Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Warsaw city council decided Monday during its regular meeting to follow the traffic commission's recommendation to designate no parking on North Reed Street.
Following the council's direction in December, the commission met Jan. 3 to revisit options for the narrow two-way street east of Tamarack. They recommended the existing ordinance be enforced eliminating parking on both sides of the street, notifying residents by going door-to-door.
After sidewalks are installed, before or in June, the subject will be revisited and street parking may be allowed.
Traffic commission member Kip Shuter appeared before the board to explain the commissioners' thinking. He said he didn't think removing traffic was in the best interests of the city and of one resident of the street who has no other place to park. All other commissioners, including council members Trish Brown and Bill Rhoades, along with Police Chief Steve Foster and Dan Robinson, were in favor of enforcing the ordinance and revisiting it this summer.
Councilman Jerry Patterson, who was re-elected council president, said he thought Reed Street should be made one-way going south.
Main Street resident Ron Gilbert approached the board, saying city ordinance calls for the Board of Works to make decisions regarding streets.
Gilbert and his wife, Betty, brought the issue to the council along with a 70-signature petition in December asking for a one-way designation. In 1995 the street was to be made one-way along with Tamarack. When the ordinance was passed in 1996 the changes to Reed Street were dropped.
Patterson and Joe Thallemer voted against no parking on Reed Street, where residents have parked for decades, with Trish Brown, Jeff Grose, George Clemens and Bill Rhoades voting for the new restriction. A grace period was not set Monday.
After the meeting Mayor Ernie Wiggins said residents would probably be given a two-week notice.
Other options were to make the street one way southbound from Fort Wayne to Center Street; to make no changes pending completion of infrastructure improvements; and to eliminate a sidewalk to make the street the proper width for two-way traffic.
The State Board of Tax Commissioners found that the city tax levy of 96 cents per $100 assessed valuation could stand for the 2002 budget with cuts to the budget as presented to "line 2" items. Line 2 items are 2001 expenditures.
The new rate is a 5-cent increase over last year. The city will receive $7,073,636 in tax dollars.
With this increase, an additional three firefighters will be hired as well as a human resources director and an administrative assistant at the plan department.
The board reviewed the U.S. 30 selective enforcement figures for 2001 showing 415.5 additional voluntary hours were spent by patrolmen concentrating on the highway. A total of 458 traffic tickets were issued, with 143 of those given for disregarding a stop light, 269 for speeding, 25 for seat belt violations and 21 for other violations.
There were 634 warnings issued.
The report also shows the Warsaw Police Department responded to 2,732 incidents in 2001, compared to 2,996 in 2000 and 2,784 in 1999; and 955 accidents in 2001, compared to 1,044 in 2000 and 869 in 1999.
The Kosciusko Communications Center also filed a year-end report showing 18,580 E911 calls taken in 2001, with 5,763 attributable to Warsaw exchanges. In 2000, 13,036 calls were received. There were 5,454 calls received via the Phase I cellular calls which began May 26, 2001, accounting for most of the increase in calls.
The board approved on first reading Ordinance 2002-01-02 to apply for a $175,000 loan from the Indiana Development Finance Authority as part of the funding to clean up the Winona Avenue Gatke property. Last week the city accepted a brownsfield grant in the amount of $300,000 toward the project.
Last week a $300,000 Indiana Department of Commerce Community Development Division grant from a brownsfield pilot program was awarded. Funds will go toward underground storage tank removal, waste removal, lead paint abatement, asbestos removal, demolition and road construction at the site.
The ordinance holds the council responsible to make payments on the low-interest loan until and if the area is declared a tax increment financing district. Then payments will be garnered through those funds.
In other business the board:
• Heard the Hyett-Palma report on the downtown business district will be Jan. 28 at 6 p.m. in the old courtroom of the Kosciusko County courthouse.
• Rejected, by unanimous vote, amendments to the sign ordinance.
• Received conflict-of-interest disclosure statements from Warsaw Fire Department firefighters Joe Fretz and Dave Vercauteren, who also work for Nowak Supply in Fort Wayne. The company offers fire extinguisher service and sells fire equipment.
• Heard the fire department responded to 810 runs in 2001. The department responded to 65 runs in December.
Council members are Jerry Patterson, Bill Rhoades, Jeff Grose, Trish Brown, Joe Thallemer and George Clemens. Charlie Smith was absent.
