- Good morning, everyone. Thank you all for this meeting in the county Board of Commissioners. It is Thursday,
- April 30th. And I will know for the record that all three commissioners are here and present in the
- Net you Hill room and we will begin with the commissioners public statement read by Commissioner Madeira.
- We the Monroe County Board of Commissioners renew our commitment to welcome and protect the rights of
- all people. Regardless of age,
- marital status, economic status, and national origin. And we affirm the right of every person to live
- peacefully and without fear. And we will fight and resist at every step, discrimination and harmful
- policies, whatever their source. We believe in diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. And we also
- stand in support of our county public school systems, both RBB and MCCSE. All right, thank you so much.
- And we will now move on to our department updates.
- on update from the health department, please. Good morning, commissioners. According to the Indiana
- Department of Health and Wastewater Scan, hospital admissions for COVID illness have decreased and wastewater
- concentrations remain at low levels. We are seeing very low levels of flu and RSV
- The health department still has free flu and COVID tests available for the public. Individuals can walk
- in Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. to receive free tests. And lastly, we are proud to announce
- the health department is scheduling appointments for vaccines. The number to call is 812-803-6364 for
- an appointment or more information.
- All right, thank you so much. Comments or questions, Commissioner Madeira? I have none. Thank you very
- much. Commissioner Jones? No, I don't. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much. Next up, we have Mr.
- Miller, Veterans Affairs Office. Good morning. Good morning, commissioners. How are you today?
- We're good. Great. I wanted to tell you a little story about a veteran that I helped to apply for the
- Military Family Relief Fund.
- which is a $2500 grant by the state of Indiana to help veterans who are veterans and families who have
- significant financial hardship. Recently I worked with a veteran who found themselves in a situation
- that many of us are just are only one unexpected event away from facing.
- Falling behind on rent due to a sudden financial strain, things quickly snowballed. Late fees piled
- up, other bills followed, and soon even the car payment was a risk. What started as a single missed
- payment became a cascade of stress and uncertainty, threatening both stable housing and reliable
- transportation. Two things that are essential for maintaining employment and moving. Veterans did everything
- right. They reached out early.
- They stayed engaged and remained committed to getting back on track. But applying for the Military Family
- Relief Fund assistance is no small task. It is one of the most demanding and complicated applications
- we ask veterans to complete. It requires detailed documentation of income and debt, monthly expenses,
- and proof of hardship. And for someone who's already facing hardship
- and significant stress, gathering all of this documentation can feel very overwhelming. Even when everything
- goes right, approval is not guaranteed. What I found out recently that only 47% of applications are
- approved. That is owed a lot to the fact of how complicated the process is.
- In this case, however, the veteran did receive the money and they worked through the process. They provided
- all the necessary document and again, they eventually were approved for the assistance. They were able
- to pay their car payment and stabilize their financial situation. And again, this is exactly what the
- MFRF, the Military Family Relief Fund, is for. It deserves
- note of how critical it is and how difficult it is often to access. I share the story not just as a
- success but also as a window into some of the challenges that our veterans face locally. I thank you
- for your time and I hope you have a great rest of your day. Thank you so much and I think this is also
- a good example of why it's important to utilize the services of the Veterans Service Office
- with these kinds of things. If you're a veteran in need, please call and can you give the number? Absolutely.
- My phone number is 812-349-2537. Please do that early and often. There you go. Perfect. Thank you so
- much. Appreciate it. Are there any other departments that wish to offer an update?
- on Teams or in the NETU Hill Room. All right, with that we will move on to public comment. Public comment
- is for items not on the agenda. It is limited to three minutes per speaker. You can raise your hand
- on Teams or come to the podium here in the NETU Hill Room.
- Seeing none, we'll move on to approval of the minutes and you could just make that one big motion if
- you would like. I would like to approve the board of commissioners minutes for April 9th, 2026, the
- board of commissioners minutes for April 23rd, 2026, the commissioner and council joint work session,
- the minutes from the commissioners and council joint work session from January 22nd, 2026, and the minutes
- from the commissioner and council joint special work session from February 9th, 2026.
- We have a motion and we have a second. Any comments, corrections or edits? Excellent. All those in favor
- of approving the minutes, April 9th, April 23rd, and the joint work session minutes from January 22nd
- and February 9th, signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. And we'll move on to the next item.
- Again, if we could have one motion, that would be great.
