Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
MILFORD - At the last scheduled budget workshop, the Milford Town Council finished last-minute details and then approved the 2001 budget figures.
Clerk-treasurer Charlotte Siegfried told the board the budget will be published Aug. 9 and 16, with a pre-adoption hearing by Aug. 30. She said the final 2001 budget adoption will be before Sept. 11.
One of the last-minute details discussed was the motor vehicle highway fund.
Dallas Winchester, utilities commissioner, told the council the budget included a 5 percent increase for employees. However, he wants to give employee Steve Marquart an approximate 10 percent raise due to hard work ethics. The 10 percent raise would increase Marquart's salary from $9.83 an hour to $10.81 per hour. Winchester said Marquart is a "real skilled employee" and he wouldn't be surprised if in three years Marquart was in charge of all the utilities.
"I don't have a problem if he's a good employee," said board president John Lehman. "That's how you keep them."
The board approved Marquart's estimated 10 percent raise.
MVH's total increase is an approximate 1.5 percent increase, Winchester said.
Winchester also presented the board with two different quotes for mower tractors: a John Deere for approximately $8,300 and a Tora for $8,000. Winchester was to test the Tora today. The money is already in the budget, he said, or they could purchase the tractor for next year. Their current tractor would be "donated" to the park department.
The total figure for the MVH fund, not including the increase for Marquart, is $194,790.
Siegfried told the board she wants the cumulative capital development fund at $60,000 for painting the water tower. The increase won't change the tax rate, she said.
Winchester told the board an inspection of the water tower is planned for late summer. He said there are approximately a dozen tower companies close to Milford that can handle the job and they will probably receive five or six bids.
"We will work close with the public so they know what's going on," Winchester said.
Siegfried told the council the general budget was figured at $448,925, up approximately 11.2 percent from last year's budget of $403,706. She said the increase is due mainly to police department increases.
However, the budget figure does not include raises for the town council. Siegfried will figure those numbers and let the council know what the final numbers will be before she presents the budget to the state tax commission representative Aug. 4. The board will then decide whether or not to allow themselves raises.
Councilman Douglas Ruch asked Siegfried what year the town hall will be paid off. She replied that they could legally pay it off now if they had the money. They still owe approximately $120,000 to $150,000.
In another matter, Siegfried told the council the town will receive approximately $80,000 from the Economic Development Income Tax and an additional $20,000 from the additional County Option Income Tax. She said the town won't see the COIT money until after June 2001. After June 2001, the town can also apply for EDIT money, but will need to approve an ordinance on what the town plans to do with the money.
Winchester said the EDIT money could result in the reduction of wastewater rates for the town.
Milford Town Council members are president John Lehman, Douglas Ruch and Bob Phillips. They meet the second Monday of every month at 7 p.m.
