WEBVTT 00:00:00.162 --> 00:00:07.153 - Good morning, everyone. Thank you all for this meeting in the county Board of Commissioners. It is Thursday, 00:00:07.153 --> 00:00:13.566 - April 30th. And I will know for the record that all three commissioners are here and present in the 00:00:13.566 --> 00:00:20.364 - Net you Hill room and we will begin with the commissioners public statement read by Commissioner Madeira. 00:00:20.364 --> 00:00:26.906 - We the Monroe County Board of Commissioners renew our commitment to welcome and protect the rights of 00:00:26.906 --> 00:00:28.894 - all people. Regardless of age, 00:00:29.090 --> 00:00:35.660 - marital status, economic status, and national origin. And we affirm the right of every person to live 00:00:35.660 --> 00:00:42.100 - peacefully and without fear. And we will fight and resist at every step, discrimination and harmful 00:00:42.100 --> 00:00:48.799 - policies, whatever their source. We believe in diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. And we also 00:00:48.799 --> 00:00:55.497 - stand in support of our county public school systems, both RBB and MCCSE. All right, thank you so much. 00:00:55.497 --> 00:00:58.782 - And we will now move on to our department updates. 00:00:59.362 --> 00:01:07.985 - on update from the health department, please. Good morning, commissioners. According to the Indiana 00:01:07.985 --> 00:01:17.471 - Department of Health and Wastewater Scan, hospital admissions for COVID illness have decreased and wastewater 00:01:17.471 --> 00:01:24.542 - concentrations remain at low levels. We are seeing very low levels of flu and RSV 00:01:25.346 --> 00:01:33.116 - The health department still has free flu and COVID tests available for the public. Individuals can walk 00:01:33.116 --> 00:01:41.111 - in Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. to receive free tests. And lastly, we are proud to announce 00:01:41.111 --> 00:01:48.732 - the health department is scheduling appointments for vaccines. The number to call is 812-803-6364 for 00:01:48.732 --> 00:01:51.422 - an appointment or more information. 00:01:53.570 --> 00:02:00.261 - All right, thank you so much. Comments or questions, Commissioner Madeira? I have none. Thank you very 00:02:00.261 --> 00:02:06.821 - much. Commissioner Jones? No, I don't. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much. Next up, we have Mr. 00:02:06.821 --> 00:02:12.992 - Miller, Veterans Affairs Office. Good morning. Good morning, commissioners. How are you today? 00:02:12.992 --> 00:02:19.618 - We're good. Great. I wanted to tell you a little story about a veteran that I helped to apply for the 00:02:19.618 --> 00:02:21.502 - Military Family Relief Fund. 00:02:21.730 --> 00:02:29.070 - which is a $2500 grant by the state of Indiana to help veterans who are veterans and families who have 00:02:29.070 --> 00:02:36.268 - significant financial hardship. Recently I worked with a veteran who found themselves in a situation 00:02:36.268 --> 00:02:41.470 - that many of us are just are only one unexpected event away from facing. 00:02:41.634 --> 00:02:48.084 - Falling behind on rent due to a sudden financial strain, things quickly snowballed. Late fees piled 00:02:48.084 --> 00:02:54.535 - up, other bills followed, and soon even the car payment was a risk. What started as a single missed 00:02:54.535 --> 00:03:00.792 - payment became a cascade of stress and uncertainty, threatening both stable housing and reliable 00:03:00.792 --> 00:03:07.822 - transportation. Two things that are essential for maintaining employment and moving. Veterans did everything 00:03:07.822 --> 00:03:09.822 - right. They reached out early. 00:03:09.986 --> 00:03:17.261 - They stayed engaged and remained committed to getting back on track. But applying for the Military Family 00:03:17.261 --> 00:03:24.262 - Relief Fund assistance is no small task. It is one of the most demanding and complicated applications 00:03:24.262 --> 00:03:31.262 - we ask veterans to complete. It requires detailed documentation of income and debt, monthly expenses, 00:03:31.262 --> 00:03:35.998 - and proof of hardship. And for someone who's already facing hardship 00:03:36.514 --> 00:03:46.732 - and significant stress, gathering all of this documentation can feel very overwhelming. Even when everything 00:03:46.732 --> 00:03:56.106 - goes right, approval is not guaranteed. What I found out recently that only 47% of applications are 00:03:56.106 --> 00:04:03.230 - approved. That is owed a lot to the fact of how complicated the process is. 00:04:03.714 --> 00:04:11.303 - In this case, however, the veteran did receive the money and they worked through the process. They provided 00:04:11.303 --> 00:04:18.541 - all the necessary document and again, they eventually were approved for the assistance. They were able 00:04:18.541 --> 00:04:25.708 - to pay their car payment and stabilize their financial situation. And again, this is exactly what the 00:04:25.708 --> 00:04:29.854 - MFRF, the Military Family Relief Fund, is for. It deserves 00:04:30.722 --> 00:04:38.123 - note of how critical it is and how difficult it is often to access. I share the story not just as a 00:04:38.123 --> 00:04:45.598 - success but also as a window into some of the challenges that our veterans face locally. I thank you 00:04:45.598 --> 00:04:53.221 - for your time and I hope you have a great rest of your day. Thank you so much and I think this is also 00:04:53.221 --> 00:05:00.030 - a good example of why it's important to utilize the services of the Veterans Service Office 00:05:01.154 --> 00:05:08.624 - with these kinds of things. If you're a veteran in need, please call and can you give the number? Absolutely. 00:05:08.624 --> 00:05:15.482 - My phone number is 812-349-2537. Please do that early and often. There you go. Perfect. Thank you so 00:05:15.482 --> 00:05:21.118 - much. Appreciate it. Are there any other departments that wish to offer an update? 00:05:27.298 --> 00:05:34.311 - on Teams or in the NETU Hill Room. All right, with that we will move on to public comment. Public comment 00:05:34.311 --> 00:05:40.927 - is for items not on the agenda. It is limited to three minutes per speaker. You can raise your hand 00:05:40.927 --> 00:05:44.830 - on Teams or come to the podium here in the NETU Hill Room. 00:05:53.314 --> 00:05:59.419 - Seeing none, we'll move on to approval of the minutes and you could just make that one big motion if 00:05:59.419 --> 00:06:05.463 - you would like. I would like to approve the board of commissioners minutes for April 9th, 2026, the 00:06:05.463 --> 00:06:11.628 - board of commissioners minutes for April 23rd, 2026, the commissioner and council joint work session, 00:06:11.628 --> 00:06:18.096 - the minutes from the commissioners and council joint work session from January 22nd, 2026, and the minutes 00:06:18.096 --> 00:06:23.294 - from the commissioner and council joint special work session from February 9th, 2026. 00:06:23.810 --> 00:06:32.071 - We have a motion and we have a second. Any comments, corrections or edits? Excellent. All those in favor 00:06:32.071 --> 00:06:40.096 - of approving the minutes, April 9th, April 23rd, and the joint work session minutes from January 22nd 00:06:40.096 --> 00:06:48.121 - and February 9th, signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. And we'll move on to the next item. 00:06:48.121 --> 00:06:52.606 - Again, if we could have one motion, that would be great. 00:06:52.962 --> 00:07:01.560 - Yes, I would like to move approval of the claim socket for accounts payable from April 23rd, 2026 and 00:07:01.560 --> 00:07:09.990 - ratification of the payroll from April 17th, 2026. And flipping the page, I would like to also move 00:07:09.990 --> 00:07:18.673 - to approve accounts payable from April 30th, 2026 and payroll for May 1st, 2026. We have a motion. And 00:07:18.673 --> 00:07:20.190 - we have a second. 00:07:20.290 --> 00:07:28.952 - Ms. Gallardo, can you tell us about the accounts payable for today and payroll for tomorrow, please? 00:07:28.952 --> 00:07:37.786 - Good morning. The accounts payable claims docket for April 30th, 2026 totals $1,831,225. This includes 00:07:37.786 --> 00:07:44.990 - all emergency claims and adjustments. The payroll docket for May 1st, 2026 includes 00:07:45.218 --> 00:07:56.047 - 1,671,376 and 77 cents in direct cost and the remaining 695,298 cents were for indirect costs for a 00:07:56.047 --> 00:08:06.985 - grand total of 2,366,379 and 75 cents. All right, any comments or questions? Commissioner Jones? No, 00:08:06.985 --> 00:08:11.966 - I don't. Commissioner Madeira? No, thank you. 00:08:12.642 --> 00:08:22.419 - I don't either. Let's see if there's any public comment on this item. You raise your hand on teams or 00:08:22.419 --> 00:08:32.004 - come to the podium. All right. None. All those in favor of ratifying the accounts payable for April 00:08:32.004 --> 00:08:36.222 - 23rd, ratifying the payroll for April 17th. 00:08:36.546 --> 00:08:44.855 - and approving the accounts payable for April 30th, 2026 and payroll for May 1st, 2026 signify by saying 00:08:44.855 --> 00:08:52.925 - aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. Thank you so much. I note for the record that we have received reports 00:08:52.925 --> 00:09:01.075 - from the clerk for March 2026, the treasurer for March 2026, and weights and measures for April 2026. 00:09:01.075 --> 00:09:04.990 - And we will now move on to new business, please. 00:09:05.922 --> 00:09:13.960 - I would like to move approval for the submission for the 2027-5311-5339 grant program and approval of 00:09:13.960 --> 00:09:21.998 - the resolution 2026-13. Second. We have a motion and we have a second. Ms. Myers, we're going to miss 00:09:21.998 --> 00:09:29.406 - you. You're going to have to come just to give us public comment just to say hi. Lively, huh? 00:09:29.762 --> 00:09:37.020 - to see you. Thank you for having me very glad to be here after missing a couple weeks. So it's getting 00:09:37.020 --> 00:09:44.066 - a little nervous. This is my last day in Area 10. So I have Amy Garitas, who is my successor in the 00:09:44.066 --> 00:09:51.113 - crowd. So welcome her. So I'm very glad to have her here and pick this up. So we are here today for 00:09:51.113 --> 00:09:53.086 - the renewal grant for 2027. 00:09:53.666 --> 00:10:04.460 - We've put together the grant application, which will be for the operating portion will be $1,710,450. 00:10:04.460 --> 00:10:15.465 - Of that, the federal portion is $817,789. The state portion will be $311,595. And then the local match, 00:10:15.465 --> 00:10:20.862 - which makes up all of the difference, is $523,594. 00:10:22.082 --> 00:10:29.005 - in the fairs, which I'm not going to read. But this does plan for possibly having to cover what was 00:10:29.005 --> 00:10:35.997 - the staff that is covering the urbanized area, just so you know, first case scenario, thinking about 00:10:35.997 --> 00:10:42.920 - that. And then we have the capital portion that we're going to be putting in for, which is for four 00:10:42.920 --> 00:10:49.982 - bus replacements and one low floor mini-ban. That federal money will be $485,650 that the local match 00:10:50.306 --> 00:10:58.960 - Necessary is $85,350. We are as area 10 committing to provide that local match capital and on the operating 00:10:58.960 --> 00:11:07.052 - we are hoping to still have your support at the $80,000 level for the Monroe County portion. Service 00:11:07.052 --> 00:11:15.065 - area and we have commitments from the other communities as well. Support that operation. Excellent. 00:11:15.065 --> 00:11:18.430 - Thank you so much. Comments or questions? 00:11:18.594 --> 00:11:28.340 - No, this is just really critical and thanks for all your hard work on it. It's just vital. Rural transit 00:11:28.340 --> 00:11:37.900 - is really one of the lifebloods of our community. This is one of the things every year and I'm so glad 00:11:37.900 --> 00:11:47.275 - you can talk with your future. We have some big changes here. Good for you. I am going to say again, 00:11:47.275 --> 00:11:48.574 - thank you for 00:11:48.802 --> 00:11:56.975 - all you've done for our community at Area 10, such important work. And this is just one part of the 00:11:56.975 --> 00:12:05.556 - bigger puzzle. And this piece is so important. And I mean, managed to get INDOT to pay for the urbanized 00:12:05.556 --> 00:12:13.729 - area transit this year. Any chance that they might do it again next year? We don't know. OK. I will 00:12:13.729 --> 00:12:18.142 - say I'm sorry to say I did not get to the open house. 00:12:18.370 --> 00:12:25.635 - things got ahead of me and behind me and I couldn't get out there in time. So I apologize for that. 00:12:25.635 --> 00:12:33.337 - And Ms. Garitas, we look forward to working with you and we hope we can sit down soon and talk all things 00:12:33.337 --> 00:12:40.602 - transit when you're feeling like you have a moment to catch your breath. That would be great. It'll 00:12:40.602 --> 00:12:48.158 - be really wonderful. And again, thank you for everything you've done for this community and we wish you 00:12:48.354 --> 00:12:57.095 - every happiness in your retirement. Thank you so much. It's been a pleasure working with you. 00:12:57.095 --> 00:13:06.765 - And of course, we serve. Yeah, yeah, important, important. Thank you. Let's go ahead and see if there's 00:13:06.765 --> 00:13:15.134 - any public comments on this item. You can raise your hand on teams or come to the podium. 00:13:15.554 --> 00:13:25.356 - clarification for everybody involved. The 80,000 match is subject to council appropriation during the 00:13:25.356 --> 00:13:35.543 - 2027 budget process. I just want to make sure that that's clear. Okay. I don't see anyone here for public 00:13:35.543 --> 00:13:42.558 - comments. So all those in favor of approving the submission for the 2027 00:13:42.722 --> 00:13:50.747 - 5311, 5339 grant program and approval of resolution 2026-13 signify by saying aye. Motion carries 3-0. 00:13:50.747 --> 00:13:59.162 - Thank you so much. We'll miss you. All right. Next item, please. I would like to move approval for Nature's 00:13:59.162 --> 00:14:06.174 - Way Incorporated Irrigation System installation at the Monroe County Historic Courthouse. 00:14:08.930 --> 00:14:16.527 - Fund name 2025 five geobond fund number 4820 in the amount of $48,045 and 71 cents All right. We have 00:14:16.527 --> 00:14:24.199 - a motion and we have a second. Mr. Crider Good morning commissioners Richard Crider building and fleet 00:14:24.199 --> 00:14:32.094 - This request is to approve the proposal submitted by nature's way to install a new lawn irrigation system 00:14:32.418 --> 00:14:38.442 - For the turf areas, the existing irrigation infrastructure is problematic with brittle piping, corroded 00:14:38.442 --> 00:14:44.292 - wiring, and dated controls. Installation includes all new PVC piping, valves, valve boxes, sprinkler 00:14:44.292 --> 00:14:50.316 - heads, flow meter, backflow prevention device, and associated wiring. The system features communication 00:14:50.316 --> 00:14:56.108 - capabilities with maintenance for improved diagnostics and troubleshooting, rain sensing capability 00:14:56.108 --> 00:14:59.294 - to prevent unnecessary operation during precipitation, 00:14:59.458 --> 00:15:06.955 - Reduced need to manually enter the irrigation vault. Improved efficiency and reliability. And then my 00:15:06.955 --> 00:15:14.232 - favorite thing, which I didn't put on the agenda, is it will learn the flow rates of each station. 00:15:14.232 --> 00:15:21.950 - And at 2.30 in the morning, if somebody punts a sprinkler head off and we blow a geyser out into College 00:15:21.950 --> 00:15:29.374 - or Walnut, it will sense the change flow rate and shut that system down and move on to the next one. 00:15:29.570 --> 00:15:39.649 - That's big, yeah. Total installation cost, $48,000, $45.71. Yeah, that is important. Thank you. Comments 00:15:39.649 --> 00:15:49.343 - or questions? Commissioner Jones? Yeah, irrigation is awfully important in spite of the soaking that 00:15:49.343 --> 00:15:57.790 - we recently got. We've had pretty dry conditions this spring, which is unusual, whereas 00:15:58.242 --> 00:16:08.531 - We typically get dry conditions in the fall. If we go into that, having had dry conditions all summer, 00:16:08.531 --> 00:16:18.719 - it's going to be irrigation is going to be very sounds like a rather amazing system. It's impressive. 00:16:18.719 --> 00:16:23.614 - It must be. Yeah. What are we waiting for? Yeah. 00:16:23.842 --> 00:16:30.465 - You're all wet. All right. I will say that I can't tell you how many times I got calls from people, 00:16:30.465 --> 00:16:37.088 - like, oh, there's water streaming into the street or flowing over the sidewalk or whatever. So it's 00:16:37.088 --> 00:16:43.710 - been a while. It's been a long time coming. And so this will be good to get this taken care of. And 00:16:43.710 --> 00:16:49.406 - I like the new technology. It makes a lot of sense. It's a technology I have at home. 00:16:49.890 --> 00:16:56.650 - for my garden, so I needed to make sense. It's like, why not? Brain sensing and, you know. This is huge 00:16:56.650 --> 00:17:03.345 - news for the maintenance department. Yeah. So when is this going to be installed? I don't have a start 00:17:03.345 --> 00:17:09.844 - date determined yet. I think they're waiting to see this, and then we'll work on that. You're going 00:17:09.844 --> 00:17:16.344 - to avoid having this done around the 4th of July, and you're going to avoid having, right? Yeah, we 00:17:16.344 --> 00:17:18.814 - had a meeting and discussed all that. 00:17:19.074 --> 00:17:25.508 - Timing is key. I mean, we want the lawn to look nice for that day. So if we could be done before or 00:17:25.508 --> 00:17:32.071 - after, before would be great. But it'd be give it some time to, because obviously they're going to be 00:17:32.071 --> 00:17:38.633 - digging up. They will. But the machine they use makes a pretty narrow swath. I don't anticipate a ton 00:17:38.633 --> 00:17:45.389 - of damage. Excellent. Excellent. I appreciate you working on this. This is going to be really important. 00:17:45.389 --> 00:17:48.670 - So thank you. All right. Let's see if there's any. 00:17:49.442 --> 00:17:58.311 - public comment on this item. You raise your hand on teams or come to the podium. Seeing none, all those 00:17:58.311 --> 00:18:06.839 - in favor of approving the Nature's Way Inc Irrigation System installation at Monroe County Historic 00:18:06.839 --> 00:18:13.662 - Courthouse, signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. Let's talk surplus. 