- Yes, I would like to move approval of the claim socket for accounts payable from April 23rd, 2026 and
- ratification of the payroll from April 17th, 2026. And flipping the page, I would like to also move
- to approve accounts payable from April 30th, 2026 and payroll for May 1st, 2026. We have a motion. And
- we have a second.
- Ms. Gallardo, can you tell us about the accounts payable for today and payroll for tomorrow, please?
- Good morning. The accounts payable claims docket for April 30th, 2026 totals $1,831,225. This includes
- all emergency claims and adjustments. The payroll docket for May 1st, 2026 includes
- 1,671,376 and 77 cents in direct cost and the remaining 695,298 cents were for indirect costs for a
- grand total of 2,366,379 and 75 cents. All right, any comments or questions? Commissioner Jones? No,
- I don't. Commissioner Madeira? No, thank you.
- I don't either. Let's see if there's any public comment on this item. You raise your hand on teams or
- come to the podium. All right. None. All those in favor of ratifying the accounts payable for April
- 23rd, ratifying the payroll for April 17th.
- and approving the accounts payable for April 30th, 2026 and payroll for May 1st, 2026 signify by saying
- aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. Thank you so much. I note for the record that we have received reports
- from the clerk for March 2026, the treasurer for March 2026, and weights and measures for April 2026.
- And we will now move on to new business, please.
- I would like to move approval for the submission for the 2027-5311-5339 grant program and approval of
- the resolution 2026-13. Second. We have a motion and we have a second. Ms. Myers, we're going to miss
- you. You're going to have to come just to give us public comment just to say hi. Lively, huh?
- to see you. Thank you for having me very glad to be here after missing a couple weeks. So it's getting
- a little nervous. This is my last day in Area 10. So I have Amy Garitas, who is my successor in the
- crowd. So welcome her. So I'm very glad to have her here and pick this up. So we are here today for
- the renewal grant for 2027.
- We've put together the grant application, which will be for the operating portion will be $1,710,450.
- Of that, the federal portion is $817,789. The state portion will be $311,595. And then the local match,
- which makes up all of the difference, is $523,594.
- in the fairs, which I'm not going to read. But this does plan for possibly having to cover what was
- the staff that is covering the urbanized area, just so you know, first case scenario, thinking about
- that. And then we have the capital portion that we're going to be putting in for, which is for four
- bus replacements and one low floor mini-ban. That federal money will be $485,650 that the local match
- Necessary is $85,350. We are as area 10 committing to provide that local match capital and on the operating
- we are hoping to still have your support at the $80,000 level for the Monroe County portion. Service
- area and we have commitments from the other communities as well. Support that operation. Excellent.
- Thank you so much. Comments or questions?
- No, this is just really critical and thanks for all your hard work on it. It's just vital. Rural transit
- is really one of the lifebloods of our community. This is one of the things every year and I'm so glad
- you can talk with your future. We have some big changes here. Good for you. I am going to say again,
- thank you for
- all you've done for our community at Area 10, such important work. And this is just one part of the
- bigger puzzle. And this piece is so important. And I mean, managed to get INDOT to pay for the urbanized
- area transit this year. Any chance that they might do it again next year? We don't know. OK. I will
- say I'm sorry to say I did not get to the open house.
- things got ahead of me and behind me and I couldn't get out there in time. So I apologize for that.
- And Ms. Garitas, we look forward to working with you and we hope we can sit down soon and talk all things
- transit when you're feeling like you have a moment to catch your breath. That would be great. It'll
- be really wonderful. And again, thank you for everything you've done for this community and we wish you
- every happiness in your retirement. Thank you so much. It's been a pleasure working with you.
- And of course, we serve. Yeah, yeah, important, important. Thank you. Let's go ahead and see if there's
- any public comments on this item. You can raise your hand on teams or come to the podium.
- clarification for everybody involved. The 80,000 match is subject to council appropriation during the
- 2027 budget process. I just want to make sure that that's clear. Okay. I don't see anyone here for public
- comments. So all those in favor of approving the submission for the 2027
- 5311, 5339 grant program and approval of resolution 2026-13 signify by saying aye. Motion carries 3-0.
- Thank you so much. We'll miss you. All right. Next item, please. I would like to move approval for Nature's
- Way Incorporated Irrigation System installation at the Monroe County Historic Courthouse.
