Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
SILVER LAKE - A plan to include Silver Lake in Kosciusko County's zoning ordinance was met with opposition at Tuesday's Silver Lake town council meeting.
The town currently issues zoning and building permits independently. To comply with state law, Silver Lake must either establish its own ordinance, planning committee and board of zoning appeals or be included with the county ordinance.
Establishing an independent town committee and ordinance comes with a price tag of $10,000-$20,000 - a price that Silver Lake cannot afford to pay.
Attorney Richard Helm said that whether the town establishes its own ordinance or joins with the county, state building and zoning codes will be enforced. Joining the county planning committee - which the town contributes toward whether or not they have their own ordinance - will ultimately save up to $20,000.
A citizen, Rex Boxell, raised concerns about the inaccuracy of existing property surveys and the consequences of having the county take over zoning and building operations.
His concern, that under county ordinance the inaccurate surveys will result in houses being torn down, was answered by town superintendent, Phil Shalley.
Shalley said, "The cost of surveying is outlandish," and is something that Silver Lake cannot afford, but no one will lose their homes due to inaccurate surveys. The final decision on this issue will not be retroactive.
In other business:
• The board unanimously approved ordinances 03-03-01 and 03-03-02, which involve street signs. Under these ordinances, 10 streets will become one way, all streets within town limits, unless otherwise posted, will have 20 miles per hour speed limits and new "stop" and "yield" signs will be posted throughout the town.
• Randy and Teresa Martin, owners of Sunrise Groceries, requested permission to hang an awning on the north side of their building, facing Ind. 15. The board approved with the provision that the awning meets state regulations on highway advertisements.
