 30 and zero feet north of Old Road 30 in Etna Township.
The site will be used for storage and light manufacturing of roofing.
• Approved Larry Huffer's petition to rezone ground from agricultural to residential. The property is on the west side of CR 725E (EMS B1 Lane) and 150 feet south of CR 400N in Tippecanoe Township.
Remonstrators were concerned with storm water run-off and sewer, which planning commission director Dan Richard said would be addressed in further planning meetings.
• Approved an encroachment agreement between Marsha Engle and adjacent property owners, the Baughn family, with the condition that a 10 foot-wide drive (not counting trees) would be provided for adjacent property owner Gene Heidenreich.
If Engle ever makes use of the drive, costs will be split between Engle and Heidenreich.
• The commissioners approved a request by Stanley Lent to vacate alleyways which run north and south between High Street and Gault Street and east and west between Prairie Street and Bradford Street.
The commissioners are Brad Jackson, Avis Gunter and Eddie Creighton.