- Fund name 2025 five geobond fund number 4820 in the amount of $48,045 and 71 cents All right. We have
- a motion and we have a second. Mr. Crider Good morning commissioners Richard Crider building and fleet
- This request is to approve the proposal submitted by nature's way to install a new lawn irrigation system
- For the turf areas, the existing irrigation infrastructure is problematic with brittle piping, corroded
- wiring, and dated controls. Installation includes all new PVC piping, valves, valve boxes, sprinkler
- heads, flow meter, backflow prevention device, and associated wiring. The system features communication
- capabilities with maintenance for improved diagnostics and troubleshooting, rain sensing capability
- to prevent unnecessary operation during precipitation,
- Reduced need to manually enter the irrigation vault. Improved efficiency and reliability. And then my
- favorite thing, which I didn't put on the agenda, is it will learn the flow rates of each station.
- And at 2.30 in the morning, if somebody punts a sprinkler head off and we blow a geyser out into College
- or Walnut, it will sense the change flow rate and shut that system down and move on to the next one.
- That's big, yeah. Total installation cost, $48,000, $45.71. Yeah, that is important. Thank you. Comments
- or questions? Commissioner Jones? Yeah, irrigation is awfully important in spite of the soaking that
- we recently got. We've had pretty dry conditions this spring, which is unusual, whereas
- We typically get dry conditions in the fall. If we go into that, having had dry conditions all summer,
- it's going to be irrigation is going to be very sounds like a rather amazing system. It's impressive.
- It must be. Yeah. What are we waiting for? Yeah.
- You're all wet. All right. I will say that I can't tell you how many times I got calls from people,
- like, oh, there's water streaming into the street or flowing over the sidewalk or whatever. So it's
- been a while. It's been a long time coming. And so this will be good to get this taken care of. And
- I like the new technology. It makes a lot of sense. It's a technology I have at home.
- for my garden, so I needed to make sense. It's like, why not? Brain sensing and, you know. This is huge
- news for the maintenance department. Yeah. So when is this going to be installed? I don't have a start
- date determined yet. I think they're waiting to see this, and then we'll work on that. You're going
- to avoid having this done around the 4th of July, and you're going to avoid having, right? Yeah, we
- had a meeting and discussed all that.
- Timing is key. I mean, we want the lawn to look nice for that day. So if we could be done before or
- after, before would be great. But it'd be give it some time to, because obviously they're going to be
- digging up. They will. But the machine they use makes a pretty narrow swath. I don't anticipate a ton
- of damage. Excellent. Excellent. I appreciate you working on this. This is going to be really important.
- So thank you. All right. Let's see if there's any.
- public comment on this item. You raise your hand on teams or come to the podium. Seeing none, all those
- in favor of approving the Nature's Way Inc Irrigation System installation at Monroe County Historic
- Courthouse, signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. Let's talk surplus.
- These are my favorite resolution 2026 11 surplus property. I'd like to move to approve that resolution.
- Perfect. All right, we're there. Mr. Grider. Okay, this request is to approve resolution 2026 11 declaring
- the following items a surplus due to damage end of service life or replacement with new equipment.
- office furniture from the prosecutors and treasurer's office to be disposed of as trash or sold a scrap
- metal as appropriate. One freezer from probation department to be transferred to the solid waste management
- district for recycling. One mower from the parks department that is up for replacement as part of the
- equipment rotation schedule. These items are no longer needed for county operations and will be disposed
- of or recycled as outlined in the resolution.
- Perfect, thank you so much. Comments or questions? Commissioner Madeira? No, and I just, again, I really
- appreciate the time and care that's taken to make use of every bit of equipment to its natural life
- and to dispose of it properly when its natural life is over. Thank you. Commissioner Jones? Yes, I'm
- very interested to hear that the Solid Waste District will recycle, freeze,
- I think there was a small fee. It's good to know. Yeah, for sure. For sure. Yeah, there's a because
- 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
- for doing this work and tracking all of this equipment and
- furniture and everything else. So thank you. Let's see if there's any public comment on this item. Can
- you raise your hand on teams or come to the podium? Seeing none, all those in favor of approving resolution
- 2026-11 signify by saying aye. Motion carries 3-0. Next item, please. Yes, I'd like to move approval for
- The Cassidy Electric Generator Replacement and Relocation Project for the Highway Garage and the Youth
- Services Bureau, Fund Name 2024 Geobond, Fund Number 4819 and the amount of $382,000. Second. We have
- a motion and we have a second. Mr. Crater. The Highway Garage currently operates with an existing generator
- that does not have the capacity to support the entire facility
- During a power outage to improve operational reliability and ensure full building backup power. This
- project will replace the existing unit with a new appropriately sized generator. As part of this project,
- the existing generator will be removed from the highway garage and relocated for reuse at the Youth
- Services Bureau.
