Hello and welcome to Cats Week. I'm Annalise Poorman. The Monroe County Council met on February 24th.
The council heard a resolution that renews the council's commitment to a new county jail facility. Council
members went through the resolution line by line during the course of the meeting. Council member Trent
Deckard said that while the council wants to commit itself to a new jail that fits constitutional standards,
he does not want to move forward with the North Park property as the location.
I recognize that the phrase North Park is the great difficult subject area for a lot of folks, a lot
of different reasons. But when I look at this document, the importance and strength of this document
is that we're saying we have to tell Mr. Falk and the public that are watching this
that a constitutional care jail matters, and that that is a priority of the council. So I guess I would
question why the one, number one that we have now, whether or not that stays in, and I'm sure the council's
gonna debate that in a second, why does that have to be number one? I mean, I get that that is a massive
point in this contextual time, but we're dealing with a lawsuit that, or a private settlement agreement,
that has been going on since 2009 and we're trying to communicate to the other party that the most important
thing is that we're moving forward with this facility in this kind of new life is here with all these
situations outlined in the whereas and we
To do that, we're committed to this. Council member David Henry agreed, saying he does not see the North
Park property as a viable option, despite the county commissioner's preference for that location. I
would agree that the pecking order of where we discuss where the council's desires are, this doesn't
have to be the first thing. But I would say that there are more consumers of the resolution than just ACLU.
One of the consumers of this resolution is the board of commissioners who still or at least some have
an impression or keep floating an idea that there's viability in this location. Frankly, I wasn't here
when you all took the vote. I know that some folks might be having heartburn about taking a vote and
then two years later having to go a different direction. It's my view from this seat. I pretty much
left a no hole in the wall when we had this vote that this has never been a good solution for this project.
so many reasons, not least of which, uprooting the entire economic activity of the court system three
miles north. That's how we ended up back in this. So some of us have different reasons on that. And
I appreciate that, again, some people are having some heartburn about it. But this is, for me, it's
almost a non sequitur. It's almost obvious at this point that this is not a space that we would be pursuing.
And it's not good for the future of the county to close off an interstate exit with a jail facility
that the plan commission has worked very hard over the past year to down zone. So nothing else gets
built there. Deckard said he ultimately wants to make headway on the new jail project, saying the initiative
has gone on too long. However, he labeled the North Park property, quote, a corpse of a concept and
quote, I want the best document that gets this damn thing done.
And I want anyone watching this to know that we're committed to getting this damn thing done because
we have dragged on forever. Part of my frustration, Councilor Feidl had to hear me say this at lunch,
but part of my frustration is we had a plan and then everybody started changing the plan and that's
fine. That's fine. But one thing about this is I would say for anyone observing that live in this county
or otherwise, it is abundantly clear with problem solving type eyeballs watching
that it's not gonna be at North Park. We could not resuscitate that corpse of a concept, pardon me,
we could not resuscitate that with the best of magic and the holiest of our faiths. So to me, whether
one is in there or not, and to get council okay with it, I'm probably gonna vote to keep that in there,
but that thing,
That ship has sailed so hard that it's crashed into the shore. During public comment, Bloomington resident
April Wilson urged the council to build a constitutional jail, saying the current jail does not meet
adequate standards. Respectfully, this problem is not going to be solved with resolutions. At the end
of the day, it's going to be solved by county council and commissioners that are going to sit down and
jointly work together to start making tough decisions.
Resolutions don't have to be the only way that governments communicate. It's not just identifying benchmarks,
it's about meeting them. I remain hopeful, as you know, I remain hopeful that the council will take
concrete and meaningful steps to start addressing these dangerous and unacceptable conditions that are
affecting members of our community. And I respectfully request that you please move forward and please
build a constitutional jail.
The council approved the resolution by a vote of six to zero. The Richland Township and Town of Ellitsville
Reorganization Committee met on February 25th and held the second of four required meetings to create
a Joint Fire Protection Territory. Fire Chief Kevin Patton said that the Ellitsville Fire Department
currently has 17 full-time staff and 21 part-time firefighters.
