Kosciusko County Redevelopment Commission tabled a bond issue Thursday because members said they weren’t given enough information to make a decision. Member Bruce Woodward motioned to table the bond resolution that would fund road work near North Central Cooperative Inc., to be issued, guaranteed and potentially repaid by the county. He and other members expressed unease at the possible liability and some anger at having to make a decision without the information they wanted. “We’re asked to make decisions but not being handed any info” such as maps or calculations on bond repayment, Woodward said. “I’m about to stand up and walk out, I’m that upset.” The 25-year bond would have a maximum value of $900,000 and an interest rate of up to 6 percent. It would be repaid through the Tax Increment Finance District the county established in January surrounding North Central’s facility near Mentone. The additional assessed value of facility improvements is projected to cover the bond by 125 to 130 percent of what’s needed, county attorney Chad Miner told the commission. But should the TIF fail to generate enough revenue, a scenario he described as unlikely, the county would have to repay the bond itself by raising taxes. “I don’t think that’s too likely, it’s pretty substantial coverage,” Miner said. The TIF’s ability to repay the bond was calculated by Umbaugh and Associates, a projection commission members agreed they want to see before making a decision. They added that they’re in favor of the road work itself, which will repave but not widen CR 900W between Ind. 25 and the railroad crossing. Also Thursday, the commission heard from George Robertson, director of the Kosciusko Economic Development Corp., that a year of work has paid off in attracting orthopedic supplier Banner Medical to the Warsaw Industrial Park. The Illinois-based business will break ground Aug. 25 on a $6.3 million, 43,000-square-foot facility expected to employ between 70 and 80 people by 2019. The facility will process medical-grade metals and plastics for medical devices. And Robertson said a $250,000 grant for workforce development has been made available through the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs, which he said could help jumpstart a local workforce program. Proposals are due by Aug. 28 and, if the county hears in September it can proceed, a full application by October. With the number of retirements expected soon, he said the county could face a crisis in five years and potentially “hemorrhage businesses” if it doesn’t focus on workforce development. “For us, that workforce pipeline ensures our future.”