00:18:14.018 --> 00:18:22.208 - These are my favorite resolution 2026 11 surplus property. I'd like to move to approve that resolution. 00:18:22.208 --> 00:18:30.634 - Perfect. All right, we're there. Mr. Grider. Okay, this request is to approve resolution 2026 11 declaring 00:18:30.634 --> 00:18:38.430 - the following items a surplus due to damage end of service life or replacement with new equipment. 00:18:38.658 --> 00:18:44.290 - office furniture from the prosecutors and treasurer's office to be disposed of as trash or sold a scrap 00:18:44.290 --> 00:18:50.138 - metal as appropriate. One freezer from probation department to be transferred to the solid waste management 00:18:50.138 --> 00:18:55.661 - district for recycling. One mower from the parks department that is up for replacement as part of the 00:18:55.661 --> 00:19:01.347 - equipment rotation schedule. These items are no longer needed for county operations and will be disposed 00:19:01.347 --> 00:19:03.838 - of or recycled as outlined in the resolution. 00:19:04.610 --> 00:19:12.631 - Perfect, thank you so much. Comments or questions? Commissioner Madeira? No, and I just, again, I really 00:19:12.631 --> 00:19:20.269 - appreciate the time and care that's taken to make use of every bit of equipment to its natural life 00:19:20.269 --> 00:19:27.985 - and to dispose of it properly when its natural life is over. Thank you. Commissioner Jones? Yes, I'm 00:19:27.985 --> 00:19:33.790 - very interested to hear that the Solid Waste District will recycle, freeze, 00:19:35.138 --> 00:19:45.774 - I think there was a small fee. It's good to know. Yeah, for sure. For sure. Yeah, there's a because 00:19:45.774 --> 00:19:56.411 - of the free on there's a there's a there's a fee for that. Yeah, but it's not basic. Yep. Thank you 00:19:56.411 --> 00:20:02.686 - for doing this work and tracking all of this equipment and 00:20:02.946 --> 00:20:12.468 - furniture and everything else. So thank you. Let's see if there's any public comment on this item. Can 00:20:12.468 --> 00:20:22.451 - you raise your hand on teams or come to the podium? Seeing none, all those in favor of approving resolution 00:20:22.451 --> 00:20:32.158 - 2026-11 signify by saying aye. Motion carries 3-0. Next item, please. Yes, I'd like to move approval for 00:20:32.386 --> 00:20:38.933 - The Cassidy Electric Generator Replacement and Relocation Project for the Highway Garage and the Youth 00:20:38.933 --> 00:20:45.417 - Services Bureau, Fund Name 2024 Geobond, Fund Number 4819 and the amount of $382,000. Second. We have 00:20:45.417 --> 00:20:52.281 - a motion and we have a second. Mr. Crater. The Highway Garage currently operates with an existing generator 00:20:52.281 --> 00:20:56.286 - that does not have the capacity to support the entire facility 00:20:56.482 --> 00:21:02.227 - During a power outage to improve operational reliability and ensure full building backup power. This 00:21:02.227 --> 00:21:08.255 - project will replace the existing unit with a new appropriately sized generator. As part of this project, 00:21:08.255 --> 00:21:13.943 - the existing generator will be removed from the highway garage and relocated for reuse at the Youth 00:21:13.943 --> 00:21:14.910 - Services Bureau. 00:21:15.714 --> 00:21:21.691 - This request is to award a contract to Cassidy Electric in the amount of $382,000 for generator replacement 00:21:21.691 --> 00:21:27.501 - and relocation services to include removal of the existing generator at the highway garage, installation 00:21:27.501 --> 00:21:33.146 - of a new generator size to service the entire highway garage building, relocation and installation of 00:21:33.146 --> 00:21:39.233 - the existing generator at the Youth Services Bureau, installation of new transfer switches at both locations, 00:21:39.233 --> 00:21:43.550 - and associated electrical and site work required for full system integration. 00:21:45.186 --> 00:21:55.717 - Thank you so much. Comments or questions, Commissioner Jones. It's great that this that you're going 00:21:55.717 --> 00:22:05.726 - to be able to reload. Always nice when things can be reused somewhere else in the county. Yeah. 00:22:06.178 --> 00:22:13.314 - No, I really appreciate, again, as Commissioner Jones said, the reuse and repurposing of the generator. 00:22:13.314 --> 00:22:19.763 - And again, this is not captured here at this meeting, but an extensive bid process. And thank 00:22:19.763 --> 00:22:26.899 - you. Electrifying. Yes, generating interest. All right, let's see if there's any public comment on this 00:22:26.899 --> 00:22:30.878 - item. You raise your hand on teams or come to the podium. 00:22:38.082 --> 00:22:44.811 - Seeing none, all those in favor of approving the Cassidy electric generator replacement and relocation 00:22:44.811 --> 00:22:51.345 - project for Highway Garage and the Youth Services Bureau signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 00:22:51.345 --> 00:22:58.139 - 3-0. And one more for Mr. Kreider, please. Yes, I'd like to move to approve the Spring Point Architects 00:22:58.139 --> 00:23:04.934 - Professional Services Agreement for the Historic Courthouse. Fund name, cumulative capital, fund number 00:23:04.934 --> 00:23:07.678 - 1138, in an amount not to exceed $11,500. 00:23:07.842 --> 00:23:14.755 - We have a motion and we have a second. If you'll remember the previous dumpster enclosure was destroyed 00:23:14.755 --> 00:23:21.602 - by a fallen tree. The goal is to build a durable enclosure out of stone or block with sturdy doors and 00:23:21.602 --> 00:23:25.790 - designed in a manner that complements the historic courthouse. 00:23:25.922 --> 00:23:32.183 - This request is approved the proposal submitted by Spring Point Architects in an amount not to exceed 00:23:32.183 --> 00:23:38.566 - $11,500 to provide professional services through the design and construction phase to include schematic 00:23:38.566 --> 00:23:44.519 - design, preparation of construction documents, assistance with the bid process, and construction 00:23:44.519 --> 00:23:49.982 - administration services. Thank you so much. Comments or questions? Commissioner Madeira. 00:23:50.242 --> 00:23:56.333 - I guess just because it's going to contain a dumpster doesn't mean we want it to look like a dumpster. 00:23:56.333 --> 00:24:02.247 - And so I remember walking out and finding this. And so it's lovely to know that this is going to be 00:24:02.247 --> 00:24:08.338 - resolved and things back to normal. So thank you. This is going to be great. Yeah. Commissioner Jones? 00:24:08.338 --> 00:24:14.370 - Yeah, just this morning I was noticing how nice that garden is looking and then there's that dumpster 00:24:14.370 --> 00:24:19.870 - sitting there. There's actually a crew out there right now adding native plants to the area. 00:24:19.970 --> 00:24:26.712 - Nice. That's a nice little garden. It is. The rabbits love it. It is native. They should. They do. 00:24:26.712 --> 00:24:33.658 - And yeah, it was during a plan commission meeting when that tree went down and it went down on a plan 00:24:33.658 --> 00:24:40.673 - commission member's car. Fortunately, they were in the meeting, but unfortunately, we went outside and 00:24:40.673 --> 00:24:47.006 - there it was. So the dangers of being on a border commission, we just never talk about that. 00:24:47.138 --> 00:24:55.353 - But no, I really appreciate you looking into it. It's something we've talked about a couple times, and 00:24:55.353 --> 00:25:03.728 - it'll be great when it's done. So thank you for that. All right. Let's see if there's any public comment 00:25:03.728 --> 00:25:11.864 - on this item. You can raise your hand on Teams or come to the podium. Seeing none, all those in favor 00:25:11.864 --> 00:25:15.134 - of approving the Spring Point Architects 00:25:15.490 --> 00:25:23.968 - Professional Services Agreement for the Historic Courthouse signified by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 00:25:23.968 --> 00:25:32.041 - 3-0. Thank you so much. Welcome, and I will add that I counted 98 rings on that oak tree. Wow. Wow. 00:25:32.041 --> 00:25:39.550 - Wow. That's, yeah. Yeah, it is. It is. But remember when we lost that one on the south side? 00:25:40.002 --> 00:25:46.865 - That was, that was terrible. And they cut it and then all this water just poured out of it because it 00:25:46.865 --> 00:25:53.863 - was, yeah. Anyway. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Next item please. Sorry. Okay. Oh, you're fine. I would like 00:25:53.863 --> 00:26:00.860 - to move approval for SheCorp Lumu Defender software agreement. Fund name cumulative capital fund number 00:26:00.860 --> 00:26:07.454 - 1138 in the amount of $66,000 for a three year term. Okay. We have a motion and we have a second. 00:26:09.346 --> 00:26:16.130 - Good morning, everyone. In any IT environment, it's always advisable to try to stop threats or malicious 00:26:16.130 --> 00:26:22.721 - activity before they make it to your endpoints, which are your computers and your systems. Currently, 00:26:22.721 --> 00:26:29.247 - we're set up in a good posture where we have endpoint detection, where the threat makes it that far. 00:26:29.247 --> 00:26:35.902 - There's automated processes and everything like that. One thing we don't have is to cover our network. 00:26:36.098 --> 00:26:42.784 - basically an intruder can make it into the garage before we, not sure they're there, that escalates 00:26:42.784 --> 00:26:49.537 - after hours when we don't have network staff constantly monitoring that. So it's relying on a manual 00:26:49.537 --> 00:26:56.357 - process right now to detect and stop that. Lumoo is a product, a company that's been working with the 00:26:56.357 --> 00:27:02.174 - state for about a year now, trying to get a foothold in the state to provide services. 00:27:02.274 --> 00:27:08.117 - that give you that network detection layer. It's a 24-7 operation. It's predefined responses that we 00:27:08.117 --> 00:27:13.960 - dictate, so we're the second call. The company would actually, if a threat made it into our network, 00:27:13.960 --> 00:27:19.861 - they'd shut it down and then notify us, which is a big swap from how we do it now. The help desk gets 00:27:19.861 --> 00:27:25.762 - called of an issue, they investigate, then they're reporting it to the network team. So it takes that 00:27:25.762 --> 00:27:30.622 - whole delay out of there. Additionally, one thing that this program will do for us, 00:27:30.914 --> 00:27:36.853 - We did have the MS-ISAC, what's called malicious domain blocking, which prevents users from going out 00:27:36.853 --> 00:27:42.734 - inadvertently or intentionally to a bad website that could infect their machine. Unfortunately, with 00:27:42.734 --> 00:27:48.790 - federal cuts, MS-ISAC does not offer that service to us anymore underneath that membership that we had, 00:27:48.790 --> 00:27:54.846 - which we were paying about $3,000 a year to that membership. So this product also puts that layer there 00:27:54.846 --> 00:27:59.038 - as well, give us another coverage of security and keep an unintentional 00:27:59.426 --> 00:28:05.710 - activity for getting on our machines. One advantage to this getting on now, like I said, LUMU is trying 00:28:05.710 --> 00:28:12.054 - to get a foothold in the state. We met with them, we've been running their product under trial for about 00:28:12.054 --> 00:28:18.398 - 90 days now. They did offer this to us at a 50% discount over their normal rate. That's why I went ahead 00:28:18.398 --> 00:28:24.440 - and locked it on a three year term to keep the discount as long as we can. Awesome, great thinking, 00:28:24.440 --> 00:28:28.670 - thank you. Commissioner Jones, comments or questions? A lot of sense. 00:28:30.882 --> 00:28:37.767 - Commissioner Madeira. So the normal cost for their product is going to be about $130,000. Yes, exactly. 00:28:37.767 --> 00:28:44.520 - Security is expensive these days, but it's far less expensive than a breach. Absolutely. I'd say next 00:28:44.520 --> 00:28:51.207 - to payroll, IT is probably one of your biggest overheads for any, whether it's government or whether 00:28:51.207 --> 00:28:57.894 - it's private business, and that's the unfortunate part of it. It only gets more expensive. We're all 00:28:57.894 --> 00:29:00.542 - in the wrong business. I'm just saying. 00:29:00.738 --> 00:29:08.206 - It would be great if they could give us more than three years at this price, seeing as what's going 00:29:08.206 --> 00:29:15.824 - on. But I appreciate that you found the bargain and signed us up. And it sounds like a good plan. And 00:29:15.824 --> 00:29:23.442 - we appreciate the protection of technical services infrastructure. So important. Let's see if there's 00:29:23.442 --> 00:29:29.790 - any public comment on this item. You raise your hand on teams or come to the podium. 00:29:37.506 --> 00:29:46.149 - Seeing none, all those in favor of approving the SHI Corp LUMU Defender Software Agreement, signify 00:29:46.149 --> 00:29:54.878 - by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. Next. Approval for Smithville Internet Agreement for Highway 00:29:54.878 --> 00:30:03.607 - Garage and Health Services, fund name County General, fund number 1,000 in the amount of $99,840. We 00:30:03.607 --> 00:30:06.718 - have a motion and we have a second. 00:30:07.522 --> 00:30:14.608 - It was noted just recently that our contract with Smithville for Internet services to these locations 00:30:14.608 --> 00:30:21.624 - actually expired in November, so we were operating outside of contract. Smithville did not charge us 00:30:21.624 --> 00:30:28.849 - a standard rate. They kept us on the contracted price even though that had expired, so we'd worked with 00:30:28.849 --> 00:30:29.822 - them on that. 00:30:30.594 --> 00:30:35.941 - One thing it's important to note because it says fiber agreements for highway garage and the health 00:30:35.941 --> 00:30:41.341 - services building. This is not disservice to those locations. In the instance of the highway garage, 00:30:41.341 --> 00:30:46.955 - you're supporting the highway garage, the emergency management building, the sheriff's reserve building. 00:30:46.955 --> 00:30:52.302 - So these are for all our locations. That's just the main truncate point that it comes in at. During 00:30:52.302 --> 00:30:57.916 - this process, it was noticed that we had a unnecessary, what was determined as an unnecessary redundancy 00:30:57.916 --> 00:30:58.718 - in the system. 00:30:59.170 --> 00:31:06.966 - So this is actually, this new agreement is a reduction. We were previously paying $2,800 a month for 00:31:06.966 --> 00:31:14.917 - services to these locations, and that's now reducing that to $1,664. So we're actually seeing a $1,200 00:31:14.917 --> 00:31:22.636 - a month savings going on to that. Excellent. Thank you so much. Comments or questions? Commissioner 00:31:22.636 --> 00:31:28.734 - Madeira? I have none. This sounds wonderful, actually. And again, we know that 00:31:28.930 --> 00:31:35.431 - This kind of access is expensive. We know that Smithville is a wonderful provider, and so we thank them 00:31:35.431 --> 00:31:41.745 - for their continued partnership with the county. Commissioner Jones? No, I haven't. And I appreciate 00:31:41.745 --> 00:31:48.247 - it's a local company. I think that makes a difference, and I think it's great that we can support them, 00:31:48.247 --> 00:31:54.498 - and they can support us. All right, let's see if there's any public comment on this item, and thank 00:31:54.498 --> 00:31:57.374 - you for saving us money. We hear the refrain. 00:31:57.634 --> 00:32:08.287 - again and again. Thank you again. Any public comment? All those in favor of approving the Smithville 00:32:08.287 --> 00:32:18.834 - Internet Agreement for the Highway Garage and Health Services signify by saying aye. Motion carries 00:32:18.834 --> 00:32:22.526 - 3-0. Thank you. Next item, please. 00:32:23.298 --> 00:32:30.375 - I would like to move approval for the Monroe County Parks and Monroe County Fair Board Memorandum of 00:32:30.375 --> 00:32:37.942 - Understanding. Second. We have a motion and we have a second. Hello. This is a wonderful MOU. It's actually 00:32:37.942 --> 00:32:45.299 - an updated from one that we had previously, and it doesn't require us to do anything. It doesn't require 00:32:45.299 --> 00:32:52.446 - the Fair Board to do anything, just be great neighbors and to come to each other's need when need be. 00:32:53.282 --> 00:33:01.904 - I think the Fair Board has been wonderful working with us on this project. Thank you. Comments or questions? 00:33:01.904 --> 00:33:09.814 - Commissioner Jones? No, I don't. I'm glad that you cooperate with them. Commissioner Madeira? Nope, 00:33:09.814 --> 00:33:17.883 - that's great. My neighbors get along. All right. Any public comment on this item? You raise your hand 00:33:17.883 --> 00:33:20.414 - in teams or come to the podium? 00:33:25.794 --> 00:33:32.780 - Seeing none, all those in favor of approving the Monroe County Parks and Monroe County Fair Board Memorandum 00:33:32.780 --> 00:33:39.573 - of Understanding signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. Next item. I would like to move approval 00:33:39.573 --> 00:33:46.174 - for the Halderman Farm Management Agreement for the farming lease on the Monroe County Nature Preserve 00:33:46.658 --> 00:33:54.132 - Fund names county general food and beverage and parks non-reverting fund numbers 1,000 49 32 11 78 11 00:33:54.132 --> 00:34:01.752 - 79 and 41 13 in an amount not to exceed $1,200 We have a motion and we have a second. Ms. Whitmer. Yes, 00:34:01.752 --> 00:34:09.372 - the Halderman family are the Halderman farm management is going to manage about 100 acres on the Monroe 00:34:09.372 --> 00:34:15.454 - County nature preserve It's a continuation of the farming lease per court order in 00:34:15.810 --> 00:34:24.302 - Other than that, we've changed the calendar year, and this will be the last year for farming for harvest. 00:34:24.302 --> 00:34:32.313 - Thank you so much. Comments or questions? Commissioner Madeira? None. Jones? Yeah, I was interested 00:34:32.313 --> 00:34:35.518 - in the plant soybeans, not for harvest. 00:34:35.810 --> 00:34:43.957 - Oh, that's next. Next slide. Oh, OK. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. More exciting for that one. We'll wait on 00:34:43.957 --> 00:34:52.023 - that. OK. It did all run together. It does. It does. Yeah, for sure. No, I think this is excellent. 