Some of the services we provide obviously is fire rescue EMS. About 70% of our calls are medical in
nature. We have a community risk reduction program that's really taken off. It covers a lot of fire
extinguisher training, CPR programs, things of that nature. And on the top right, those are the calls,
911 calls that we get for the last five years
And in the last five years, we've had 102% increase to the run volume. Just from growth, people driving
through the area, things of that nature. Listing every fire station that's in Monroe County, including
the city of Bloomington, we're actually the second and third busiest stations in the county.
Patton said structure fires, such as house fires, require 15 to 20 firefighters on the scene. He said
forming a fire protection territory would help address growing call volume and staffing challenges.
A challenge in the current system, just call volume is the main thing. Decrease in volunteerism and
a good little note
down the bottom, you'll see we're protecting over $1.8 million of assessed value between the two. This
would help, obviously, if territory is formed, that helps both entities would have a seat at the board.
It structures the tax rate and everything together and just makes it a lot smoother
for not only the fire department, but for both units power. Paige Sansone with the Baker Tilly presented
the financial impact of the proposal. She said the territory would spread the cost of the fire services
across the entire tax base. As far as the property tax liability impact, we have to look at how does
it impact the district rate. So we have three different taxing districts that are impacted here. We
have Richland Township,
and the district tax rate is 1.64. Then we have the town of Ellisville, two different taxing districts
for Ellisville. The tax rate, though, is pretty close. It's $2.09 roughly. They vary just a little bit.
But since Richland Township's district rate is lower, the impact would be a little bit higher
than Ellisville. So we're looking at an impact of 7.9% for Richland Township.
and 4.2% for the two taxing districts in Ellitsville. According to Sansone, the average residential
property in Richland Township would see a tax increase of approximately $193 per year. Many properties
in Ellitsville would not see an increase due to tax caps.
Committee member David Wilby asked what happens if Richland Township and the town of Ellisville
reorganization goes through. Patton responded that the public won't see a difference in services. The
governmental part of it, the territory will basically go away and it will be part of the consolidation.
Okay, that's what I thought but I wanted to clarify that. But the layperson won't see any difference
in service or anything.
Committee member William Ellis clarified further that there will be either a reorganization or a new
fire protection territory. The Bloomington Utilities Service Board met on February 26. First, Jose Fuentes
asked the board to approve an on-call service agreement with Decker Pest Control for all CBU facilities.
It avoids us having to wait two weeks to come in and talk to the board.
about an individual contract. So we set it out for 10,000 per year. And as we use them, they will invoice
us and we'll pay them for the cost of what they do. And if we get to 10 grand, we can't, we won't, the
contract's done for that year. We wait until the next year. And we have more than one contractor per
discipline usually, so we can rotate through them and continue to keep services going at the different plants.
without having to wait, again, like I said, two, maybe even sometimes three weeks to get before the
board to get things approved so we can come in and turn a screw or something simple like that. The motion
passed with no objections. Next, the board discussed an approval for a service agreement with Reedy
Financial Group. The board had some doubt and some concern about the motion. Or if there's a department
that's in here locally that they say, yeah, we had that same problem and here's the solution.
I guess those are the types of things that I would want to note. If we are having a problem as the city
with people not being able to reconcile accounts, if we're working in a silo here and having an issue
and someone else is having an issue and we're not talking to each other about the issue, as a larger
group will have more power saying this is not a solution for us. Again, I'm not fully understanding
how it all works, but if other departments are using it, I'd be very curious to know if they can't balance.
The motion was denied unanimously because too many board members had questions about the service agreement.