- This request is to award a contract to Cassidy Electric in the amount of $382,000 for generator replacement
- and relocation services to include removal of the existing generator at the highway garage, installation
- of a new generator size to service the entire highway garage building, relocation and installation of
- the existing generator at the Youth Services Bureau, installation of new transfer switches at both locations,
- and associated electrical and site work required for full system integration.
- Thank you so much. Comments or questions, Commissioner Jones. It's great that this that you're going
- to be able to reload. Always nice when things can be reused somewhere else in the county. Yeah.
- No, I really appreciate, again, as Commissioner Jones said, the reuse and repurposing of the generator.
- And again, this is not captured here at this meeting, but an extensive bid process. And thank
- you. Electrifying. Yes, generating interest. All right, let's see if there's any public comment on this
- item. You raise your hand on teams or come to the podium.
- Seeing none, all those in favor of approving the Cassidy electric generator replacement and relocation
- project for Highway Garage and the Youth Services Bureau signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries
- 3-0. And one more for Mr. Kreider, please. Yes, I'd like to move to approve the Spring Point Architects
- Professional Services Agreement for the Historic Courthouse. Fund name, cumulative capital, fund number
- 1138, in an amount not to exceed $11,500.
- We have a motion and we have a second. If you'll remember the previous dumpster enclosure was destroyed
- by a fallen tree. The goal is to build a durable enclosure out of stone or block with sturdy doors and
- designed in a manner that complements the historic courthouse.
- This request is approved the proposal submitted by Spring Point Architects in an amount not to exceed
- $11,500 to provide professional services through the design and construction phase to include schematic
- design, preparation of construction documents, assistance with the bid process, and construction
- administration services. Thank you so much. Comments or questions? Commissioner Madeira.
- I guess just because it's going to contain a dumpster doesn't mean we want it to look like a dumpster.
- And so I remember walking out and finding this. And so it's lovely to know that this is going to be
- resolved and things back to normal. So thank you. This is going to be great. Yeah. Commissioner Jones?
- Yeah, just this morning I was noticing how nice that garden is looking and then there's that dumpster
- sitting there. There's actually a crew out there right now adding native plants to the area.
- Nice. That's a nice little garden. It is. The rabbits love it. It is native. They should. They do.
- And yeah, it was during a plan commission meeting when that tree went down and it went down on a plan
- commission member's car. Fortunately, they were in the meeting, but unfortunately, we went outside and
- there it was. So the dangers of being on a border commission, we just never talk about that.
- But no, I really appreciate you looking into it. It's something we've talked about a couple times, and
- it'll be great when it's done. So thank you for that. All right. Let's see if there's any public comment
- on this item. You can raise your hand on Teams or come to the podium. Seeing none, all those in favor
- of approving the Spring Point Architects
- Professional Services Agreement for the Historic Courthouse signified by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries
- 3-0. Thank you so much. Welcome, and I will add that I counted 98 rings on that oak tree. Wow. Wow.
- Wow. That's, yeah. Yeah, it is. It is. But remember when we lost that one on the south side?
- That was, that was terrible. And they cut it and then all this water just poured out of it because it
- was, yeah. Anyway. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Next item please. Sorry. Okay. Oh, you're fine. I would like
- to move approval for SheCorp Lumu Defender software agreement. Fund name cumulative capital fund number
- 1138 in the amount of $66,000 for a three year term. Okay. We have a motion and we have a second.
- Good morning, everyone. In any IT environment, it's always advisable to try to stop threats or malicious
- activity before they make it to your endpoints, which are your computers and your systems. Currently,
- we're set up in a good posture where we have endpoint detection, where the threat makes it that far.
- There's automated processes and everything like that. One thing we don't have is to cover our network.
- basically an intruder can make it into the garage before we, not sure they're there, that escalates
- after hours when we don't have network staff constantly monitoring that. So it's relying on a manual
- process right now to detect and stop that. Lumoo is a product, a company that's been working with the
- state for about a year now, trying to get a foothold in the state to provide services.