00:34:52.023 --> 00:35:00.089 - You came and talked to us about this at a work session several weeks ago. I don't. Probably. I just 00:35:00.089 --> 00:35:04.606 - have a hard time remembering dates now because time is. 00:35:05.058 --> 00:35:17.408 - And that this is one good way to keep the property in good stead with trust and get us in a better position 00:35:17.408 --> 00:35:29.071 - to manage parts of it for the public's enjoyment. There's a lot of benefits to this. One, we get half 00:35:29.071 --> 00:35:30.558 - the profits. 00:35:31.682 --> 00:35:40.282 - It keeps invasive species away on those hundred acres. So win-win All right, let's see if there's any 00:35:40.282 --> 00:35:48.798 - public comment on this hand on teams or come to the podium All right, see none all those in favor of 00:35:48.798 --> 00:35:57.230 - approving the Halderman for management agreement for farming lease on Monroe County Nature Preserve 00:35:57.230 --> 00:35:59.422 - signify by saying aye and 00:35:59.842 --> 00:36:06.704 - aye motion carries three zero and we'll move on to the next item please okay another farming topic to 00:36:06.704 --> 00:36:13.499 - crop up um gentle farms llc service agreement i'd like to move approval for gentle farms llc service 00:36:13.499 --> 00:36:20.495 - agreement from morrow county nature preserve fund name food and beverage fund numbers 4932 in an amount 00:36:20.495 --> 00:36:28.030 - not to exceed six thousand five hundred dollars we have a motion and we have a second this is the soybean story 00:36:28.162 --> 00:36:34.606 - Yes, this is actually very exciting and I'll be here next week to see you with more agreements from 00:36:34.606 --> 00:36:41.243 - the US Fish and Wildlife and DNR and it's all one package. We are going to concentrate on the southern 00:36:41.243 --> 00:36:47.687 - part of the nature preserve and we're going to take X amount of acres out on the southern part, not 00:36:47.687 --> 00:36:54.195 - for harvest, but we're going to still need to put soybeans in there so we can prepare that for trees 00:36:54.195 --> 00:36:55.742 - and grassland prairies. 00:36:55.874 --> 00:37:02.612 - So everything works out really well. It's actually the same farmer that Haldeman will be hiring. And 00:37:02.612 --> 00:37:09.416 - we also will be making trails through those areas, which means we don't have to worry about trampling 00:37:09.416 --> 00:37:16.220 - someone else's crops because there are crops. They're the deer's crops, the little animals' crops. So 00:37:16.220 --> 00:37:23.358 - it's a win-win. And U.S. Fish and Wildlife told us, the biologists, that soybeans are perfect to prep this 00:37:23.618 --> 00:37:31.082 - for trees, and prep this for the grasslands that are coming in. So we're very excited, very excited. 00:37:31.082 --> 00:37:38.916 - It's amazing how you're bringing all these things together. It's a puzzle, and it's fun. Spinning plates. 00:37:38.916 --> 00:37:46.307 - All right. Comments or questions? Commissioner Jones. Well, I already kind of made my comment. This 00:37:46.307 --> 00:37:52.958 - really is a good idea. The soybeans are going to be one of the best things to use for it. 00:37:54.018 --> 00:38:01.693 - The number of ways that it'll help out are rather. Oh yeah. I mean, it's a win-win for the wildlife. 00:38:01.693 --> 00:38:09.596 - It's a win-win for our trail making for grassland and for trees. If we're invasive, I mean, yeah, every 00:38:09.596 --> 00:38:17.271 - time we're planning things, we're not, we're pushing invasive off. So, uh, commissioner, do you have 00:38:17.271 --> 00:38:23.806 - comments or questions? So the animals will actually eat the soybeans. That's awesome. 00:38:23.938 --> 00:38:31.609 - And I guess once they make the trails, it'll allow them to define the boundaries. So in a sense, the 00:38:31.609 --> 00:38:39.356 - soybeans will mark where we intend the trails to go. Now, really, like say here's a farm field. We're 00:38:39.356 --> 00:38:46.951 - going to make our trails in the farm fields. We're going to put a grassland within or trees within. 00:38:46.951 --> 00:38:48.318 - So we're building 00:38:49.282 --> 00:38:57.786 - People keep asking me, are you gonna build trails in the forest? No, we're doing it the opposite way. 00:38:57.786 --> 00:39:06.374 - We're building trails and then putting the forest and the grasslands in the middle and around. So it's 00:39:06.374 --> 00:39:14.712 - just more efficient to do it in a field than going through established older trees in a ravine. And 00:39:14.712 --> 00:39:17.630 - then when we're making our trails, 00:39:17.922 --> 00:39:23.851 - they're not being harvest, we don't have to worry about, oh, we shouldn't trample that because it's 00:39:23.851 --> 00:39:30.077 - supposed to be harvest. And when I mean trample, we're making a path. We're not just willy-nilly driving 00:39:30.077 --> 00:39:36.184 - all over the place. Right. Right. That makes complete sense. Thank you. I appreciate your work on this 00:39:36.184 --> 00:39:42.291 - really good soil enrichment and everything else. Let's see if there's any public comment on this item. 00:39:42.291 --> 00:39:45.374 - You raise your hand on teams or come to the podium. 00:39:51.042 --> 00:39:58.040 - Seeing none, all those in favor of approving the Jet L Farms LLC service agreement for Monroe County 00:39:58.040 --> 00:40:05.177 - Nature Preserve signified by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. Thank you so much. I'll see you next 00:40:05.177 --> 00:40:11.691 - week with more details on the grasslands and the trees. It'll be even more exciting. Perfect. 00:40:11.691 --> 00:40:15.294 - Thank you. Excellent. All right. Next item, please. 00:40:15.714 --> 00:40:23.699 - Yes, I'd like to move to approve ordinance 2026-13 to amend the Monroe County code chapter 287, election 00:40:23.699 --> 00:40:31.457 - administration. Fund name election, fund number 1215. Second. All right, we have a motion and we have 00:40:31.457 --> 00:40:39.290 - a second. Governor King, good morning. Good morning. What's before you is an ordinance that amends the 00:40:39.290 --> 00:40:45.374 - election administration code in the Monroe County code pursuant to Indiana code 00:40:45.538 --> 00:40:52.651 - The commissioners set some of the compensation for absentee board workers and the council set some. 00:40:52.651 --> 00:41:00.476 - And for two particular groups, the counters and the couriers, their compensation is set by the commissioners. 00:41:00.476 --> 00:41:07.660 - So what the amendment does is to provide counters and couriers who do work on election day sometimes 00:41:07.660 --> 00:41:08.798 - the same amount 00:41:08.930 --> 00:41:15.958 - the same meal allowance that the precinct election workers get. And I've copied the exact same language 00:41:15.958 --> 00:41:22.986 - in the code that is there for the precinct election workers. So it sets a not to exceed amount and then 00:41:22.986 --> 00:41:30.150 - delegates the authority to the election board to send the exact amount. All right, comments or questions? 00:41:30.150 --> 00:41:37.043 - Commissioner Madeira? No, I think this is good because these individuals also should have those types 00:41:37.043 --> 00:41:38.462 - of benefits and that 00:41:39.074 --> 00:41:46.211 - leaves the purview within the people who should exercise that purview. Thank you. Yeah, that's just 00:41:46.211 --> 00:41:53.633 - a good idea. Thank you. Yeah, I fully support this. This was approved by the County Council on Tuesday. 00:41:53.633 --> 00:42:00.913 - The County Council approved their set of absentee workers. Oh, OK. It's a different set, but it's the 00:42:00.913 --> 00:42:07.550 - same concept. That was what I got confused about. OK, perfect. Thank you so much. All right. 00:42:08.290 --> 00:42:19.379 - Let's see if there's any public comment on this item. You raise your hand on teams or come to the podium. 00:42:19.379 --> 00:42:29.841 - None. All those in favor of approving ordinance 2026-13 signify by saying aye. Motion carries three 00:42:29.841 --> 00:42:33.502 - zero. Thank you. Next item please. 00:42:34.146 --> 00:42:40.574 - I would like to move approval for sound management LLC for digital and radio advertisements for the 00:42:40.574 --> 00:42:47.002 - 2026 election cycles. Fund name election, fund number 1215 in the amount of $6,003. Second. We have 00:42:47.002 --> 00:42:53.815 - a motion and we have a second. Clerk Brown, thank you for joining. I don't know how you got away. Barely, 00:42:53.815 --> 00:43:00.436 - just barely. They let you dig out with a spoon. A little bit. Oh my gosh. Well, welcome. We won't keep 00:43:00.436 --> 00:43:02.686 - you. Thank you. I appreciate that. 00:43:02.786 --> 00:43:10.459 - commissioners this um request is similar to ones that you've received in the past where we use a number 00:43:10.459 --> 00:43:17.985 - of avenues to let the public know that early and absentee voting are underway and so um it is similar 00:43:17.985 --> 00:43:25.364 - to what you've signed before and i am prayerful that you will sign it because if i can call them as 00:43:25.364 --> 00:43:30.750 - soon as i leave here that will start asap and whatever we don't get used 00:43:31.202 --> 00:43:36.912 - during up to the primary and through election day will roll over and there will be more advertising 00:43:36.912 --> 00:43:42.965 - then for the general election. Perfect. Thank you so much. All right. Comments or questions? Commissioner 00:43:42.965 --> 00:43:48.789 - Jones? No, I don't. Commissioner Madero? No. Thank you so much. This is a vital function. Absolutely. 00:43:48.789 --> 00:43:54.556 - Yeah. Thank you for bringing this forward. Let's see if there's any public comment on this item. You 00:43:54.556 --> 00:44:00.894 - raise your hand on Teams or come to the podium. And while we're waiting, we've had very successful early vote. 00:44:01.538 --> 00:44:07.952 - Well, I thought I was going to wait until you took your vote, but I thought you might like to know that 00:44:07.952 --> 00:44:14.305 - as of ten o'clock, just before I walked over for this meeting, we had three thousand three hundred and 00:44:14.305 --> 00:44:19.486 - fifty five total check ins. And that's just your in person. We are also, of course, 00:44:19.682 --> 00:44:26.262 - We've sent out mail ballots and overseas military and our travel board has started. If you look back 00:44:26.262 --> 00:44:32.972 - to 2022 as well as 2018, we are setting history in Monroe County, not unlike what you're seeing as you 00:44:32.972 --> 00:44:39.618 - watch the news in other counties. And so the numbers don't sound high like it would in a presidential 00:44:39.618 --> 00:44:46.328 - election. But in terms of comparing those numbers to previous, we are having a historical turnout. And 00:44:46.328 --> 00:44:48.478 - this is a wonderful time to plug 00:44:48.642 --> 00:44:56.128 - all the people that are over there. I check in every day with them. They're asking for donuts. I am 00:44:56.128 --> 00:45:04.137 - getting those with my own personal money to make sure that they have some sustenance. But we're incredibly 00:45:04.137 --> 00:45:11.698 - grateful. I have not heard of any negative experiences in terms of voting. The only issues that I've 00:45:11.698 --> 00:45:16.414 - had, if you are able to intercede on our behalf, is if you put 00:45:16.706 --> 00:45:24.284 - 501 North Morton into your GIS or GPS on your phone. It is taking you around to the city side. So that 00:45:24.284 --> 00:45:31.861 - is confusing some voters. And I don't know how to fix that. I did it myself while I was sitting in 501 00:45:31.861 --> 00:45:39.365 - North Morton and it wanted me to take this long. There's actually a way to do that. And I think if we 00:45:39.365 --> 00:45:42.014 - let Greg know, he knows what to do. 00:45:42.210 --> 00:45:48.407 - Because you can actually do a report to Google. We can do a report to Apple depending on which it is. 00:45:48.407 --> 00:45:54.482 - But if we hand it off to Greg, let's see what we can get done. And then the only other thing is our 00:45:54.482 --> 00:45:56.062 - training upstairs for our 00:45:56.322 --> 00:46:03.115 - our election day poll workers, there are still areas of the floor outside of that where the floor is 00:46:03.115 --> 00:46:09.975 - higher in some areas and lower in others. So far, we have not had anyone to, you know, experience any 00:46:09.975 --> 00:46:16.701 - harm or danger, but of course, that is concerning, you know, and so if there's anything that can be 00:46:16.701 --> 00:46:23.830 - done about that. All right, we'll do that. OK, thank you. Let's go ahead and say we're waiting for public 00:46:23.830 --> 00:46:25.310 - comment. Did get any? 00:46:25.506 --> 00:46:33.749 - Um, all those in, uh, favor of approving the sound management LLC agreement for digital radio advertisements 00:46:33.749 --> 00:46:41.312 - signified by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries three zero. And would you please share with the public 00:46:41.312 --> 00:46:49.101 - the remaining early voting hours? Absolutely. Um, so this is the last week ahead of well, Monday until 00:46:49.101 --> 00:46:52.958 - noon, but the rest of this week, um, 8 AM to 6 PM. 00:46:53.378 --> 00:47:00.451 - all you have to have is your government issued photo identification such as your driver's license or 00:47:00.451 --> 00:47:07.523 - a passport and you will be issued the ballot that you would have been issued at your polling site on 00:47:07.523 --> 00:47:14.666 - election day on we do have Saturday voting this is the second Saturday that is nine a.m. to four p.m. 00:47:14.666 --> 00:47:21.598 - and then Monday eight a.m. until noon if you do not vote by noon on Monday you will report to your 00:47:22.050 --> 00:47:30.237 - a sign polling site. I am hopeful that every voter that has experienced a change in their polling location, 00:47:30.237 --> 00:47:37.818 - I believe the article said 13% of Monroe County voters has received the postcards that we sent out. 00:47:37.818 --> 00:47:45.627 - We also sent out a postcard that gives you the three different ways that you can vote in person, mail, 00:47:45.627 --> 00:47:50.782 - travel board, in addition to early in person voting. And so that is 00:47:51.010 --> 00:47:57.788 - what we have until you report at six a.m. on election day and we appreciate the I believe it is three 00:47:57.788 --> 00:48:04.433 - point seven percent of Monroe County voters who have already turned out and we've got an incredible 00:48:04.433 --> 00:48:11.211 - team of people waiting for anyone else who wishes to vote we're ready for you excellent excellent and 00:48:11.211 --> 00:48:17.790 - yes and election day is six a.m. to six p.m. because Indiana thinks we're all still farmers anyway 00:48:18.434 --> 00:48:26.016 - of us are. Yeah, it works for you. All right. Thank you so much. We appreciate you coming. Have a great 00:48:26.016 --> 00:48:33.744 - day. You too. All right. Next item, please. I would like to move to approve ratification of authorization 00:48:33.744 --> 00:48:41.254 - to execute documents to participate in the six remnant defendants opioid settlement, fund name, opioid 00:48:41.254 --> 00:48:45.118 - settlement, and the amount of percentage of payment. 00:48:45.474 --> 00:48:51.699 - We have a motion, and we have a second, and we have Mr. Roddy joining us to tell us all about it. Good 00:48:51.699 --> 00:48:57.742 - morning. Yes, morning. As the commissioner is aware, there's been a class action suit with numerous 00:48:57.742 --> 00:49:04.209 - opioid distributors, dispensers. The county's received money from other defendants in this before. There's 00:49:04.209 --> 00:49:10.313 - since been a new settlement with what's called six remnant defendants. They're listed below. We have 00:49:10.313 --> 00:49:12.670 - to opt in by May 4th, which is Monday. 00:49:12.994 --> 00:49:20.765 - Mr. Cockrell was actually the one who is the authorized signator. So he was the one that signed this 00:49:20.765 --> 00:49:29.074 - agreement. It has been submitted to the attorneys we have on retainer to submit this then to the settlement 00:49:29.074 --> 00:49:36.844 - class. So we're here today just for ratification of the opt-in. Okay, thank you so much. So comments 00:49:36.844 --> 00:49:39.614 - or questions, Commissioner Medeira? 00:49:40.322 --> 00:49:50.763 - I have none. This is one of those things that we just have to get done. It's incredibly important and 00:49:50.763 --> 00:50:01.204 - moving forward. Mr. Jones? No, I have no question. We heard about this last week. So it makes perfect 00:50:01.204 --> 00:50:10.110 - sense. And the state has determined how this money can be spent in terms of treatment. 00:50:10.946 --> 00:50:20.022 - prevention, et cetera. So it's not just free money. It actually has to help alleviate the problem that 00:50:20.022 --> 00:50:29.010 - folks like this cause. All right, let's see if there's any public comment on this. Raise your hand on 00:50:29.010 --> 00:50:32.094 - teams or come to the podium. None. 00:50:32.354 --> 00:50:39.886 - All those in favor of ratifying the authorization to execute documents participate in the six remnant 00:50:39.886 --> 00:50:47.639 - defendants opioid settlement signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries three zero. Thank you. And we'll 00:50:47.639 --> 00:50:55.319 - move on now to item N. I'd like to move approval for item N resolution 2026-14 building code interlocal 00:50:55.319 --> 00:51:02.334 - agreement. Second. We have a motion and we have a second and we have Mr. Schilling joining us. 00:51:02.850 --> 00:51:11.859 - Thank you very much Dave Schilling from the legal department presenting to you resolution 2026 14 the 00:51:11.859 --> 00:51:21.045 - approval of this resolution would approve and amend and extend the building code local between the city 00:51:21.045 --> 00:51:30.054 - and the county and it would authorize the president the commissioners to sign the agreement on behalf 00:51:30.054 --> 00:51:32.350 - this interlocal documents 00:51:32.610 --> 00:51:43.075 - also have to be approved by either the local council or by the attorney general and the county council 00:51:43.075 --> 00:51:53.338 - approved this Tuesday. So this agreement is a renewal of one that has been in place since 1995. Over 00:51:53.338 --> 00:52:00.958 - the last 30 years, the city and the county have met on numerous occasions. 