MENTONE - Mentone Town Council and Ed Tridle went a few rounds Monday night over his two properties.
In the end, the board tabled any decision on Tridle's property until the April 6 meeting so building inspector Marv Wiggins can attend. If Wiggins does not issue a building permit for Tridle to improve the house on Monroe Street, the council will begin the condemnation process on that house. Any action on Tridle's Main Street property will have to wait, pending a lawsuit.Tridle told the council and town attorney Larry Beeson that his red house on Main Street, which has a lawsuit against it, is still in "procedural matters" with the opposing attorney, Paul Refior. Tridle said he's suppose to deliver depositions to Refior March 31.
Beeson said he's checked the court calendar and with Refior and nothing is on the docket.
"I talked to him last week and he told me nothing was scheduled to be done," said Beeson.
Tridle repeated he was suppose to get depositions to Refior by March 31. Beeson told Tridle to let him know what's going on between then and the April 6 board meeting.
The discussion then moved to Tridle's property on Monroe Street. Beeson sent a notice via certified mail to Tridle and his sisters regarding that house. "What's your intentions with that?" Beeson asked Tridle.
Tridle responded he started work on that property some time ago. Two or three times, he alleged, crews were sent to work on the house, but were stopped on the site from doing any work. After he became aware of that, Tridle said, he applied for a building permit. Tridle got a permit in November, but it was not signed by Wiggins. He also said that, because of weather conditions, they haven't been able to do any work on the Monroe Street house.
Council President Tim Croy asked Tridle who stopped the work. Tridle said he thought it was a Kosciusko County Sheriff's Dept. deputy.
"How does the county know what the town of Mentone is doing?" Croy asked.
Town Marshal Jim Eads said no Mentone town employee has ever stopped any work on the house.
Tridle said he has people available to start work on the Monroe Street house, but he needs the building permit. He said it wouldn't take long for work to be completed, starting with the roof.
Croy then asked about wagons and other junk on the property. Police tag it, Tridle moves it, but it ends up back on the property, Croy said.
Tridle said he didn't see any problem with it being left on the property.
"They don't belong there, Ed. You know that," said Beeson.
Eads said Tridle just keeps "pushing the line." All the town is asking is for him to keep the property free of debris. Tridle said items were left on his neighbors' properties. But Eads told Tridle council members aren't talking about his neighbors, they're talking about his property.
Croy said he understood Wiggins told Tridle a permit couldn't be issued for the Monroe house because of its condition. Tridle denied Wiggins ever said that.
Eads said that with the roof caving in and gaps in the building, it is not a repairable home. Tridle said it was just speculation that it couldn't be fixed.
Croy said if Wiggins does not issue a building permit for the Monroe property, Tridle was not going to be able to repair it.
In other business, the council:
n Approved a resolution to use Rainy Day Funds, County Option Income Tax, Economic Development Income Tax and any other funding source not otherwise prohibited by law "to assist in the payment of the waste water and sewage treatment plant project."
n Approved to pay a $111,000 bill from Bonar Group for an engineering study for the wastewater treatment plant.
n Approved Utilities Superintendent Eric Carlin's request to purchase a snow pusher for the front of the skid loader for $1,689 from Metals Plus. The estimate came in less than the expected price of $2,500. The snowpusher will be 8 feet wide by 3 feet tall.
n Approved Carlin's request to replace a 2-inch water main from Morgan Street to just behind the pizza shop. Flex Trenching will do the work for $41,000. The council already had budgeted $35,000 for the work. Carlin said the project was supposed to have been done in 1998, but was delayed. Flex Trenching will do the project this summer while the company is also working on a project on West Jackson Street.
Carlin then thanked the county surveyor's office and Good Excavating for their help and work on a storm tile.