Later in the meeting, Fuentes also asked the board for approval of amendment number one to their service
agreement with Corson Fire and Security. It's to inspect the backflow devices, fire suppression system,
alarm detection systems,
fire extinguishers at all CBU locations. That is correct. As well as our vehicles and heavy equipment,
they'll inspect them all. The motion passed unanimously. Finally, the board discussed the drinking water
rate increase. Assistant City Attorney Chris Wheeler said the upcoming hearing is not meant to be a
dialogue. Rather, it's meant to give the public an opportunity to express their concerns. We expect
full transparency for people and ability of people to come to speak. But if they bring up questions,
which they might, you would expect the public to have questions, how would those get answered at a hearing
like this?
supposed to be a dialogue, it's for the IORC to hear comment. It's not a question and answer session.
And that's part of what they will explain at the very beginning of the field hearing. And it all goes
to due process, an opportunity to be heard before the government takes action. So this is the IORC's
compliance with due process to give the public an opportunity to be heard. The Bloomington Utilities
Service Board will meet again on February 10th.
The Monroe County Board of Commissioners met on February 26. Executive Director of Area 10 Agency on
Aging, Chris Myers, provided an update on rural transit, saying last year's ridership was on par with
2024. Our 2025 total trip numbers for the full system is 41,466.
Monroe County was 15,128, which is about 36.5% of the total of the four counties. It's pretty close
to the same as last year's ridership, so we're kind of seeing that stabilized now. That does not include
the urbanized area routes. That is an additional 6,202 routes, trips that we had, which is higher actually
than 2024, which was just under
6100 for 2024. So we had a little bit higher. She reported that last week someone stole a catalytic
converter from one of the rural transits buses. Last week we had a catalytic converter stolen off of
one of our buses that was up in ND at Superior Van and Mobility, which is the required place we take
them for lift maintenance and repair. So it was behind a fence and they came in. Somebody came in and cut off
all of the vehicles that were there, their catalytic converters. So unfortunately we're going to be
dealing with that, which hasn't happened in years. Next, commissioners administrator Angie Purdy gave
an update on how the showers building will be used for early voting. On the first floor of the showers
area, we have early voting and that will be open and ready to go for early voting. Um,
back side of that is actually voter registration. And that is where, um, the supervise the election
supervisor and her staff, um, will be housed. And that is not scheduled to be open per se, um, in time
for early voting. So they're in a temporary space upstairs. Um, but we have the capability of
providing the additional phones in the new space as they will need and we're going to be talking with
them to come up with a solution that they would like that is in that area because we have the ability
to solve their problem that they believe.
Then Highway Director Lisa Ridge presented bids on the Curry Pike reconstruction project. She said DC
Construction has received approval from the Highway Department to do the job. So sealed bids were opened
at your February 5th regular commissioners meeting. We had five sealed bids that were received. The
contract and project was discussed at the February 28th redevelopment commission board meeting and the
department received approval to move forward with the project.
So we're requesting to award it to DC construction services. Ridge went on to describe the plan for
the project. This is the first phase of what we consider could be three phases of reconstruction of
Curry Pike. This section runs from the Bloomington city limits which is around Beasley Drive.
to State Road 48 are just short of that where it changes jurisdictions for the city. So we will be milling
it. We will be doing curb work, drainage work, sidewalk repairs, and then paving the road. And it'll
all be done in 2026 for this section. The commissioners approve the motion unanimously.
The Monroe County Election Board met on February 24th. Chrissy Gilles, the chair of the Monroe County
Democratic Party, asked for the board to challenge the candidacy of Thelma Jeffries, who is running
for Clear Creek Township trustee. She claimed that Jeffries was dishonest on her CAN 12 paperwork. In
their most recent filings, Ms. Jeffries indicated that she has no occupation and no income.
Given her role as the incumbent Township Trustee, this statement raises legitimate questions about whether
the filing accurately reflects her current economic status. When required disclosures appear incomplete
or unclear, review by this board is both appropriate and necessary.
The Office of Township Trustee is one of the most direct and consequential roles in local government.
Because this position involves stewardship of public resources and direct service to vulnerable members
of our community, transparency and accountability are essential. Jeffries responded and claimed that
this is a misunderstanding. I mean, if I had read that, I guess legally, I'm really not employed. I'm
a public servant.