00:52:02.818 --> 00:52:15.444 - the agreement to reflect changes in the statutes, changes in software capabilities, and this practice 00:52:15.444 --> 00:52:28.193 - is specifically called for in the agreement because both parties recognize this continuous maintenance 00:52:28.193 --> 00:52:30.174 - of an agreement 00:52:31.298 --> 00:52:41.851 - important to the health of these long-term agreements. And with respect to the changes and the extensions, 00:52:41.851 --> 00:52:51.812 - Building Commissioner Robert LaRue suggested five or five changes about the city agreed to four. One 00:52:51.812 --> 00:52:59.998 - that changes relates to a state law requirement for stop work orders. The city had 00:53:00.226 --> 00:53:10.965 - previously has always required us to respect their waiver, a waiver of fees on certain projects and 00:53:10.965 --> 00:53:21.919 - we just ask them to present us a written statement as to which projects are going to be available for 00:53:21.919 --> 00:53:24.926 - that. We have payments that 00:53:25.570 --> 00:53:33.592 - agreement had previously called for being paid quarterly to the city fees collected being paid quarterly 00:53:33.592 --> 00:53:41.308 - to the city. I think for years, that's been done monthly. So that change was added to the agreement. 00:53:41.308 --> 00:53:49.176 - Like the actual we have extension is now for five years, the term of this agreement is five years. And 00:53:49.176 --> 00:53:54.142 - that's the way it traditionally had been buried where it went to 00:53:56.610 --> 00:54:04.946 - for maybe three or four years. This is back to five years, but the parties have the opportunity to terminate 00:54:04.946 --> 00:54:12.824 - the agreement back to the following year if the termination notice is provided before July 1, and that 00:54:12.824 --> 00:54:20.702 - will give both parties, that's the budget process beginning for both parties, and so they will be able 00:54:20.702 --> 00:54:25.214 - to respond to any budget impacts, gather that information, 00:54:27.042 --> 00:54:35.855 - And so that's the agreement, and we present that to you for your approval. Thank you so much. Comments 00:54:35.855 --> 00:54:44.326 - or questions? Commissioner Jones? I know I've heard before. Commissioner Madeira? No, I have none. 00:54:44.326 --> 00:54:52.883 - And again, because it is so flexible, I think that's a key provision. So thank you. I'm not worried 00:54:52.883 --> 00:54:56.990 - about the five years because of that ability to 00:54:57.250 --> 00:55:06.271 - to notice rescind the agreement if necessary. I have sort of a technical question. If the city wants 00:55:06.271 --> 00:55:15.381 - the fees for inspection services and permitting waived on a particular property, that doesn't happen. 00:55:15.381 --> 00:55:24.581 - No. So Mr. LaRue is shaking his head behind you. So that's why I'm looking. So maybe I'll ask him what 00:55:24.581 --> 00:55:26.814 - the fee waiver involves. 00:55:27.394 --> 00:55:36.064 - The fee waiver is a city fee and not the building permit. Okay. So it's just the city saying we're not 00:55:36.064 --> 00:55:44.649 - charging you, but you still have to pay you for the work being done in our building department. Okay. 00:55:44.649 --> 00:55:53.655 - Perfect. Thank you. That's why I needed clarification. All right. Excellent. If there's any public comment 00:55:53.655 --> 00:55:57.022 - on this item, raise your hand on teams. 00:55:57.474 --> 00:56:06.100 - to the podium. Our building commissioner is here. I don't know, Mr. LeRoux, if you have anything you 00:56:06.100 --> 00:56:14.811 - want to add. I wanted to be here in case you had questions. And I do. Yeah, the fee waiver, it's been 00:56:14.811 --> 00:56:18.398 - in the ordinance for a long time. It has. 00:56:18.562 --> 00:56:25.592 - we have never received any documentation about about not collecting on behalf of the city because that's 00:56:25.592 --> 00:56:32.622 - we do collect their certificate of zoning compliance fees at the time of issuance of the building permit 00:56:32.622 --> 00:56:39.384 - and so I just asked for clarification as when this is supposed to be in place and if you could write 00:56:39.384 --> 00:56:46.080 - me a letter so we can put it in our in our permit application so everybody understands what happens 00:56:46.080 --> 00:56:48.222 - perfect great thank you so much 00:56:48.514 --> 00:56:56.950 - And I know in the past we've had the renewals of these agreements more often annually because we were 00:56:56.950 --> 00:57:05.304 - getting new software and instituting that and the city has software and we have software and do they 00:57:05.304 --> 00:57:13.574 - talk to me? It's been a process, but overall this is another example of city county cooperation and 00:57:13.574 --> 00:57:18.206 - how important it is for both entities. So yeah, please. 00:57:19.650 --> 00:57:27.990 - So you all are aware that state law changes a bunch that affects our departments. The city, class two 00:57:27.990 --> 00:57:36.412 - structures for single family homes, duplexes and townhouses, there's a mandated new process. City, the 00:57:36.412 --> 00:57:44.589 - softwares don't need to talk to each other. City does what it needs to do, produces a document that 00:57:44.589 --> 00:57:48.350 - we receive and we do what we need to do after 00:57:48.450 --> 00:57:55.865 - after we receive that document. Commercially, class one structures, it works different. It's the same 00:57:55.865 --> 00:58:03.135 - process. I think our process is better than what the state has prescribed. Same process, class one. 00:58:03.135 --> 00:58:10.623 - And the city's been fantastic about utilizing OpenGov to receive documents and provide the things that 00:58:10.623 --> 00:58:13.822 - we need there to properly administer those. 00:58:13.922 --> 00:58:22.208 - That's been working great, and it allowed to get a whole section out of the interlocal about who's shuttling 00:58:22.208 --> 00:58:29.810 - what, when, where, and how, right? Yes, yes. Thank you so much. And I don't see any public comment. 00:58:29.810 --> 00:58:37.564 - So all those in favor of approving resolution 2026-14 signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. 00:58:37.564 --> 00:58:43.646 - Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you both for being here. Excited, please. 00:58:43.970 --> 00:58:49.960 - I would like to move approval for Ordinance 2026-16, amending the Monroe County Code Chapter 270 for 00:58:49.960 --> 00:58:56.010 - the Rainy Day Fund. We have a motion. We have a second. We have our auditor, Ms. Gregory, joining us. 00:58:56.010 --> 00:59:02.415 - It's like the parade of department heads and elected officials today, and it's lovely to see. Good morning. 00:59:02.415 --> 00:59:08.405 - Good morning. Thank you for having me. So I'm here today just asking for your approval of the slight 00:59:08.405 --> 00:59:10.718 - adjustments to the Monroe County Code. 00:59:12.354 --> 00:59:21.548 - your weather has become more and more common and the associated damage. We are trying to bridge the 00:59:21.548 --> 00:59:31.109 - gap between insurance reimbursements and being able to expend and pay for services immediately. So here 00:59:31.109 --> 00:59:41.406 - we come with the rainy day fund to be put to that use and the two very minimal updates just allow for the money 00:59:41.506 --> 00:59:48.283 - received from reimbursements to go back into the fund where the expenses originated, which will be rainy 00:59:48.283 --> 00:59:55.125 - day in this case, of course. And then it also just provides a little direction for how departments access 00:59:55.125 --> 01:00:01.838 - this funding, which would be through the county. Thank you so much. Comments or questions, Commissioner 01:00:01.838 --> 01:00:08.422 - Madeira? I know this makes perfect sense. And again, the airport insurance has proven to be, I think, 01:00:08.422 --> 01:00:11.262 - more expensive than anyone figured as well. 01:00:11.458 --> 01:00:21.777 - And so when we have these unexpected costs, I think it's very important to be flexible in how we pay 01:00:21.777 --> 01:00:32.097 - for them. Thank you. This makes sense because we are getting large reimbursements from the insurance 01:00:32.097 --> 01:00:36.286 - company and the cost of those repairs is 01:00:36.962 --> 01:00:43.980 - is huge. It really is big. And I'm grateful that it's being taken care of. Mr. Labarty is managing that 01:00:43.980 --> 01:00:51.336 - part of it. And this will help ensure that we are spending the money out, but then getting our reimbursement 01:00:51.336 --> 01:00:58.084 - back in, and we're not actually touching the rainy day fund in the long term. Just short. And after 01:00:58.084 --> 01:01:05.034 - all, it is called the rainy day fund. It is. Yeah. And it didn't say tornado day fund. I think we need 01:01:05.034 --> 01:01:06.654 - a new tornado day fund. 01:01:06.978 --> 01:01:16.682 - Unfortunately, we do. All right. If it goes out, then it must come in. Yes. Yes, for sure. All right. 01:01:16.682 --> 01:01:26.385 - Let's see if there's any public comment on this item. You can raise your hand on Teams or come to the 01:01:26.385 --> 01:01:35.518 - podium. Seeing none, all those in favor of approving ordinance 2026-16 signified by saying aye. 01:01:36.226 --> 01:01:47.858 - Aye. Motion passes 3-0. Thank you again for being here. Next item please. I would like to move approval 01:01:47.858 --> 01:01:59.267 - for ordinance 2026-14 to amend ordinance stop 86-06 and no trucks 89-01. We have a motion and we have 01:01:59.267 --> 01:02:03.070 - a second. Ms. Ridd. Good morning. 01:02:03.234 --> 01:02:10.106 - Um, so we, uh, had these requests taken to the traffic commission board and they were unanimous, unanimous 01:02:10.106 --> 01:02:16.528 - approved. Um, so it's no trucks on Fluck Mill road due to the, um, uh, the bridge that is overhead. 01:02:16.528 --> 01:02:23.079 - And then to delete the stop sign at Bell's road for Kinzer Pike, the stop sign will still remain, but 01:02:23.079 --> 01:02:29.566 - it's actually a city intersection. So it does not need to be an art ordinance. So housekeeping item. 01:02:30.530 --> 01:02:42.184 - Excellent, thank you. Comments or questions? Commissioner Madeira? No, thank you. Any public comment 01:02:42.184 --> 01:02:54.531 - on this item? Raise your hand on teams or come to the podium. Seeing none, all those in favor of approving 01:02:54.531 --> 01:02:59.262 - ordinance 2026-14 signify by saying aye. 01:02:59.522 --> 01:03:07.383 - I motion carries a three zero next item please yes I would like to move to approve in dot change order 01:03:07.383 --> 01:03:15.091 - number nine for Fullerton Pike phase three but name Fullerton Pike fund number forty nine twenty two 01:03:15.091 --> 01:03:22.799 - in the amount of one thousand nine hundred and forty dollars and eighty two sets we have a motion we 01:03:22.799 --> 01:03:24.478 - have a second we have 01:03:25.666 --> 01:03:32.879 - So after the mailboxes that were installed in some of the areas, it was brought to our attention that 01:03:32.879 --> 01:03:40.093 - the mail carrier was having to back up into traffic to be able to meander in the area. So actually we 01:03:40.093 --> 01:03:47.165 - approved the contractor to adjust the locations of those mailboxes. So it was for the safety of the 01:03:47.165 --> 01:03:54.590 - mail carrier to take this change order on. Thank you so much. Comments or questions, Commissioner Jones? 01:03:55.394 --> 01:04:02.950 - No, thank you. I don't have any either. I think it's smart move. It's safety issue for everyone. Let's 01:04:02.950 --> 01:04:10.507 - see if there's any public comment on this item. Raise your hand in teams or come to the podium. That's 01:04:10.507 --> 01:04:17.843 - postal service would be given priority. All right. All those in favor of approving the change order 01:04:17.843 --> 01:04:24.446 - number nine for Fulton Pike phase three signify by saying aye. Motion carries three zero. 01:04:25.154 --> 01:04:31.946 - Next item, please. In our last, connect the end dots item today. I'd like to move to approve and not 01:04:31.946 --> 01:04:38.806 - change order number five for Vernal Pike Sunrise Greetings Road Bridge Project Fund Name Westside TIF 01:04:38.806 --> 01:04:45.732 - Fund number 4920 in the amount of $10,672 and 26 cents. We have a motion. We have a second. Ms. Ridge. 01:04:45.732 --> 01:04:52.592 - This change order was due to making some adjustments to the railing for the current specifications as 01:04:52.592 --> 01:04:54.878 - they are when it was constructed. 01:04:54.978 --> 01:05:03.353 - So, that was the need for this change order on the project. Thank you so much. Comments or questions? 01:05:03.353 --> 01:05:11.645 - Commissioner Madera? No. Commissioner Jones? No, I don't. I thought those railings were pretty tall, 01:05:11.645 --> 01:05:20.184 - but they look tall. They do look tall. They're just tall. But they're still too short. All right. Let's 01:05:20.184 --> 01:05:23.550 - see if there's any comment on this item. 01:05:28.546 --> 01:05:38.233 - Seeing none, all those in favor of approving change order number five for Vernal Pike Sunrise Greetings 01:05:38.233 --> 01:05:48.013 - Road Bridge Project, signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. I think we're at a good point where 01:05:48.013 --> 01:05:56.862 - we can take a quick break here. Just a short recess. Let's say we'll be back 11. Let's say 11. 01:05:58.882 --> 01:06:08.399 - Is that good? 1125? All right, so we are going to be in recess until 1125. Thank you, everyone. We are 01:06:08.399 --> 01:06:18.193 - in recess. I'm gonna call us back to order, yes? Good? Yes. Excellent. We will move on to item S, please. 01:06:18.193 --> 01:06:27.526 - Yes, I would like to move approval for the purchase agreement for the justice complex in North Park. 01:06:27.526 --> 01:06:28.542 - Funded it. 01:06:28.674 --> 01:06:38.355 - ban and edit fund numbers 4816 and 1112 in the amount of $11,375,000. All right, we have a motion and 01:06:38.355 --> 01:06:47.846 - a second. Where do we want to start with this? Mr. Beratti, do you want to start or? I can. This is 01:06:47.846 --> 01:06:56.958 - a purchase agreement for North Park. This is similar in substance to the one that was presented 01:06:57.058 --> 01:07:02.894 - for the commissioners. I believe it was last year. The only major changes that have occurred and it's 01:07:02.894 --> 01:07:08.729 - pretty can correct me if I'm wrong, but obviously the operative dates for closing and things of that, 01:07:08.729 --> 01:07:14.565 - as well as due diligence periods have changed. There's a small change with regard to what is referred 01:07:14.565 --> 01:07:20.343 - to on the property. And then also we are under the new terms of the contract allowed to build just a 01:07:20.343 --> 01:07:24.062 - jail, not a complete complex, although we could eventually build 01:07:26.338 --> 01:07:34.525 - I will note that the purchase price has remained unchanged. Yeah, because it was based on appraisals. 01:07:34.525 --> 01:07:43.114 - And they're still active. In other words, the appraisals are still good because it's been within a certain 01:07:43.114 --> 01:07:51.301 - time period. Thank you, Ms. Purdy. You want to add anything? No. OK. You got it all right? All right. 01:07:51.301 --> 01:07:53.950 - So yes, so this does not require 01:07:54.914 --> 01:08:05.704 - the entire justice complex to be at least bit out before the jail can open as the previous purchase 01:08:05.704 --> 01:08:16.709 - agreement had on it. And we appreciate the seller's flexibility and kind of open it up to see what my 01:08:16.709 --> 01:08:24.478 - colleagues want to add here. Do you want to reference this, the amended 01:08:25.026 --> 01:08:46.506 - private settlement agreement that has brought us here? Yes. We can certainly have that discussion because 01:08:46.506 --> 01:08:54.814 - we do have a timeline that have occurred 01:08:56.642 --> 01:09:06.080 - Um, so, uh, December, um, 2025, um, the fault agreed to a private settlement agreement to extend our 01:09:06.080 --> 01:09:15.612 - deadline for getting something done or started to April 15th. And then we had joint meetings with the 01:09:15.612 --> 01:09:26.078 - council, the county council in January and February, which the minutes were just on the agenda, which is weird. 01:09:26.242 --> 01:09:35.496 - to continue discussions about that project with that April deadline in mind. There was general agreement 01:09:35.496 --> 01:09:44.485 - that indeed the current facility is unconstitutional. And no, it cannot be renovated yet. Somehow all 01:09:44.485 --> 01:09:53.386 - of these things have come back to light again, and that's mystifying. And talks stalled on questions 01:09:53.386 --> 01:09:56.030 - of multi-floor, single-floor, 01:09:57.058 --> 01:10:06.001 - Et cetera. The council then passed a resolution, I don't remember the date, but it was a resolution 01:10:06.001 --> 01:10:15.391 - that set April 7th as their own internal deadline to complete site selection and identify funding. Well, 01:10:15.391 --> 01:10:24.513 - in a sense, that resolution itself identified funding because it shows existing revenue captured plus 01:10:24.513 --> 01:10:25.854 - future revenue 01:10:26.754 --> 01:10:35.269 - will exceed $170 million, which is more than we think ballpark-wise, a new jail-only facility will cost. 01:10:35.269 --> 01:10:43.541 - So in a way, they already did address that. That's why they asked for it to be attached. Yeah. But it 01:10:43.541 --> 01:10:51.326 - did say that April 7th, site selection and funding identified. Well, funding's been identified. 01:10:51.778 --> 01:11:00.033 - But here was that date and it came and went and we had executive sessions and they missed their deadline. 01:11:00.033 --> 01:11:08.443 - Meetings with Mr. Falk. Yes, we had meetings with Mr. Falk, a couple of them. And in one of those meetings, 01:11:08.443 --> 01:11:16.309 - a council member said, could we get 30 more days? Sheriff didn't ask, we didn't ask, I didn't ask, I 01:11:16.309 --> 01:11:20.670 - was the only one there. By state statute, by state law, 01:11:20.834 --> 01:11:28.540 - I was the only one who could be there. And they asked for 30 days and he agreed. So now we're looking 01:11:28.540 --> 01:11:36.321 - at the end of May as the new deadline from the ACLU. So the private settlement agreement is in a sense 01:11:36.321 --> 01:11:44.102 - putting on hold the lawsuit again, the lawsuit from 2009. And that lawsuit was filed against the board 01:11:44.102 --> 01:11:50.750 - of commissioners and the sheriff of Monroe County, not against the council. So we were, 01:11:52.226 --> 01:12:00.384 - The council had already missed their April 7th deadline and we were on the verge of, as a county, missing 01:12:00.384 --> 01:12:08.234 - the April 15th deadline. And I, for one, and I think my colleagues would probably agree, I'm grateful 01:12:08.234 --> 01:12:16.084 - and I feel like we're lucky and fortunate that Mr. Falk agreed to extend the deadline because nothing 01:12:16.084 --> 01:12:20.702 - was happening. And yeah, but we have more to do and we can, 01:12:20.994 --> 01:12:30.049 - talk through that as well, if anybody would like. We had originally approved North Park with the other 01:12:30.049 --> 01:12:38.839 - contingencies on it because we had thought at the time before the state legislature in its infinite 01:12:38.839 --> 01:12:47.806 - wisdom made it impossible, we thought at the time that we could build a co-located facility with LIT. 01:12:48.098 --> 01:12:55.456 - et cetera, and then the legislature did what they did. But that had been approved in October of 23. 