- that give you that network detection layer. It's a 24-7 operation. It's predefined responses that we
- dictate, so we're the second call. The company would actually, if a threat made it into our network,
- they'd shut it down and then notify us, which is a big swap from how we do it now. The help desk gets
- called of an issue, they investigate, then they're reporting it to the network team. So it takes that
- whole delay out of there. Additionally, one thing that this program will do for us,
- We did have the MS-ISAC, what's called malicious domain blocking, which prevents users from going out
- inadvertently or intentionally to a bad website that could infect their machine. Unfortunately, with
- federal cuts, MS-ISAC does not offer that service to us anymore underneath that membership that we had,
- which we were paying about $3,000 a year to that membership. So this product also puts that layer there
- as well, give us another coverage of security and keep an unintentional
- activity for getting on our machines. One advantage to this getting on now, like I said, LUMU is trying
- to get a foothold in the state. We met with them, we've been running their product under trial for about
- 90 days now. They did offer this to us at a 50% discount over their normal rate. That's why I went ahead
- and locked it on a three year term to keep the discount as long as we can. Awesome, great thinking,
- thank you. Commissioner Jones, comments or questions? A lot of sense.
- Commissioner Madeira. So the normal cost for their product is going to be about $130,000. Yes, exactly.
- Security is expensive these days, but it's far less expensive than a breach. Absolutely. I'd say next
- to payroll, IT is probably one of your biggest overheads for any, whether it's government or whether
- it's private business, and that's the unfortunate part of it. It only gets more expensive. We're all
- in the wrong business. I'm just saying.
- It would be great if they could give us more than three years at this price, seeing as what's going
- on. But I appreciate that you found the bargain and signed us up. And it sounds like a good plan. And
- we appreciate the protection of technical services infrastructure. So important. Let's see if there's
- any public comment on this item. You raise your hand on teams or come to the podium.
- Seeing none, all those in favor of approving the SHI Corp LUMU Defender Software Agreement, signify
- by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. Next. Approval for Smithville Internet Agreement for Highway
- Garage and Health Services, fund name County General, fund number 1,000 in the amount of $99,840. We
- have a motion and we have a second.
- It was noted just recently that our contract with Smithville for Internet services to these locations
- actually expired in November, so we were operating outside of contract. Smithville did not charge us
- a standard rate. They kept us on the contracted price even though that had expired, so we'd worked with
- them on that.
- One thing it's important to note because it says fiber agreements for highway garage and the health
- services building. This is not disservice to those locations. In the instance of the highway garage,
- you're supporting the highway garage, the emergency management building, the sheriff's reserve building.
- So these are for all our locations. That's just the main truncate point that it comes in at. During
- this process, it was noticed that we had a unnecessary, what was determined as an unnecessary redundancy
- in the system.
- So this is actually, this new agreement is a reduction. We were previously paying $2,800 a month for
- services to these locations, and that's now reducing that to $1,664. So we're actually seeing a $1,200
- a month savings going on to that. Excellent. Thank you so much. Comments or questions? Commissioner
- Madeira? I have none. This sounds wonderful, actually. And again, we know that
- This kind of access is expensive. We know that Smithville is a wonderful provider, and so we thank them
- for their continued partnership with the county. Commissioner Jones? No, I haven't. And I appreciate
- it's a local company. I think that makes a difference, and I think it's great that we can support them,
- and they can support us. All right, let's see if there's any public comment on this item, and thank
- you for saving us money. We hear the refrain.
- again and again. Thank you again. Any public comment? All those in favor of approving the Smithville
- Internet Agreement for the Highway Garage and Health Services signify by saying aye. Motion carries
- 3-0. Thank you. Next item, please.
- I would like to move approval for the Monroe County Parks and Monroe County Fair Board Memorandum of
- Understanding. Second. We have a motion and we have a second. Hello. This is a wonderful MOU. It's actually
- an updated from one that we had previously, and it doesn't require us to do anything. It doesn't require
- the Fair Board to do anything, just be great neighbors and to come to each other's need when need be.
- I think the Fair Board has been wonderful working with us on this project. Thank you. Comments or questions?
- Commissioner Jones? No, I don't. I'm glad that you cooperate with them. Commissioner Madeira? Nope,
- that's great. My neighbors get along. All right. Any public comment on this item? You raise your hand
- in teams or come to the podium?
