MENTONE – Mentone Town Council approved an ordinance Wednesday governing public conduct in parks and cemeteries in Mentone.
Issues of people loitering at the park after hours was brought up at the Council’s June meeting after Town Marshal Jim Eads talked with town attorney Andrew Grossnickle about the issue. Council President Jill Gross said she also had complaints on the same issue.
At August’s meeting, Grossnickle presented the ordinance to the Council. Some changes were requested, including one from Eads that suggested the cemetery and park be closed from sunset to sunrise.
On Wednesday, when asked if there were any additional changes, none were suggested. Eads said the ordinance looked fine as presented Wednesday. The Council waived formal reading of the ordinance before approving the ordinance.
Clerk-Treasurer Amanda Yaprak informed the Council that she told Baker Tilly the water study discussed during the August meeting has to be put on hold.
Yaprak said the town is in the middle of an audit review. She said there is an issue of there is more water going out than is being billed. She doesn’t know if it’s a data issue, an audit issue or where the actual issue is coming from. Yaprak told Baker Tilly the water study wouldn’t be worth doing until the issue has been fixed.
The water rate study came up at August’s meeting after Yaprak said she talked with representatives of public accounting and consulting firm Baker Tilly and was told the utility receipt tax (URT) was repealed effective July 30. Due to the repeal, Mentone needs Baker Tilly to reevaluate or do a rate study for the town’s water or use the town’s 2012 water study.
In other business, the Council had a hearing for its 2023 budget.
The total proposed budget is $1,115,870. The casino/riverboat fund is $6,500 of that total; general fund is $625,270; local roads and streets fund is $17,200; motor vehicle highway fund is $156,700; cemetery fund is $12,700; cumulative capital import fund is $2,500; cumulative capital development fund is $20,000; and the economic development is $275,000.
The budget will be adopted at the Council’s Oct. 5 meeting.
Also:
• Rotors Over Mentone is Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Lawrence D. Bell Aircraft Museum, 210 S. Oak St., Mentone.
• The Council learned from Utilities Superintendent Josh Shepherd that the water well communicator was installed and some of the bugs are still being worked out.
• Mentone Chamber of Commerce will hold trick-or-treating hours from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Oct. 31 with the costume judging beginning at 7 p.m. at Mentone Elementary School.