01:12:55.456 --> 01:13:03.035 - No, 4. 24 by the council. And in that process, after October 24, DLZ continued to work. They'd already 01:13:03.035 --> 01:13:10.614 - done the programmatic questions, you know, how much space does each department need, what do they need 01:13:10.614 --> 01:13:15.838 - it for, et cetera. But it was really time to put that design together. 01:13:16.322 --> 01:13:24.184 - And Scott Carnegie from DLC is here today if my colleagues have questions. But then there was that process 01:13:24.184 --> 01:13:31.532 - of reducing the budget because we came in over the 225 benchmark that we had said we wanted to stay 01:13:31.532 --> 01:13:39.247 - under. And when that happened, we got back to the drawing board with every unhappy department and county 01:13:39.247 --> 01:13:45.566 - government because everything had to be cut. And cuts were made and we were back down 01:13:45.762 --> 01:13:53.446 - to 225. And all of this work was done over $4 million worth of design work based on the fact that nobody 01:13:53.446 --> 01:14:00.983 - in the council said, nope, we don't want North Park. We went based on their previous vote saying, yes, 01:14:00.983 --> 01:14:08.448 - let's move forward with this purchase agreement. How are we to know they changed their minds? So when 01:14:08.448 --> 01:14:14.302 - the vote came last October that said, nope, we're not interested in North Park. 01:14:14.690 --> 01:14:25.006 - No reasons, they keep saying they've said, but they haven't. And that's why we're where we are. As we've 01:14:25.006 --> 01:14:34.929 - looked at this whole process, we have had to look at all these different priorities. Some costs part 01:14:34.929 --> 01:14:41.118 - of it, but most of it having to do with single floor location, 01:14:41.314 --> 01:14:49.543 - room to expand the courts if needed, et cetera. Transit, where it fits in the community, listening to 01:14:49.543 --> 01:14:58.175 - the residents. We've gone out and had meetings with residents at three of the locations as we went further 01:14:58.175 --> 01:15:06.484 - into the study process for those locations and those years ago. And time was always there as an issue, 01:15:06.484 --> 01:15:09.630 - like how quickly can we get this done? 01:15:10.402 --> 01:15:20.665 - But given the ACL lawsuit, time is now the priority, right? It's jumped way up because a building will 01:15:20.665 --> 01:15:31.127 - take a certain amount of time to build no matter what. But the problem is all these other lots and sites 01:15:31.127 --> 01:15:39.198 - and things don't meet the requirements of time. There is no possible way to meet 01:15:39.362 --> 01:15:46.104 - the ACLU's deadline. And based on what the community could see in Mr. Falk's interview and the Herald 01:15:46.104 --> 01:15:52.780 - Times, and I can attest to, I can attest to his mood at these meetings, he's done playing around. We 01:15:52.780 --> 01:15:59.720 - are not in a position to go back to him and say, oh, can we do another 30 days? I don't think he's gonna 01:15:59.720 --> 01:16:06.462 - accept it personally. And I think he made that very clear in the interview. So I don't feel like I'm, 01:16:07.586 --> 01:16:15.162 - telling secrets out of school here. But that's why we're in the position we're in. And no site is perfect. 01:16:15.162 --> 01:16:22.667 - If somebody is looking for the perfect site, they will do what has been done. They will dither and dither 01:16:22.667 --> 01:16:29.747 - and dither, paralysis by analysis, and nothing will get done. Meanwhile, we have inmates who do not 01:16:29.747 --> 01:16:36.190 - receive constitutional care in our facility. And to me, that's part of that time priority. 01:16:37.538 --> 01:16:46.806 - and it needs to be brought back up to the top again as well. I would like to hear from my colleagues 01:16:46.806 --> 01:16:56.257 - on this because we do have a lot to say. A lot of things have been said without us there. Are we gonna 01:16:56.257 --> 01:17:05.525 - take that time at the end of the meeting or would you like to take that time now? I think you should 01:17:05.525 --> 01:17:06.718 - do that now. 01:17:07.138 --> 01:17:18.082 - I think this is a good time to talk through our options and what's going on. I think for the public 01:17:18.082 --> 01:17:29.901 - certification, I think it's a good time. So I think that much of what I've said, I've already said publicly 01:17:29.901 --> 01:17:33.950 - in various comments on social media. 01:17:34.082 --> 01:17:39.937 - I think this is a difficult moment for Monroe County government. I think the issues before us are serious 01:17:39.937 --> 01:17:45.793 - and the stakes are high and the decisions are being asked to make will affect taxpayers and public safety 01:17:45.793 --> 01:17:51.593 - and people housing or jail and county employees and service providers and our broader community actually 01:17:51.593 --> 01:17:54.686 - for decades. But it's because these stakes are so high. 01:17:54.850 --> 01:18:00.366 - that we have to approach the decisions we must make regarding the jail and extension agreement with 01:18:00.366 --> 01:18:06.212 - collegiality, with respect, and with a shared commitment to public service. And I think reasonable people 01:18:06.212 --> 01:18:11.838 - can disagree about the process, the timing, location, costs, and policy. These types of disagreements 01:18:11.838 --> 01:18:17.574 - aren't only expected in local government. They're part of healthy democratic decision making. But there 01:18:17.574 --> 01:18:22.814 - is too much at stake to let disagreement become distrust or give rise to personal accusations. 01:18:22.914 --> 01:18:29.017 - And it can't prevent us from doing the work that the public elected us to do. Also, we have to see the 01:18:29.017 --> 01:18:35.179 - path forward more clearly by looking ahead. We stumble if we continuously look back over our shoulders. 01:18:35.179 --> 01:18:41.103 - The 17-year history of this must be a hand on the back that shoves us forward and not a grip on our 01:18:41.103 --> 01:18:46.673 - shoulder that holds us back. So I'm going to vote today actually for this purchase agreement. 01:18:46.673 --> 01:18:52.894 - And I think, as my colleague Commissioner Thomas said, it shows that we're moving forward in good faith. 01:18:53.314 --> 01:18:59.809 - that we're understanding that Monroe County remains under a serious legal threat and that we have serious 01:18:59.809 --> 01:19:06.243 - legal obligations relating to this jail's unconstitutional condition. So this extension agreement, thank 01:19:06.243 --> 01:19:12.555 - God we got it, it reflects the reality that our county must continue moving forward towards a workable 01:19:12.555 --> 01:19:19.050 - solution. It also reflects the urgent need for both us as commissioners and the council to make decisions 01:19:19.050 --> 01:19:20.766 - within a defined timeframe. 01:19:21.314 --> 01:19:26.875 - including the requirement that we both approve a purchase agreement by the May 29th deadline. But no 01:19:26.875 --> 01:19:32.492 - one should mistake this urgency for coercion. This urgency comes from the human rights of the inmates 01:19:32.492 --> 01:19:38.273 - in our jail, from the jail conditions, from the risks to county employees, and from the risks of renewed 01:19:38.273 --> 01:19:43.835 - litigation. We as commissioners did not create these realities. We're just acknowledging them. We're 01:19:43.835 --> 01:19:45.982 - attempting to manage them responsibly. 01:19:46.530 --> 01:19:52.722 - Our mutual goal is to work together to avoid a lawsuit if that can be done reasonably and responsibly. 01:19:52.722 --> 01:19:59.095 - Litigation won't build a jail, and it won't improve conditions for the people incarcerated in the county. 01:19:59.095 --> 01:20:05.107 - It won't expand programming, treatment, reentry services, or transportation. It won't save taxpayer 01:20:05.107 --> 01:20:11.180 - money. Instead, it would consume taxpayer dollars and other public resources that could otherwise go 01:20:11.180 --> 01:20:12.382 - towards these ends. 01:20:12.674 --> 01:20:18.775 - It will increase uncertainty and it will place critical decisions in a judge's hands rather than the 01:20:18.775 --> 01:20:24.936 - county's. That's why collegiality matters and why we must embrace it now more than ever. Collegiality 01:20:24.936 --> 01:20:30.976 - doesn't mean constant agreement and it doesn't mean silence or abandoning our deeply held concerns. 01:20:30.976 --> 01:20:37.197 - It just means that we pledge to keep listening, sharing information and working together from a shared 01:20:37.197 --> 01:20:38.526 - premise that everyone 01:20:38.626 --> 01:20:45.262 - at the table has a responsibility first and foremost to inmates and second to Monroe County residents 01:20:45.262 --> 01:20:51.768 - to get this job done. Respect matters as well. The public deserves to see hard issues debated fully 01:20:51.768 --> 01:20:58.924 - and honestly without the debate becoming one in which integrity itself is called into question. Disagreements 01:20:58.924 --> 01:21:05.495 - are inevitable in public service. Wars of words and public labels are especially serious for elected 01:21:05.495 --> 01:21:07.902 - officials and licensed professionals 01:21:08.098 --> 01:21:14.151 - since reputational harm can carry consequences beyond the political moment into our professional lives. 01:21:14.151 --> 01:21:20.495 - We have to ask those hard questions. We have to demand financial clarity. We have to insist on transparency. 01:21:20.495 --> 01:21:26.490 - We have to scrutinize provisions of agreements, and we have to do so in a way that preserves trust and 01:21:26.490 --> 01:21:32.310 - keeps communication open and temperatures down. But we also need courage. It's far easier to delay, 01:21:32.310 --> 01:21:38.014 - accuse, and retreat into procedural conflict or wait for someone else to make that hard decision. 01:21:38.178 --> 01:21:44.255 - Leadership requires us to confront the hard facts in front of us and insist on answers. It means creatively 01:21:44.255 --> 01:21:49.431 - chasing not only the either or option, but the both and. The current jail isn't functioning 01:21:49.431 --> 01:21:55.171 - as a constitutional facility. The county faces real legal exposure if we fail to act, and we now know 01:21:55.171 --> 01:22:00.797 - the terms. The extension agreement and the May 29th deadline isn't an abstract date. It's part of a 01:22:00.797 --> 01:22:04.286 - negotiated effort to keep us moving forward and out of court. 01:22:04.514 --> 01:22:09.976 - So today's purchase agreement is a large step towards that effort, even as we continue conversations 01:22:09.976 --> 01:22:15.546 - with our city partners and explore other options towards avoiding this lawsuit. So as we move forward, 01:22:15.546 --> 01:22:21.278 - it doesn't mean that we ignore these concerns. It means that we identify them and address them seriously. 01:22:21.278 --> 01:22:26.794 - If there are questions about transportation to North Park, we will answer them. If there are concerns 01:22:26.794 --> 01:22:31.390 - about access to services, we will discuss how to build those services into the plan. 01:22:31.874 --> 01:22:37.332 - If there are reservations about costs, we have to discuss them openly. We will address plans for design, 01:22:37.332 --> 01:22:42.583 - programming, staff, and long-term operations. These two will be part of the public conversation. The 01:22:42.583 --> 01:22:47.885 - commissioners and council have different roles, but we're all part of the same county government. The 01:22:47.885 --> 01:22:53.603 - county and city governments have had different spheres of authority, but we're both charged with safeguarding 01:22:53.603 --> 01:22:57.918 - our communal wellbeing. Our constituents don't benefit when we act as adversaries. 01:22:58.050 --> 01:23:03.284 - They benefit when we solve problems together, when we recognize that no single office, no single branch, 01:23:03.284 --> 01:23:08.318 - and no single elected official can solve this issue alone. So this isn't a time for division, it's a 01:23:08.318 --> 01:23:13.303 - time for steady leadership, for lowering the temperature and focusing on facts and working together 01:23:13.303 --> 01:23:18.636 - at the issues at hand. We can disagree with that becoming dysfunctional and that's what our public service 01:23:18.636 --> 01:23:23.770 - requires and what we remain committed to doing. So let's get this done and get this done right because 01:23:23.770 --> 01:23:26.462 - we have so much more that we all need to do together. 01:23:28.386 --> 01:23:37.609 - Thank you. Sorry I took so many words to say it. No, I appreciate it. Thank you. Did you want to add 01:23:37.609 --> 01:23:46.740 - anything at the moment? Well, I agree with everything that my colleagues have said so far. I'd just 01:23:46.740 --> 01:23:56.054 - like to say that I think that the people who keep on being forgotten in this discussion or ignored or 01:23:56.054 --> 01:23:57.150 - unimportant 01:23:57.314 --> 01:24:10.120 - are the people who are in our jail. I can't imagine what they think watching these arguments go on that 01:24:10.120 --> 01:24:23.542 - to them must seem pretty petty. It's just really sad that we have forgotten apparently about that population 01:24:23.542 --> 01:24:25.758 - that is suffering 01:24:26.946 --> 01:24:39.574 - this time and we aren't actively moving forward to do that. Thank you. That's well said. I would add 01:24:39.574 --> 01:24:47.326 - here a couple of things too because we've been hearing a lot. 01:24:49.122 --> 01:24:55.806 - One of the things that we've heard is that members of the council have stated that the parameters of 01:24:55.806 --> 01:25:02.557 - the private settlement agreement was established without their input. Yes, that is true. Why? Because 01:25:02.557 --> 01:25:09.175 - they are not party to the lawsuit. It was up to us to work with the sheriff to agree to the private 01:25:09.175 --> 01:25:15.925 - settlement agreement. Yet it was a county council member who had asked for that 30 day, it turned out 01:25:15.925 --> 01:25:19.102 - to be about 45 days, but that 30 day extension. 01:25:19.202 --> 01:25:29.488 - And again, thank goodness. Thank goodness we got that. I think it's been very clear. He says he's done 01:25:29.488 --> 01:25:39.873 - playing games. This is it. But to use terminology like lies and coercion, I think, is a real disservice 01:25:39.873 --> 01:25:48.062 - to the process. And it doesn't fit. It sets a terrible example for our community. 01:25:48.738 --> 01:25:55.780 - It does nothing to address, as Commissioner Jones pointed out, the lack of constitutional care in her 01:25:55.780 --> 01:26:02.822 - jail. It just undermines our government processes. We have systemic issues that have to be addressed, 01:26:02.822 --> 01:26:09.933 - and I think it's become clear that these issues need to be addressed. Our staff has been disrespected, 01:26:09.933 --> 01:26:15.870 - and I appreciate what Commissioner Madeira said. If a staff member says to a group of 01:26:16.322 --> 01:26:24.507 - elected officials, we spoke with X and received information Y. That statement should be taken on good 01:26:24.507 --> 01:26:32.532 - faith. Automatically doubting it, interrogating it, demanding proof damages morale of Monroe County 01:26:32.532 --> 01:26:40.638 - employees who are dedicated and work so hard every day for this community. It also undermines claims 01:26:40.638 --> 01:26:45.854 - of collaboration. Sowing distrust is destructive and there is no 01:26:46.242 --> 01:26:55.005 - place for it. We expected as well. This is not a competition or rivalry. We will not always agree and 01:26:55.005 --> 01:27:03.681 - we shouldn't. But we should speak with one another rather than speaking about someone else. Yet here 01:27:03.681 --> 01:27:12.787 - I am speaking about someone else. But I feel like the time has passed. I have let this go on long enough. 01:27:12.787 --> 01:27:15.966 - And I will not let it go on anymore. 01:27:17.698 --> 01:27:25.180 - And I will call it out as I see it. There were even some things mentioned Tuesday by council members 01:27:25.180 --> 01:27:32.736 - that suggested an assumption that we as a board are not to be trusted. You know, there's no place for 01:27:32.736 --> 01:27:40.144 - this. What benefit does this bring? This malignancy of disrespect has infected the public discourse 01:27:40.144 --> 01:27:43.774 - and public media, social media, public meetings, 01:27:44.386 --> 01:27:51.637 - and you know, social media, get behind a keyboard, you're anonymous, you can say whatever you want, 01:27:51.637 --> 01:27:59.034 - it doesn't have to be true, and most times it's not. The people in Monroe County need to know that we 01:27:59.034 --> 01:28:06.502 - are more interested in solving the problem than scoring political points. So I've joined my colleagues 01:28:06.502 --> 01:28:13.246 - in asking our colleagues on the county council to lower the temperature here. Let's focus on 01:28:13.538 --> 01:28:23.437 - the project. We've tried to. Now I've had to point this out at a public meeting and I will do it at 01:28:23.437 --> 01:28:33.533 - every opportunity here after. Because our staff deserves. So. Here's the thing. I appreciate that the 01:28:33.533 --> 01:28:42.046 - city is interested in this project. A lot on their plate. You know we we just kind of 01:28:42.274 --> 01:28:50.848 - They've got to figure out the Convention Center Hotel. They've got Hopewell. I don't know what's going 01:28:50.848 --> 01:28:59.172 - on with that. They've got a lot going on. Great, thank you for your interest. But here's the thing. 