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For the new police department at the old NIPSCO building on Fort Wayne Street, the police will also need new furniture for the offices.
Monday, at the Warsaw City Council meeting, Warsaw Police Department Chief Steve Foster requested three transfers from the utilities, rental and debt service accounts to the equipment account. The total of the transfers is $42,586.36.
Foster said the new furniture that will be bought will include desks, tables, chairs, file cabinets and "a variety of that type of office furniture." He said he currently has 10 employees in the police department that don't even have desks. He is getting quotes for the furniture, he said.
"This is mainly office equipment," said Warsaw Mayor Ernie Wiggins.
Foster said they currently have no money budgeted for office equipment for the new police facilities.
Originally, the monies were appropriated for the police garage at Ind. 15 and CR 200N and for leasing new radios as part of a project to upgrade the communications system county wide that did not occur.
The council unanimously approved the transfers.
The council also approved a resolution authorizing the transfer of $355,035 from the general fund to the Economic Development Income Tax Fund for short term cash flow purposes. The money must be returned to the general fund by Dec. 31.
Wiggins said the city won't get an EDIT distribution until December and bills for the new police department already are coming in. The state allows the city to borrow the money provided it is paid back by the end of the year.
In other business, the council:
• Approved an ordinance establishing the salaries of elected officials for 2002. The annual salary levels include $51,950 for Warsaw Mayor Ernie Wiggins; $43,920 for Warsaw Clerk-Treasurer Elaine Call; and $4,500 for city council members.
• Approved a letter to NIPSCO requesting the removal of a streetlight on the east side of North Lake Street between Center and Main streets. In the near future, following construction, Warsaw will install four city-owned ornamental lights along Lake Street.
• Warsaw Fire Department Chief Matt Warren told the council the city's workers' compensation carrier requested the city test the firefighters' competency and agility. By the end of this week, Warren said all current employees will be tested and there will be standards set for all new employees.
The timed competency course includes a hose drag, placing an electric smoke ejector on the window sill of the first floor, a ladder climb, a hose carry and hoist and a dummy drag.
• Approved Warsaw dispatchers to carry over vacation and personal days this year only. City policy requires employees to use their days within the given year and does not allow personal or vacation days to be carried over. The carry-over is "just dispatch people," Wiggins said.
• Approved a request by Warsaw Municipal Airport manager David Beall to transfer $1,500 from the improvements account to the machinery and equipment account. The money will be used to replace the computer used by the business manager which unexpectedly crashed on Aug. 29. The emergency replacement machine and the resulting set-up charges exceeded the $1,300 budgeted for computer upgrades.
• Approved God's Highway to Heaven Church's petition to vacate the 12-foot east-west alley separating their building from the parking lot. The church is at 555 Weber Street.
The Warsaw City Council meets the third Monday of every month at 7 p.m. in council chambers.