Penny Githens expressed skepticism regarding Jeffries claim. Basically, Ms. Jeffries unfortunately did
not pay attention and that's important for an elected official in her position because she is the front
line for folks in Clear Creek Township. I'm also a bit upset that
things are happening like that in the clerk's office. I think it's the candidate's responsibility to
know what form they're to fill out. I think it's the candidate's responsibility to fill it out correctly.
And this isn't just a simple situation of not having, not understanding that she should have or should
not have filled out this stuff about an employer. She didn't even read the form well enough to say the
name of the person seeking the
office and the office to which she was elected. Despite this pushback, the board ultimately denied the
challenge two to one. At their meeting on February 23rd, the Ellitsville Town Council discussed an ordinance
to address a pilot agreement between the town and Richland Senior Housing Assistance, Incorporated.
Town attorney Darla Brown explained the ordinance. Richland Senior Housing intends to build housing for
low-income seniors at 5965 North Matthews Drive to 6155 Matthews Drive. And the ordinance simply states
that the town council is approving the pilot agreement for that housing. Following this explanation,
Carson Hayes, a representative from Richland Senior Housing made a statement. It is 100% that this project
could not go forward
without this resolution being passed by the town. So when you think of the things during your service
that you've been able to do, you are 100% partners and responsible if you see fit to pass this in providing
housing for those that are 62 and older, because it flat out could not happen without the leadership
of the town of Eltsville.
doing this and we're just so proud that we can continue a tradition that's been going on since mid 1960s.
As I said in the last meeting, we continue to just build waiting lists and people that are wanting to
move to Ellensville in their senior years. I just think that's a great thing for the town and it's certainly
a great thing for the people. Thank you for your support in the past and
What I hope is your continued support in the future. Thank you. The resolution was approved by the council.
The Monroe County Community School Corporation met on February 24th to discuss the school system's financial
outlook and next steps for a possible sale of the former Harold Times building.
First, executive director of the MCCSC Foundation outlined the school corporation's financial position,
saying Senate-enrolled Act 1, which passed last year, has put financial strain on schools across the
state. However, she says that MCCSC is ahead of the curve and plans on pushing through the funding shortfall.
The fact of the matter is that SCA 1 is impacting everyone. In many ways, MCCSC has been ahead of the curve
because we've been discussing these potential impacts for several months now. In spite of these headwinds,
our team continues to keep our efforts focused on making sure that our decisions are good for children,
fiscally responsible, and ultimately sustainable.
Next, Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources and Operations Dr. Jeffrey Henderson said the school
corporation purchased the former HD building in 2022. Henderson said MCCSC received 408 public responses
on the future of the building and 40% of respondents were in favor of selling it. He said MCCSC could
hold a public hearing in late March to discuss the potential sale of the building.
first and most importantly is the state code and procedure for property sale which appears on the right
hand side in the in the box there. Public hearing with notice provided in accordance with Indiana code
following that hearing the board must approve the sale of the property. Property then needs to be appraised
by two appraisers and then the board can proceed to sell the property either at a public auction or
retain a licensed real estate broker to
handle the sale of the property. The money for the sale must be deposited in the operations fund and
cannot be used for teacher-related wages and benefits. When asked what the school corporation would
do with the money that it made from the sale, especially if they are not allowed to use the funds for
teacher wages, Henderson said that the money would be put in the operations fund for the school system.
A 50% said sell it.
and they want the money to go towards teacher wages, but the money can't be used for teacher wages.
Where would the money be used for? So the money would be deposited into the operations fund of the school
corporation and it would be utilized typically one. You've heard you've heard Mr Irwin speak about not
committing one time funds to ongoing costs or recurring costs. And so
The suggestion would be that those funds would be utilized to help manage the cash balance in the various
funds in the operation fund, given obviously the implications of SEA-1 that we've heard discussed in
previous board meetings. The board is expected to revisit the issue in March. And that is all for Cats
Week. Thank you for joining us. For Cats and WFHB, I'm Annalise Poorman.