01:28:59.172 --> 01:29:07.663 - There were things said at the meeting last week at the City Council that need to be addressed because 01:29:07.663 --> 01:29:11.742 - something gets said just flippantly off the cuff 01:29:11.938 --> 01:29:18.248 - build a little fear or to get people excited or ginned up for something. And it turns out to not be 01:29:18.248 --> 01:29:24.810 - true. It takes so long to dispel that. So I'd like to take a shot at dispelling some of the things that 01:29:24.810 --> 01:29:31.183 - we heard. And I invite my colleagues to chime in if they heard something I didn't, because there was 01:29:31.183 --> 01:29:37.745 - a lot that was said. At one point, a city council member claimed that this project, co-located project, 01:29:37.745 --> 01:29:41.342 - was going to cost each resident of Monroe County $5,000. 01:29:41.762 --> 01:29:51.582 - Well, even with a low ballpark census number, that's $800 million. No, we are not talking about $5,000 01:29:51.582 --> 01:30:01.116 - per person. There are questions about the facility size. Well, if you build it big, you'll fill it. 01:30:01.116 --> 01:30:10.078 - There is a functional bed space with a 400-bed facility, and that's about 323 beds. It allows 01:30:11.202 --> 01:30:23.046 - the jail staff to separate out felon misdemeanance, to acknowledge gender identity, it allows them that 01:30:23.046 --> 01:30:34.434 - ability that they don't have now, the way they should. And this number came out of multiple studies 01:30:34.434 --> 01:30:38.078 - conducted by this county as the 01:30:38.306 --> 01:30:44.949 - number that we should aim for, and ACLU has accepted that number. Now, Vigo County, just a few years 01:30:44.949 --> 01:30:51.790 - ago, we went to Vigo County with DLZ and some of their staff to look at their jail. It was almost ready 01:30:51.790 --> 01:30:58.368 - to open. And I heard a little murmuring from somebody who was on the tour from Vigo County who said 01:30:58.368 --> 01:31:05.077 - something along the lines of, well, the county council cut the budget. And I didn't think much of it, 01:31:05.077 --> 01:31:07.774 - because I'd heard that every single jail 01:31:08.226 --> 01:31:16.312 - We toured. We heard that, right? We heard that in Arizona. We heard that in Kentucky. We heard that 01:31:16.312 --> 01:31:24.399 - everywhere. So I didn't really pay much attention, but it turns out that their jail is actually too 01:31:24.399 --> 01:31:32.566 - small. And they are now being forced to build it in Vigo County. So there is a danger in building it 01:31:32.566 --> 01:31:37.822 - too small. And not something I think any of us feels like doing. 01:31:39.778 --> 01:31:47.523 - Again, we cannot renovate the current site. I was kind of mystified that people were talking about it 01:31:47.523 --> 01:31:55.419 - on the city council and acting as though nobody had thought about it at the county. And yes, we've done 01:31:55.419 --> 01:32:03.012 - our due diligence. We have supporting documents on our website. So no, we don't need a copy of that 01:32:03.012 --> 01:32:09.086 - study because that's where that study came from was our website. So we're good. 01:32:09.666 --> 01:32:16.921 - And I also want to make it clear to all the residents of Monroe County, despite the fear mongering of 01:32:16.921 --> 01:32:24.105 - $5,000 per person, this is actually a tax, a local income tax that is already being collected. There 01:32:24.105 --> 01:32:31.787 - is some that has been set in reserve. The City Council, by the way, is the one who passed this tax increase 01:32:31.787 --> 01:32:39.326 - in 2022. Thank you, City Council. So yes, thank you for your help. We appreciate it. And that income tax, 01:32:39.618 --> 01:32:47.709 - money has been collected, set aside, that plus future tax revenues will pay for a new jail. I can say 01:32:47.709 --> 01:32:55.880 - for me, and I don't know how my colleagues feel, but obviously with the way the legislature is and the 01:32:55.880 --> 01:33:03.972 - way they're changing all of the tax structures, after 2029, when everything switches over and the sky 01:33:03.972 --> 01:33:08.414 - opens up or the earth opens up, and I'm not sure which, 01:33:09.026 --> 01:33:15.935 - We will, I want us to talk about co-location because to me, I know this is Mr. Falk's interest and our 01:33:15.935 --> 01:33:22.375 - sheriff's interest. It's in our interest to get this jail done, to provide constitutional care. 01:33:22.375 --> 01:33:29.418 - But long-term, there's a huge cost to keeping two buildings going when you really only need one. I would 01:33:29.418 --> 01:33:36.126 - like us to pursue co-location at the appropriate time and finish this project the way it should be. 01:33:38.114 --> 01:33:44.751 - That's another battle for another day. But just to be clear to everyone, this is not a new tax. This 01:33:44.751 --> 01:33:51.979 - is a tax that's already being collected and it will cover the cost of building a jail facility and purchasing 01:33:51.979 --> 01:33:58.682 - the property. So to my city friends, thank you for your interest. Here's what we need your help with. 01:33:58.682 --> 01:34:04.990 - We do need to provide transit. Now we're already providing you transit thanks to rural transit. 01:34:05.218 --> 01:34:11.645 - as a shadow service to the urbanized areas outside of Monroe County. We're already doing that. And the 01:34:11.645 --> 01:34:18.010 - council supported it. Thank you, council, county council. And great, we're already doing that. We can 01:34:18.010 --> 01:34:24.313 - figure out a way to make a route to go anywhere in the county, including North Park. It can be done. 01:34:24.313 --> 01:34:30.740 - If BT wants to help us, Bloomington Transit, great, let's talk about it. That's something the city can 01:34:30.740 --> 01:34:31.614 - help us with. 01:34:33.186 --> 01:34:39.586 - The other thing the city can help us with, and my colleague, Commissioner Madeira, can speak to this 01:34:39.586 --> 01:34:45.923 - more directly, is with opioid funding. We just heard today about more funds coming our way. We have 01:34:45.923 --> 01:34:52.260 - this pile of opioid funding. It's limited in how it can be spent. Why can't the county and the city 01:34:52.260 --> 01:34:58.597 - get together, share the money, and provide substance use disorder treatment, inpatient, outpatient, 01:34:58.597 --> 01:35:02.526 - mental health treatment? Why can't we use the money for that? 01:35:02.786 --> 01:35:10.179 - That would be a help to Monroe County government. That would be a help to every resident of this county. 01:35:10.179 --> 01:35:17.430 - Every resident. And it would help keep our incarceration rate down. Great. Let's do that. Just because 01:35:17.430 --> 01:35:24.471 - the cells are there doesn't mean they're going to be full. And they don't have to be full. But this 01:35:24.471 --> 01:35:31.512 - is a priority now. And again, time has floated to the very top of the priority list. We can't wait. 01:35:31.512 --> 01:35:32.638 - We cannot wait. 01:35:32.898 --> 01:35:39.679 - When the council rejected North Park again, didn't know. Oh, why? Heard things, nothing directly. There 01:35:39.679 --> 01:35:46.198 - was an effort then by the county council to rehash everything. Start from square one and let's look 01:35:46.198 --> 01:35:52.979 - at every property again. Well, we've done that. We've done our homework. We've been doing the homework. 01:35:52.979 --> 01:35:59.629 - We've been doing the research. The properties that may have worked had studies, environmental studies 01:35:59.629 --> 01:36:00.542 - done on them. 01:36:00.994 --> 01:36:10.785 - We talked about where designs could go and what's going on. We've done that, but we said, fine, let's 01:36:10.785 --> 01:36:20.575 - go back and do it again. And we did it again. And guess what? We're at the exact same place minus six 01:36:20.575 --> 01:36:29.886 - months. This has to stop. Now, I'd like to say a few words about the other sites because I think 01:36:30.306 --> 01:36:39.178 - That's something the public may be interested in. Fullerton Pike near the corner of I-69 was one of 01:36:39.178 --> 01:36:48.139 - the sites we've looked at. We spent about, DLZ developed a basic design. We did a petition. We went, 01:36:48.139 --> 01:36:57.277 - because it's in the city of Bloomington, we went to city planning, went to the city council and didn't 01:36:57.277 --> 01:36:58.430 - see anybody. 01:36:58.946 --> 01:37:06.124 - I had one, there was one county council member showed up at one meeting, but we were there to fight 01:37:06.124 --> 01:37:13.517 - for it, to ask for a rezone so we could put a jail and criminal justice facility there. We lost a year 01:37:13.517 --> 01:37:20.766 - of time, the vote was no. Different mayor, different city council, that's fine, but that was a year. 01:37:20.766 --> 01:37:28.446 - This is how things get backed up the way they get backed up. Because while you're doing that, you kind of, 01:37:28.546 --> 01:37:36.048 - put all your eggs in that basket because you can't just put in six petitions for six different sites 01:37:36.048 --> 01:37:43.773 - and you know you you one at a time you have to do it and that takes time and it's further from downtown 01:37:43.773 --> 01:37:51.275 - Bloomington where we sit right now than North Park is it's in the city well what does that get you a 01:37:51.275 --> 01:37:57.886 - longer commute a longer drive there's nothing else there what's the benefit I don't know 01:38:00.962 --> 01:38:08.884 - We own Thompson. We own that property. That's a huge plus. And we recently spoke with, the last few 01:38:08.884 --> 01:38:17.122 - months, we spoke with city planning, who told us that it will take six to nine months to get a petition 01:38:17.122 --> 01:38:25.281 - through city planning and the city council. And that's because, and we would first have to do a design 01:38:25.281 --> 01:38:30.430 - and a petition, which would take probably a month. I don't know. 01:38:31.234 --> 01:38:38.706 - just to get the proposal in front of the city officials. There is no way to shorten that process. My 01:38:38.706 --> 01:38:46.474 - friends in the city seem to think like, well, maybe there's some way we could do this. And without being 01:38:46.474 --> 01:38:53.872 - undemocratic, there's no way to do that. You have to go through that process. It's a public process 01:38:53.872 --> 01:38:59.198 - with public input. I cannot imagine that they're claiming they can just 01:39:00.322 --> 01:39:06.776 - make a decision about planning. I imagine developers will line up around the block for that deal if 01:39:06.776 --> 01:39:13.360 - they don't have to have the democratic public process engaged. Mr. Falk stated clearly he will not be 01:39:13.360 --> 01:39:19.879 - okay with another entity, i.e. the city of Bloomington, making a decision for us to be in a position 01:39:19.879 --> 01:39:26.656 - to make a decision about whether or not we get that jail site. And there's no guarantees that that would 01:39:26.656 --> 01:39:30.206 - happen. Now let's say, let's just say that worked out. 01:39:32.162 --> 01:39:38.090 - Let's say that Ken Fahl decided for some reason that he's okay waiting another year to see if that works. 01:39:38.090 --> 01:39:43.683 - We have other questions about that property that need to be addressed. And now we did get some good 01:39:43.683 --> 01:39:49.555 - news from the city about some of the slope issues and the potential for a different roadway, which would 01:39:49.555 --> 01:39:55.372 - eliminate us having to buy a million other piece of property to access Thompson. So there was some good 01:39:55.372 --> 01:39:59.902 - news in there. And I had a couple of weeks of hope that things would get better. 01:40:00.642 --> 01:40:06.034 - and that there was a possibility. Not my favorite spot, but fine, let's go for it. But we still have 01:40:06.034 --> 01:40:11.426 - cars features to deal with. We still have the timing of the construction of the road from the summit 01:40:11.426 --> 01:40:16.924 - development into Thompson, which we can't control and the city really can't control. We have the issue 01:40:16.924 --> 01:40:22.583 - of fill dirt and most traveling. And the thing that will take the longest is we have to have high voltage 01:40:22.583 --> 01:40:27.974 - power lines moved, which Duke Energy says will take at least a year and a half. And that, of course, 01:40:27.974 --> 01:40:30.270 - isn't free either. None of these are free. 01:40:30.626 --> 01:40:38.009 - Um, we know from our work in highway, if you look at the Fullerton project, you look at the sample road 01:40:38.009 --> 01:40:45.322 - project, we always struggle a bit with some of our utility providers, especially electrical providers, 01:40:45.322 --> 01:40:52.421 - because they have other priorities. So a year and a half would be very optimistic. Well, let's take 01:40:52.421 --> 01:40:59.166 - that. So even if everything worked out perfectly, we would be years away from breaking ground. 01:41:00.930 --> 01:41:09.757 - Are you going to tell that to an inmate who is not receiving constitutional care? Well, I just really 01:41:09.757 --> 01:41:18.410 - want this in the city. Is that worthwhile? North cart shovel ready, shovel ready. I never say that, 01:41:18.410 --> 01:41:27.064 - but I did say that shovel ready. It can go out to bid this year. Construction can begin early 2027. 01:41:27.064 --> 01:41:29.054 - First law potentially. 01:41:30.050 --> 01:41:37.097 - It could be open. The jail could be open by 2030. Now, this would be a facility that, and I'm looking 01:41:37.097 --> 01:41:44.006 - at Scott Carnegie who's like, yeah, if everything goes well, yeah. I mean, there's weather. There's 01:41:44.006 --> 01:41:51.537 - all kinds of things that can happen. But that's the hope. That's the hope. It's doable. It's not guaranteed, 01:41:51.537 --> 01:41:58.446 - right? And I hope I've said that correctly, Mr. Carnegie, that it's doable, but it's not guaranteed 01:41:58.446 --> 01:41:59.966 - that it would happen. 01:42:00.258 --> 01:42:08.915 - Um, we, um, the, the purchase agreement needs to be done before Mr. Falk's deadline at the end of May. 01:42:08.915 --> 01:42:17.488 - The council needs to initiate the bonding process by July. The bond has to be completed by the end of 01:42:17.488 --> 01:42:26.313 - July. End of December. Sorry. December of the year. Sorry. Everybody's looking at me like, oh no. Sorry. 01:42:26.313 --> 01:42:27.742 - It's a lot here. 01:42:31.042 --> 01:42:37.901 - We can figure out transit. We will figure out transit. We've done it already. We can do it again. We'll 01:42:37.901 --> 01:42:44.495 - figure out transit. I mean, one of the things that we don't even provide now is what if somebody is 01:42:44.495 --> 01:42:51.156 - released and it's Sunday? Because buses don't run on Sunday. So we can look at things like getting a 01:42:51.156 --> 01:42:57.751 - ride share contract, a cost per ride. It's like what DT does for their micro system. We can look at 01:42:57.751 --> 01:42:59.070 - getting a contract. 01:42:59.362 --> 01:43:08.040 - and making sure people get somewhere in the county. And it won't cost us that much. And that would be 01:43:08.040 --> 01:43:16.634 - worth doing. So again, even if everything went perfectly great with Thompson, we are years away from 01:43:16.634 --> 01:43:25.142 - starting. And Mr. Faulk will not abide by that. And I don't think we're interested in pursuing that 01:43:25.142 --> 01:43:26.078 - chase. So. 01:43:29.314 --> 01:43:38.600 - speaking far too long but I need to say this and I apologize. I don't because I'm gonna say it. We're 01:43:38.600 --> 01:43:47.977 - in the bottom line. This has gone on long enough. If Monroe County fails to meet the provisions of the 01:43:47.977 --> 01:43:58.174 - settlement agreement we're going to look at the council and ask why. That the failure to abide by this deadline 01:43:58.754 --> 01:44:07.304 - I've heard it, oh, I'm shaking in my boots about the ACLU. Oh, you should. We don't know what a judge 01:44:07.304 --> 01:44:15.686 - is going to order. Why would you give that, why would you abdicate your responsibility and decision 01:44:15.686 --> 01:44:24.151 - making to a judge? And if that, that could be punitive, it could be, I'm looking for the right word, 01:44:24.151 --> 01:44:28.510 - injunctive, right? It could be both, we don't know. 01:44:29.858 --> 01:44:36.653 - And to have counsel talking about, well, it only costs a million dollars a year to move inmates to another 01:44:36.653 --> 01:44:43.003 - jail. Oh my gosh. And that's in perpetuity. And that gets us nothing built. That builds us nothing. 01:44:43.003 --> 01:44:49.354 - Unitive damages build us nothing. If you want a federal judge to decide how big that jail could be, 01:44:49.354 --> 01:44:55.704 - because man, they could decide on something else. They could decide on a much higher number if they 01:44:55.704 --> 01:44:59.070 - wanted. I don't know why they would, but they might. 01:45:00.450 --> 01:45:10.163 - If you want to hand that responsibility over to a federal judge, that is a shame. And it shouldn't happen. 01:45:10.163 --> 01:45:19.241 - We cannot prioritize fighting over constitutional care. We have to provide constitutional care. And 01:45:19.241 --> 01:45:27.774 - that impacts the safety of our officers in that jail. That matters. Let's do the right thing. 01:45:27.874 --> 01:45:35.690 - And I look forward to seeing the council consider this. It is on their agenda in May. Let's go forward. 01:45:35.690 --> 01:45:43.205 - Let's move forward together and do the right thing. The time has passed, but the time is now. And I 01:45:43.205 --> 01:45:50.796 - appreciate everybody's patience with me. Did you have anything you wanted to add? I think everything 01:45:50.796 --> 01:45:55.230 - has been covered, at least. Hopefully we can move forward. 01:45:58.690 --> 01:46:13.371 - I think we have different ways and different modes of expression, but I think that the key phrase really 01:46:13.371 --> 01:46:26.654 - is, don't look back over your shoulder, look forward, and come together, and we pledge to work 01:46:26.786 --> 01:46:34.653 - productively, respectfully, and collegially. And so that's something we have to do, and creatively. 