- Seeing none, all those in favor of approving the Monroe County Parks and Monroe County Fair Board Memorandum
- of Understanding signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. Next item. I would like to move approval
- for the Halderman Farm Management Agreement for the farming lease on the Monroe County Nature Preserve
- Fund names county general food and beverage and parks non-reverting fund numbers 1,000 49 32 11 78 11
- 79 and 41 13 in an amount not to exceed $1,200 We have a motion and we have a second. Ms. Whitmer. Yes,
- the Halderman family are the Halderman farm management is going to manage about 100 acres on the Monroe
- County nature preserve It's a continuation of the farming lease per court order in
- Other than that, we've changed the calendar year, and this will be the last year for farming for harvest.
- Thank you so much. Comments or questions? Commissioner Madeira? None. Jones? Yeah, I was interested
- in the plant soybeans, not for harvest.
- Oh, that's next. Next slide. Oh, OK. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. More exciting for that one. We'll wait on
- that. OK. It did all run together. It does. It does. Yeah, for sure. No, I think this is excellent.
- You came and talked to us about this at a work session several weeks ago. I don't. Probably. I just
- have a hard time remembering dates now because time is.
- And that this is one good way to keep the property in good stead with trust and get us in a better position
- to manage parts of it for the public's enjoyment. There's a lot of benefits to this. One, we get half
- the profits.
- It keeps invasive species away on those hundred acres. So win-win All right, let's see if there's any
- public comment on this hand on teams or come to the podium All right, see none all those in favor of
- approving the Halderman for management agreement for farming lease on Monroe County Nature Preserve
- signify by saying aye and
- aye motion carries three zero and we'll move on to the next item please okay another farming topic to
- crop up um gentle farms llc service agreement i'd like to move approval for gentle farms llc service
- agreement from morrow county nature preserve fund name food and beverage fund numbers 4932 in an amount
- not to exceed six thousand five hundred dollars we have a motion and we have a second this is the soybean story
- Yes, this is actually very exciting and I'll be here next week to see you with more agreements from
- the US Fish and Wildlife and DNR and it's all one package. We are going to concentrate on the southern
- part of the nature preserve and we're going to take X amount of acres out on the southern part, not
- for harvest, but we're going to still need to put soybeans in there so we can prepare that for trees
- and grassland prairies.
- So everything works out really well. It's actually the same farmer that Haldeman will be hiring. And
- we also will be making trails through those areas, which means we don't have to worry about trampling
- someone else's crops because there are crops. They're the deer's crops, the little animals' crops. So
- it's a win-win. And U.S. Fish and Wildlife told us, the biologists, that soybeans are perfect to prep this
- for trees, and prep this for the grasslands that are coming in. So we're very excited, very excited.
- It's amazing how you're bringing all these things together. It's a puzzle, and it's fun. Spinning plates.
- All right. Comments or questions? Commissioner Jones. Well, I already kind of made my comment. This
- really is a good idea. The soybeans are going to be one of the best things to use for it.
- The number of ways that it'll help out are rather. Oh yeah. I mean, it's a win-win for the wildlife.
- It's a win-win for our trail making for grassland and for trees. If we're invasive, I mean, yeah, every
- time we're planning things, we're not, we're pushing invasive off. So, uh, commissioner, do you have
- comments or questions? So the animals will actually eat the soybeans. That's awesome.
- And I guess once they make the trails, it'll allow them to define the boundaries. So in a sense, the
- soybeans will mark where we intend the trails to go. Now, really, like say here's a farm field. We're
- going to make our trails in the farm fields. We're going to put a grassland within or trees within.
- So we're building
- People keep asking me, are you gonna build trails in the forest? No, we're doing it the opposite way.
- We're building trails and then putting the forest and the grasslands in the middle and around. So it's
- just more efficient to do it in a field than going through established older trees in a ravine. And
- then when we're making our trails,
- they're not being harvest, we don't have to worry about, oh, we shouldn't trample that because it's
- supposed to be harvest. And when I mean trample, we're making a path. We're not just willy-nilly driving
- all over the place. Right. Right. That makes complete sense. Thank you. I appreciate your work on this
- really good soil enrichment and everything else. Let's see if there's any public comment on this item.
- You raise your hand on teams or come to the podium.
- Seeing none, all those in favor of approving the Jet L Farms LLC service agreement for Monroe County
- Nature Preserve signified by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. Thank you so much. I'll see you next
- week with more details on the grasslands and the trees. It'll be even more exciting. Perfect.