01:46:34.653 --> 01:46:42.913 - And so we don't know. I think we're going into a lot that we don't know with this process. Every process 01:46:42.913 --> 01:46:51.094 - is different with the ACLU. They have done this 12 times before. Interestingly, none of the 12 counties 01:46:51.094 --> 01:46:54.398 - that they have sued get out of jail free. 01:46:54.882 --> 01:47:00.502 - And so all of them find themselves in settlement agreements not all of them have to build a new jail 01:47:00.502 --> 01:47:06.846 - because that's not what is required of each county some of them just have to make changes to a to existing jails. 01:47:07.138 --> 01:47:13.318 - Here, I think we would have to not only make changes to this existing jail to remain constitutional 01:47:13.318 --> 01:47:20.055 - because we kind of get a free pass while the settlement agreement is in place. When the settlement agreement 01:47:20.055 --> 01:47:26.235 - is dismissed, we have to have a constitutional jail suddenly. That will require transferring people 01:47:26.235 --> 01:47:32.415 - out of the county from what I understand that includes or could include, in 2021 dollars, a cost of 01:47:32.415 --> 01:47:33.342 - $75 per inmate 01:47:33.474 --> 01:47:40.694 - per resident per day with an average of 50 estimated transfers. And so that's going to have, that's 01:47:40.694 --> 01:47:47.986 - the million dollar a year expense, but that also includes $100,000 in 2021 dollars for a van and six 01:47:47.986 --> 01:47:55.205 - additional guards per year. So that's 500,000 in 2021 dollars for how many years? So that is easily 01:47:55.205 --> 01:48:01.342 - another two million. But we also have to make remedial changes to the jail structure 01:48:02.018 --> 01:48:08.616 - that we never recouped the cost of. And so those costs are estimated in 2021 dollars, three to 11 million. 01:48:08.616 --> 01:48:14.968 - And so that's a big range. And so we don't have $11 million. We don't even have $3 million to put into 01:48:14.968 --> 01:48:16.510 - a building that is dead. 01:48:16.610 --> 01:48:23.701 - every single aspect of that building is dead from the jail which has mold in the showers to the offices 01:48:23.701 --> 01:48:30.928 - which have sewage pouring into judges offices and we're just getting the remediation emails out to people 01:48:30.928 --> 01:48:34.814 - for what is certain to be another long spring and summer 01:48:34.946 --> 01:48:41.274 - for our employees in that building. It is a sick building, it is a dead building, and every day we have 01:48:41.274 --> 01:48:47.907 - to stay in that building and our employees have to stay in that building is a day that we wish our employees 01:48:47.907 --> 01:48:54.114 - did not have to stay in that building. But we have to build a jail now and we have to build a jail as 01:48:54.114 --> 01:49:00.260 - fast as possible. And so we're looking for the most expeditious way to do so that does not involve a 01:49:00.260 --> 01:49:04.702 - lawsuit. But we will move forward and we also have to look again for the 01:49:04.866 --> 01:49:11.556 - interests of our citizens. They have voiced opinions that we do very much appreciate and we do want 01:49:11.556 --> 01:49:18.313 - to build, we looked to build a jail downtown. We looked very hard. It turns out most of the downtown 01:49:18.313 --> 01:49:25.003 - is in a floodplain. It also turns out that a lot of the properties that were for sale, they did not 01:49:25.003 --> 01:49:32.094 - want to sell to the county to build a jail. Nobody wants a jail in their backyard. That is a frank truth. 01:49:32.258 --> 01:49:38.540 - or in their front yard or in their side yard or anywhere around them, quite frankly. And so we were 01:49:38.540 --> 01:49:44.822 - an unpopular neighbor, but we worked diligently with the council. We worked collegially and we will 01:49:44.822 --> 01:49:51.355 - continue to do so and we will work with as many people as we can to creatively find a way. Just because 01:49:51.355 --> 01:49:57.951 - we move forward with this purchase agreement, by the way, does not mean that if a better option presents 01:49:57.951 --> 01:49:59.710 - itself, we don't have to go 01:49:59.906 --> 01:50:07.744 - down this road. If we have a better option that presents itself tomorrow, we can go with that option. 01:50:07.744 --> 01:50:15.890 - But this is the option that is before us on the table today. So to all of those who say the commissioners 01:50:15.890 --> 01:50:23.651 - love North Park, this is not so much a vote for North Park as it is a vote against this lawsuit. And 01:50:23.651 --> 01:50:26.110 - it is not, I think, a site that 01:50:26.242 --> 01:50:33.246 - even the commissioners wanted any of them, even when they looked at this the first time, it is the only 01:50:33.246 --> 01:50:40.317 - viable site they saw when they looked at the accumulation of properties that they considered. So I think 01:50:40.317 --> 01:50:45.502 - that that's where we find ourselves today. Thank you. And I'm going to offer 01:50:45.666 --> 01:50:52.891 - my own opinion on if something else comes up. I don't think there's any possibility that anything else 01:50:52.891 --> 01:51:00.256 - can come up and be ready for a bond, a bond initiation in July because you would have to have everything 01:51:00.256 --> 01:51:07.270 - else done. I just don't see that that's even possible. I mean, we should work. It's just not, we've 01:51:07.270 --> 01:51:13.022 - kind of as a county, we've backed ourselves into this corner and the time is now. 01:51:14.434 --> 01:51:21.060 - make the right decision, make the hard decision. One of the things we can do is we could sell Thompson. 01:51:21.060 --> 01:51:27.496 - That could put that property back into the tax rolls for the city. It could become housing. We could 01:51:27.496 --> 01:51:33.931 - use part of it maybe for substance use mental health treatment. I don't know, but you know, and then 01:51:33.931 --> 01:51:40.302 - once we get everyone hopefully to North Park in the co-located facility, that's a healthy building, 01:51:40.302 --> 01:51:43.998 - we can sell that building. And that again becomes another 01:51:44.674 --> 01:51:52.891 - part of the tax base for the city of Bloomington, and it could be offices. Lord help me if it's more 01:51:52.891 --> 01:52:01.270 - student housing, because I will just scream. But looking at the occupancy rates, I don't know why that 01:52:01.270 --> 01:52:09.486 - would be. But anyway, there are benefits to see Bloomington as well. And nothing is perfect. We have 01:52:09.486 --> 01:52:13.310 - found a very good solution. We're out of time. 01:52:13.442 --> 01:52:20.685 - We have no other choice. That's where we are. And we've got other problems to solve and other things 01:52:20.685 --> 01:52:27.785 - to deal with. Let's move on. So anything? Not around. We pledge to do so respectfully. Absolutely. 01:52:27.785 --> 01:52:34.956 - Absolutely. Absolutely. No name calling. I call myself names, but that's a whole nother. All right, 01:52:34.956 --> 01:52:42.558 - so. I'm lucky some days if I can remember my name. There we go. All right. So let's hear from the public. 01:52:42.850 --> 01:52:53.291 - I'm sorry, publicly had a whole lot to talk through because we've been hearing a lot of things that 01:52:53.291 --> 01:53:04.253 - aren't true and we had to address them. Anybody wish to speak on this item? You raise your hand on teams 01:53:04.253 --> 01:53:12.606 - or come to the podium. Your patience will be rewarded, sir. You did, thank you. 01:53:13.922 --> 01:53:20.277 - First of all, thank you both Commissioner Thomas and Commissioner Madera for being at the City Council 01:53:20.277 --> 01:53:26.570 - meeting the other day. It was really helpful. I know you were online, but you were there and you were 01:53:26.570 --> 01:53:32.986 - present. And what was also interesting is that you actually had a dialogue. And I thought, this is what 01:53:32.986 --> 01:53:39.711 - we need more of, you know, to have this kind of discussion. It was very substantive. It was very meaningful. 01:53:39.711 --> 01:53:43.166 - And we just need more of that. And to see it in action, 01:53:43.330 --> 01:53:50.957 - It was also very civil and very grounded and helpful. So I just want to acknowledge that. I also want 01:53:50.957 --> 01:53:58.660 - to acknowledge that 17 years is really, I think, perceived as a failure in leadership. And I'm talking 01:53:58.660 --> 01:54:06.212 - about a collective leadership here. And there's no way around that. And I think a lot of things that 01:54:06.212 --> 01:54:09.054 - you explained today were instructive. 01:54:09.378 --> 01:54:15.653 - but we have to have a bit of introspection and acknowledge that we could have done better and we could 01:54:15.653 --> 01:54:22.232 - do better. But I agree with all three of you, we need to look forward. And in that context, I do appreciate 01:54:22.232 --> 01:54:28.446 - the complexity of this situation, but that's why we elect you folks, or appoint really good people to 01:54:28.446 --> 01:54:34.781 - work with the electeds. So this is part of the job. And in that context, I think there's a lot of work, 01:54:34.781 --> 01:54:38.558 - it seems to me, my perception, is being discussed at meetings 01:54:38.722 --> 01:54:45.391 - But my plea that I've made to, before the mayor, before the city council, before the county council, 01:54:45.391 --> 01:54:52.193 - just the other night, is to please do the heavy lifting, the hard work between meetings. There's a lot 01:54:52.193 --> 01:54:58.796 - of work that needs to be done, even if this proposal goes through. That's my plea. I also think you 01:54:58.796 --> 01:55:05.927 - acknowledge Commissioner Thomas to characterize the ACLU as the bad guy here. And I know Jody, Commissioner 01:55:05.927 --> 01:55:07.710 - Madera, you said the same. 01:55:07.874 --> 01:55:15.750 - I think they've been beyond patient and to somehow suggest that they're trying to wrest control from 01:55:15.750 --> 01:55:24.172 - the local government. It's actually we've been ceding control to the, not just the ACLU and the litigators, 01:55:24.172 --> 01:55:31.892 - if you will, but to a judge or a CIB because we're not governing, we're not handling this head on. 01:55:31.892 --> 01:55:37.662 - So finally, in the context of calling ACLU the enemy, it reminds me of a, 01:55:38.242 --> 01:55:44.605 - Some of you have heard this already, but an old Pogo comic script that says, we've met the enemy and 01:55:44.605 --> 01:55:51.409 - the enemy is us. And I just want to make sure that in the spirit that you've said, and I think Commissioner 01:55:51.409 --> 01:55:57.267 - Videra, you said, let's find some common ground. Let's find a way that we can work together. 01:55:57.267 --> 01:56:03.882 - We may agree, disagree, but we have some of the brightest, most dedicated, I got choked up talking about 01:56:03.882 --> 01:56:06.654 - this, some of the best people in elections. 01:56:06.850 --> 01:56:16.024 - office in this county in the city. We figure this out. We can do this in my plea. And my prayers is 01:56:16.024 --> 01:56:25.382 - that we just do that. Let's get this done working together. Thank you. Mr. Richardson, would you give 01:56:25.382 --> 01:56:35.198 - your name and county? Sorry, I forgot to ask. It's my fault. Thank you so much. We can do this. Thank you. 01:56:38.242 --> 01:56:46.456 - Anyone else? I have public comment. We've probably talked them out of late meeting. Okay. All right. 01:56:46.456 --> 01:56:54.589 - So let's move on. All those in favor of approving the purchase agreement for the justice complex in 01:56:54.589 --> 01:57:02.885 - North Park signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. We even drove the lawyers out of the room. 01:57:02.885 --> 01:57:07.358 - We did. I hope I'm doing everything legally right now. 01:57:07.490 --> 01:57:15.256 - Whenever he leaves, I'm like, oh, don't let me forget. He will return. Yeah. All right. So thank you, 01:57:15.256 --> 01:57:22.946 - everyone, for being here. Let's see. Is Mr. Smith present from the planning department still? Got to 01:57:22.946 --> 01:57:30.712 - be on his 10th cup of coffee. He is. Great. Excellent. Can you go ahead and make a motion on the next 01:57:30.712 --> 01:57:31.550 - last item? 01:57:31.970 --> 01:57:40.421 - I would like to move to approve Ordinance 2026-12 Highlands Parcel EPUD Outline Plan Amendment 2. Second. 01:57:40.421 --> 01:57:48.552 - We have a motion and we have a second. Mr. Smith, your patience is undeniable and appreciated greatly 01:57:48.552 --> 01:57:56.126 - by all of us. Please tell us about this. Absolutely. Give me a second here to share my screen. 01:58:03.010 --> 01:58:12.653 - Okay, can everybody see that screen okay? I will take that as a yes. So the request before you is an 01:58:12.653 --> 01:58:22.296 - outline plan amendment. The second one to be exact, which pertains to the Highland PUD, specifically 01:58:22.296 --> 01:58:31.844 - parcel E. This is also known as the Lynx Edge subdivision or perhaps more commonly known as the WIC 01:58:31.844 --> 01:58:32.990 - apartments. 01:58:38.114 --> 01:58:48.089 - This site is located off of South Rockport Road. So from South Rockport Road, you turn on to South Wickens 01:58:48.089 --> 01:58:57.504 - and then it'll be on the left-hand side, Rangeview Circle. This pertains to the entire inner loop of 01:58:57.504 --> 01:59:04.030 - South Rangeview Circle. So the purpose of this outline plan amendment 01:59:04.226 --> 01:59:12.625 - is to make South Rangeview Circle, which is the street before you, a private road instead of a public 01:59:12.625 --> 01:59:21.270 - road, which is what it was originally approved to be a public road. So changing that road classification 01:59:21.270 --> 01:59:29.586 - from a public to a private road would mean shifting that responsibility for maintaining that roadway 01:59:29.586 --> 01:59:33.374 - to that of a private entity. So in this case, 01:59:33.602 --> 01:59:41.091 - that private entity would be a developer. If the developer were to sell this property to either another 01:59:41.091 --> 01:59:48.364 - developer or maybe they would create an HOA, that shifting of the responsibility would go to whoever 01:59:48.364 --> 01:59:55.709 - that private entity would become. So upon inspection of the roadway, County Highway had noted several 01:59:55.709 --> 02:00:02.046 - deficiencies. I included a list here on the screen. I'll just go through those briefly. 02:00:02.370 --> 02:00:08.967 - There were a number of issues pertaining to sidewalk cracking, cross slopes for the sidewalks in the 02:00:08.967 --> 02:00:15.564 - right of way were greater than 2%, which for the public's input, that means it is not ADA compliant. 02:00:15.564 --> 02:00:22.683 - The proposed buildings were built at a higher elevation than what the plans called for. There were mailboxes 02:00:22.683 --> 02:00:29.541 - located within the right of way. Parking stripes were painted incorrectly. There were also private signs 02:00:29.541 --> 02:00:32.350 - that were located within the right of way. 02:00:32.866 --> 02:00:41.629 - Also, they had noted that there was a manhole that was uneven with the street. And the highway department 02:00:41.629 --> 02:00:50.144 - felt that their sand trucks that would go through or their plow trucks would not be, the roadway would 02:00:50.144 --> 02:00:58.494 - not be wide enough when you encompass the incorrect parking striping that has been developed here on 02:00:58.494 --> 02:01:02.462 - the site. So the development otherwise has been 02:01:02.818 --> 02:01:11.689 - completed. So there have been certificate of occupancies issued for all the buildings. So they are being 02:01:11.689 --> 02:01:20.982 - to our knowledge inhabited. But to resolve many of these issues, especially as it pertains to ADA compliance, 02:01:20.982 --> 02:01:28.670 - that would likely require deconstruction of existing driveways, sidewalks, and potentially 02:01:29.442 --> 02:01:38.169 - absolute worst case scenario being deconstruction of the existing structures on site. On the screen 02:01:38.169 --> 02:01:47.070 - is the approved phasing map. So much of the deficiencies that the highway department had noted are in 02:01:47.070 --> 02:01:56.059 - phase one and phase two. I don't believe there were any in phase three specifically, but certainly the 02:01:56.059 --> 02:01:57.630 - outer loop there. 02:02:01.090 --> 02:02:09.511 - I did want to provide just at least a brief background on petition. So this subdivision is in the Highlands 02:02:09.511 --> 02:02:17.308 - PUD, which was originally approved under the city of Bloomington jurisdiction back in 1996. So that 02:02:17.308 --> 02:02:25.730 - is ordinance number 96-05. And then in 2018, the developer did receive approval for the current subdivision 02:02:25.730 --> 02:02:30.174 - and development plan with a revision to the outline plan 02:02:30.530 --> 02:02:38.656 - having been approved by the board of commissioners to have a reduced setback from 25 feet to 15 feet. 02:02:38.656 --> 02:02:47.419 - It was noted at least during that time that the developer would have preferred to have a privately maintained 02:02:47.419 --> 02:02:54.430 - street. However, during the course of those meetings, the plan commission had felt that 02:02:55.106 --> 02:03:03.130 - Making the streets private would be shifting an economic burden onto future residents of the subdivision. 02:03:03.130 --> 02:03:10.701 - So ultimately, they voted to keep Rangeview Circle as a public road, not a private road. So that is 02:03:10.701 --> 02:03:17.438 - what the developer should have developed Rangeview Circle to be, which is a public road. 02:03:22.146 --> 02:03:30.378 - And of course, there's a timeline of events that occurred. I had already briefly mentioned that in 2018, 02:03:30.378 --> 02:03:38.610 - this had received approval in its current form for the development. This did go to a number of different 02:03:38.610 --> 02:03:46.449 - meetings, ordinance review committee. This was reviewed twice at planning commission administrative 02:03:46.449 --> 02:03:52.094 - meetings. And then it also had two planning commission regular sessions 02:03:52.482 --> 02:04:01.993 - happening this year within the past couple of months. And on the screen here, you'll notice there's 02:04:01.993 --> 02:04:11.600 - a lot, there's a lot going on here. Planning staff did take initiative to try to create a visual aid 02:04:11.600 --> 02:04:16.926 - for Plan Commission, but also Board of Commissioners to 02:04:17.762 --> 02:04:26.603 - really see where all of those deficiencies that the Highway Department had noted are located. So I included 02:04:26.603 --> 02:04:34.789 - on the left-hand side of the screen directly from the Highway Department's inspection report noting 02:04:34.789 --> 02:04:43.385 - the deficiencies. Planning staff had met with the developer and the developer's engineer, Daniel Butler, 02:04:43.385 --> 02:04:45.022 - with Bynum-Fanhiel. 02:04:46.146 --> 02:04:54.753 - And we just went through the list step-by-step through each individual item that was marked as deficient 02:04:54.753 --> 02:05:03.114 - and just, I mean, really straightforward conversation. Are you willing to make this improvement? Yes, 02:05:03.114 --> 02:05:11.967 - no. And then we just went through the entire list. So on this particular screen, these are the deficiencies 02:05:11.967 --> 02:05:15.902 - the developer ops not to make improvements for. 02:05:17.186 --> 02:05:27.559 - So again, those include the sidewalks, asphalt, curb and gutter, private signs, the manhole, and the 02:05:27.559 --> 02:05:37.829 - parking stripes. So all of that is located here on the screen. I can or Highway can also explain in 02:05:37.829 --> 02:05:46.558 - more detail exactly what they would expect for the developer to come into compliance 02:05:46.914 --> 02:05:55.710 - with their standards, but I will keep continuing with the presentation here. And then on the screen 02:05:55.710 --> 02:06:04.857 - before you are the deficiencies the petitioner is willing to make. So you'll notice that there is range 02:06:04.857 --> 02:06:11.454 - view circle in Wiccan Street. Wiccan Street is not part of this particular 02:06:12.226 --> 02:06:20.362 - area, but certainly a street that Rangeview Circle connects to and derives access from. So the developer 02:06:20.362 --> 02:06:28.110 - and the petitioner's representative or engineer, Daniel Butler, didn't foresee an issue with making 02:06:28.110 --> 02:06:36.478 - these improvements. Planning staff, as far as to our knowledge, we're not entirely sure a timeframe of when 02:06:37.250 --> 02:06:44.801 - these improvements will be made. I do know that the developer has been communicating with the Highway 02:06:44.801 --> 02:06:52.499 - Department to what capacity, I'm not sure. Perhaps the Highway Department could elaborate a little more 02:06:52.499 --> 02:06:59.976 - on that. But as far as planning staff is aware, the developer is willing to make these improvements. 02:06:59.976 --> 02:07:06.046 - And then on the screen before you, I have some site photos of the site. So again, 02:07:06.562 --> 02:07:18.419 - As I stated in the beginning of the petition, the development has already been completed. To our knowledge, 02:07:18.419 --> 02:07:29.398 - the units are being occupied. This photo is depicting issues with slope and the driveways that were 02:07:29.398 --> 02:07:35.326 - constructed. Highway Department noted in their report 02:07:35.554 --> 02:07:51.763 - their concerns with the driveways. Also the parking stripes. This particular area also includes the 02:07:51.763 --> 02:08:05.054 - ADA non-compliance. And just some other site photos showing sidewalks, mailboxes, 02:08:05.698 --> 02:08:14.454 - The petitioner or I should say the developer is required to maintain landscaping in perpetuity. So if 02:08:14.454 --> 02:08:23.124 - there are any damages to any of the plantings that are on site and they end up dying and they are no 02:08:23.124 --> 02:08:31.965 - longer viable, they will have to replace those. It did include a letter that was signed by the highway 02:08:31.965 --> 02:08:33.854 - director, Lisa Ridge, 02:08:34.114 --> 02:08:42.678 - the highway department's position as well as their concerns. They had initially been in support of keeping 02:08:42.678 --> 02:08:50.841 - the Rangeview Circle a private road. And that is primarily based on the fact that they cannot take in 02:08:50.841 --> 02:08:59.005 - liability for accepting a road into the county road inventory that doesn't meet county standards. And 02:08:59.005 --> 02:09:01.246 - this is also in the packet. 02:09:04.514 --> 02:09:11.570 - On the left-hand side of the screen, this was staff's recommendation to the planned commission. We detailed 02:09:11.570 --> 02:09:18.431 - two different scenarios, one in which planning staff's original recommendation was to forward a positive 02:09:18.431 --> 02:09:24.965 - recommendation to the county commissioners due to the physical constraints of the site and based on 02:09:24.965 --> 02:09:27.774 - the highway and stormwater reports, we had 02:09:28.226 --> 02:09:36.342 - that we had included in that recommendation, and then we also provided an alternative in the event that 02:09:36.342 --> 02:09:44.225 - the planning commission opted to send a negative recommendation to the county commissioners and what 02:09:44.225 --> 02:09:52.419 - that would look like. The planning commission ultimately did vote five to two to forward just a negative 02:09:52.419 --> 02:09:57.726 - recommendation to the commissioners, and I will take any questions. 02:09:59.490 --> 02:10:08.059 - Thank you so much. We were having mic problems, but I do appreciate all your time and attention to this 02:10:08.059 --> 02:10:16.463 - very detailed petition. I just want to see if my colleagues have questions or comments at this point. 02:10:16.463 --> 02:10:25.115 - No, and I'll just note that I have to abstain from this vote. Okay, thank you. I think one of the things 02:10:25.115 --> 02:10:27.422 - that's unusual, just as the 02:10:27.906 --> 02:10:36.787 - who sits on the Planning Commission is that we typically support staff recommendations, but there was 02:10:36.787 --> 02:10:45.843 - a clear discussion at that March 17th meeting about the tradition of noncompliance from this particular 02:10:45.843 --> 02:10:54.637 - developer. And that's really unfortunate because, you know, Monroe County gets a bad rap as does the 02:10:54.637 --> 02:10:56.030 - city for having 02:10:56.322 --> 02:11:03.371 - zoning requirements. Um, you know, yeah, your driveway can't be at a 45 degree angle, things like that. 02:11:03.371 --> 02:11:10.285 - Um, but it's really up to the developer to comply because they're the ones with the petition. Um, and 02:11:10.285 --> 02:11:17.267 - you know, at any point, for example, the reason those driveways are so steep is because the houses are 02:11:17.267 --> 02:11:23.774 - built at a higher, um, level than they should have been a higher, a higher point on the ground. 02:11:24.066 --> 02:11:31.443 - And before building, that developer should have come to the planning department and said, hey, I hit 02:11:31.443 --> 02:11:39.259 - a whole bunch of rock. What can we do? And we would have figured something out. And it's just unfortunate, 02:11:39.259 --> 02:11:46.636 - because that communication has to be a two-way street, and we count on people doing the right thing. 02:11:46.636 --> 02:11:50.142 - I think the things that I found interesting was 02:11:52.290 --> 02:12:00.392 - There's an unwillingness to change the parking stripes. And that's pretty much a almost zero cost kind 02:12:00.392 --> 02:12:08.258 - of thing you can do. That to me, I don't understand. But there's also things on, I think it's still 02:12:08.258 --> 02:12:16.202 - on the Wickens property, which is the other. But sidewalk has to be replaced due to rain. Well, rain 02:12:16.202 --> 02:12:21.630 - should not wash out a sidewalk. So something else is going on there. 02:12:22.114 --> 02:12:30.288 - And it's either a drainage problem or the sidewalk was put in before the drainage was corrected. 02:12:30.288 --> 02:12:38.968 - I don't know. But that should never happen. But these things all just kind of build up on one another. 02:12:38.968 --> 02:12:47.395 - And it was a pretty resounding message from the County Planning Commission members about this. I do 02:12:47.395 --> 02:12:49.502 - want to say that I think 02:12:50.242 --> 02:13:01.049 - It's unfortunate that we're in this position. And it was not an easy vote for me to take because I would 02:13:01.049 --> 02:13:11.855 - much rather just get this done the right way in the first place. But there has been a lack of compliance 02:13:11.855 --> 02:13:17.310 - on a number of these projects. And that's the issue. 02:13:17.410 --> 02:13:23.529 - think in a way we feel a lot like Ken Falk and we're just like, we've had enough. We just need this 02:13:23.529 --> 02:13:30.014 - done right. The carrot that was offered was to do the other project right. And well, that's your project. 02:13:30.014 --> 02:13:36.133 - So yeah, you should do it right. So not much of a carrot. I really hope that this can get resolved. 02:13:36.133 --> 02:13:42.496 - I think it can. I think it can. But I think to just allow developers to do what they want and then come 02:13:42.496 --> 02:13:46.718 - back and go, well, didn't work out according to the plan I gave you. 02:13:47.138 --> 02:13:57.281 - I built it differently. Oh, well, let's just take it out of, we won't just put it in county inventory 02:13:57.281 --> 02:14:07.325 - and it's okay. Well, ADA compliance is universal. You know, that's the important thing. So let's see 02:14:07.325 --> 02:14:15.678 - if we, I don't see Mr. Butler here. Petitioner or petitioner's representative here? 02:14:17.410 --> 02:14:29.107 - I do not see them on the list. Okay, well, that's too bad. Does anybody wish to speak in favor of this 02:14:29.107 --> 02:14:40.577 - petition, meaning going against the Planning Commission vote? Anybody wish to speak in opposition to 02:14:40.577 --> 02:14:46.142 - this petition? Or have any other public comment? 02:14:52.066 --> 02:15:05.007 - With that, we're going to come back. Commissioner Redira has stepped away. Are you ready to vote on 02:15:05.007 --> 02:15:18.206 - this item? Okay. I'm going to go ahead and ask to approve ordinance 2026-12 to signify by saying aye. 02:15:19.618 --> 02:15:30.105 - That's a vote of two zero and one absent slash abstention. So the motion passes. All right. I would 02:15:30.105 --> 02:15:40.698 - like to make a motion to appoint Linda Williamson to the property tax board of appeals, which is run 02:15:40.698 --> 02:15:47.934 - through the assessor's office. This would be a one year appointment. 02:15:48.450 --> 02:15:57.213 - Um, ending May 1st of 2027. Um, all those in favor of approving her appointment. Did you second? Oh, 02:15:57.213 --> 02:16:06.236 - sorry. Uh, so this is a thank you. Um, you can tell I'm tired. It's been a long day. Um, okay. So we're 02:16:06.236 --> 02:16:14.912 - still at the vote. We haven't voted yet. Okay. So we have a motion and we have a second. Thank you. 02:16:14.912 --> 02:16:16.734 - Um, parliamentarian. 02:16:16.866 --> 02:16:26.418 - Jones. All those in favor of approving the appointment signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. 02:16:26.418 --> 02:16:35.691 - And Commissioner Madera, yes, is back. I want to thank Ms. Williamson for her willingness to serve. 02:16:35.691 --> 02:16:45.150 - And we're grateful that we have what will be a full board for Assessor Sharp, which she really needs. 02:16:45.282 --> 02:16:53.609 - It's a lot of work. It's important work, and we thank everybody who does it. So just a reminder that 02:16:53.609 --> 02:17:01.853 - early voting continues at 501 North Morton. That's the North showers area and parking lot. The door 02:17:01.853 --> 02:17:10.262 - opens onto Morton and early voting continues today until 6 p.m. tomorrow, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. That's May 02:17:10.262 --> 02:17:14.302 - 1st already. Saturday, May 2nd, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. 02:17:14.434 --> 02:17:24.244 - and Monday, May 4th, 8 a.m. to noon. After that, as the clerk pointed out today, May 5th is election 02:17:24.244 --> 02:17:34.150 - day. And if you have questions about where you're supposed to vote, check your mailbox because we all 02:17:34.150 --> 02:17:41.726 - got postcards. Or you can go online to our county website for assistance. And 02:17:41.826 --> 02:17:48.728 - just because we've had a long meeting, and we do actually have a work session, by the way. Sorry. We 02:17:48.728 --> 02:17:55.972 - are still accepting applications for boards and commissions. Just go to our website, iam.gov slash county 02:17:55.972 --> 02:18:02.601 - slash Monroe to find out what's available. We still need somebody to serve on the library board. 02:18:02.601 --> 02:18:09.434 - Unbelievable. Such an important job. If you aren't willing to do it, is someone you know willing to 02:18:09.434 --> 02:18:11.006 - do it? Think about it. 02:18:11.522 --> 02:18:17.707 - We have a blood drive on election day, Tuesday, May 5th, 1 PM to 6 PM, and Thursday, May 7th, 02:18:17.707 --> 02:18:24.616 - 10 AM to 3 PM. That's at Ivy Tech. Thanks, Ivy Tech. Make an appointment at redcross.org. And a reminder 02:18:24.616 --> 02:18:31.328 - to please sign up for the alert notification system. Our resident alert system will let you know when 02:18:31.328 --> 02:18:38.303 - there's a tornado warning, like it did last week, or a flood warning. Or this week. This week. I'm sorry. 02:18:38.303 --> 02:18:40.606 - Yeah, it was this week, wasn't it? 02:18:40.770 --> 02:18:46.915 - It feels like it was last week. It was this week. It was this week. I was sitting in the pantry. We 02:18:46.915 --> 02:18:53.306 - have a new county motto. We spin you right round, baby, right? Right? That's it. That's it. We're going 02:18:53.306 --> 02:18:59.513 - to have a mascot. We're going to do everything. We're going to do. We're going to sell shirts. We're 02:18:59.513 --> 02:19:05.842 - going to do everything we can. That was crazy. Yeah. But, you know, I've trained my dog to come to the 02:19:05.842 --> 02:19:07.870 - pantry because that's the lowest 02:19:08.066 --> 02:19:13.986 - floor of the house, the most interior room I could find without a window. But yeah, it's crazy. It's 02:19:13.986 --> 02:19:19.907 - crazy when those things come up. One of your neighbors had a tree go over their house. Oh, they were 02:19:19.907 --> 02:19:25.886 - trapped. Yeah. Oh, no. Yeah. But everybody's fine. We're all good. No injuries. Well, minor injuries, 02:19:25.886 --> 02:19:31.806 - but nothing serious. And we got through it. But hey, if you want to know about stuff before it hits, 02:19:32.130 --> 02:19:38.973 - I highly recommend you go to iam.gov slash county slash when you're on sign up for the Resident Alert 02:19:38.973 --> 02:19:45.615 - System. It's free. There are services out there. We pay two, three bucks a month for this service. 02:19:45.615 --> 02:19:52.592 - It's free. We're covering the cost. Every county resident, whether they live in the city, town, or not, 02:19:52.592 --> 02:19:59.300 - can sign up, text, email, and or phone call. Anyway, we do have a work session. Probably would have 02:19:59.300 --> 02:20:01.246 - helped if I'd had breakfast. 02:20:02.210 --> 02:20:08.400 - So I guess we can come back at one for the work session, okay? A couple items on there. Hopefully they 02:20:08.400 --> 02:20:14.831 - won't take terribly long. So we're gonna adjourn this meeting. Our next meeting is May 7th, next Thursday, 02:20:14.831 --> 02:20:20.841 - right here in the NETU Hill Room. And then we'll come back at one o'clock for our work session. And 02:20:20.841 --> 02:20:26.911 - thanks everybody for your patience. And I hope that we've explained ourselves well. Can I spare some 02:20:26.911 --> 02:20:28.414 - things in there? Please. 02:20:28.610 --> 02:20:35.367 - Just a couple of remarks. Thank you so much for, I'd like to express my appreciation for all the law 02:20:35.367 --> 02:20:42.391 - enforcement and first responders who were there on Saturday and who did a great job with the unfortunate 02:20:42.391 --> 02:20:49.282 - incident that occurred at Little Five and just how the community has come together since then. Because 02:20:49.282 --> 02:20:56.574 - some incidents, although unforeseeable, really test the community. And we have great, great, great emergency 02:20:56.574 --> 02:20:57.310 - personnel. 02:20:57.954 --> 02:21:04.990 - There's no better way to express my appreciation, I think, than just saying it. And so we are grateful. 02:21:04.990 --> 02:21:11.755 - Absolutely. Absolutely. And however, whatever other public response they've gotten, you know, let's 02:21:11.755 --> 02:21:18.588 - let the loudest voices be one of appreciation and respect. And so also, you know, just get out there 02:21:18.588 --> 02:21:22.782 - and enjoy the weather. I know that we've had tumultuous, dry, 02:21:22.978 --> 02:21:29.575 - in spring, but graduation is almost upon us with Indiana. University getting out soon, and so we have 02:21:29.575 --> 02:21:36.042 - another bunch of happy events occurring, and so lots of celebrations about to occur. Yeah. And then 02:21:36.042 --> 02:21:42.833 - the high schools at the end of May, right? Nope, that's never going to happen because, nope, we're never 02:21:42.833 --> 02:21:49.429 - going to acknowledge that. Oh, sorry. Sorry. No, I mean, it's a joyful time. It's a beautiful time in 02:21:49.429 --> 02:21:50.270 - Bloomington. 02:21:50.402 --> 02:21:56.798 - I kind of appreciate the cool spade weather, because I've got a lot of holes to dig in my garden. And 02:21:56.798 --> 02:22:03.696 - it's a little wetter now and cooler, so we can do it. But yeah, it's important to thank our first responders. 02:22:03.696 --> 02:22:10.092 - They did amazing. See, that felt like two weeks ago. Yes, absolutely. Yes. But yeah, they did a great 02:22:10.092 --> 02:22:16.990 - job. And the hospital had their own flooding issue. I mean, there's stuff going on all around this community. 02:22:17.122 --> 02:22:23.783 - Those folks stepped up, and I want to thank our jailers, jail staff, and sheriff, because they had to 02:22:23.783 --> 02:22:30.575 - deal with little five. Not directly, but indirectly. Well, it's yes, directly. So they had to deal with 02:22:30.575 --> 02:22:37.237 - it. So thank them, too, in the mix. They may have been behind the scenes, but they had a lot of extra 02:22:37.237 --> 02:22:44.094 - work. Judges, prosecutor, public defender. It's a busy time. It's a busy time, and they all worked hard. 02:22:44.290 --> 02:22:50.580 - did their utmost to keep us safe in a state where anybody can carry a gun anywhere. Yes, absolutely. 02:22:50.580 --> 02:22:56.931 - And thanks, state of Indiana. And our next meeting is after the primary. So that will be as well. Oh, 02:22:56.931 --> 02:23:03.346 - yeah, right. See, time just flies. But yeah, OK. So thank you all. Thank you. Yeah, be sure to get out 02:23:03.346 --> 02:23:09.635 - and vote. Appreciate it. Thanks, everyone. And we're adjourned until 1 o'clock for our work session. 02:23:09.635 --> 02:23:12.126 - Thank you. Thanks for bringing that up.