- Thank you. Excellent. All right. Next item, please.
- Yes, I'd like to move to approve ordinance 2026-13 to amend the Monroe County code chapter 287, election
- administration. Fund name election, fund number 1215. Second. All right, we have a motion and we have
- a second. Governor King, good morning. Good morning. What's before you is an ordinance that amends the
- election administration code in the Monroe County code pursuant to Indiana code
- The commissioners set some of the compensation for absentee board workers and the council set some.
- And for two particular groups, the counters and the couriers, their compensation is set by the commissioners.
- So what the amendment does is to provide counters and couriers who do work on election day sometimes
- the same amount
- the same meal allowance that the precinct election workers get. And I've copied the exact same language
- in the code that is there for the precinct election workers. So it sets a not to exceed amount and then
- delegates the authority to the election board to send the exact amount. All right, comments or questions?
- Commissioner Madeira? No, I think this is good because these individuals also should have those types
- of benefits and that
- leaves the purview within the people who should exercise that purview. Thank you. Yeah, that's just
- a good idea. Thank you. Yeah, I fully support this. This was approved by the County Council on Tuesday.
- The County Council approved their set of absentee workers. Oh, OK. It's a different set, but it's the
- same concept. That was what I got confused about. OK, perfect. Thank you so much. All right.
- Let's see if there's any public comment on this item. You raise your hand on teams or come to the podium.
- None. All those in favor of approving ordinance 2026-13 signify by saying aye. Motion carries three
- zero. Thank you. Next item please.
- I would like to move approval for sound management LLC for digital and radio advertisements for the
- 2026 election cycles. Fund name election, fund number 1215 in the amount of $6,003. Second. We have
- a motion and we have a second. Clerk Brown, thank you for joining. I don't know how you got away. Barely,
- just barely. They let you dig out with a spoon. A little bit. Oh my gosh. Well, welcome. We won't keep
- you. Thank you. I appreciate that.
- commissioners this um request is similar to ones that you've received in the past where we use a number
- of avenues to let the public know that early and absentee voting are underway and so um it is similar
- to what you've signed before and i am prayerful that you will sign it because if i can call them as
- soon as i leave here that will start asap and whatever we don't get used
- during up to the primary and through election day will roll over and there will be more advertising
- then for the general election. Perfect. Thank you so much. All right. Comments or questions? Commissioner
- Jones? No, I don't. Commissioner Madero? No. Thank you so much. This is a vital function. Absolutely.
- Yeah. Thank you for bringing this forward. Let's see if there's any public comment on this item. You
- raise your hand on Teams or come to the podium. And while we're waiting, we've had very successful early vote.
- Well, I thought I was going to wait until you took your vote, but I thought you might like to know that
- as of ten o'clock, just before I walked over for this meeting, we had three thousand three hundred and
- fifty five total check ins. And that's just your in person. We are also, of course,
- We've sent out mail ballots and overseas military and our travel board has started. If you look back
- to 2022 as well as 2018, we are setting history in Monroe County, not unlike what you're seeing as you
- watch the news in other counties. And so the numbers don't sound high like it would in a presidential
- election. But in terms of comparing those numbers to previous, we are having a historical turnout. And
- this is a wonderful time to plug
- all the people that are over there. I check in every day with them. They're asking for donuts. I am
- getting those with my own personal money to make sure that they have some sustenance. But we're incredibly
- grateful. I have not heard of any negative experiences in terms of voting. The only issues that I've
- had, if you are able to intercede on our behalf, is if you put
- 501 North Morton into your GIS or GPS on your phone. It is taking you around to the city side. So that
- is confusing some voters. And I don't know how to fix that. I did it myself while I was sitting in 501
- North Morton and it wanted me to take this long. There's actually a way to do that. And I think if we
- let Greg know, he knows what to do.
- Because you can actually do a report to Google. We can do a report to Apple depending on which it is.
- But if we hand it off to Greg, let's see what we can get done. And then the only other thing is our
- training upstairs for our
- our election day poll workers, there are still areas of the floor outside of that where the floor is
- higher in some areas and lower in others. So far, we have not had anyone to, you know, experience any
- harm or danger, but of course, that is concerning, you know, and so if there's anything that can be
- done about that. All right, we'll do that. OK, thank you. Let's go ahead and say we're waiting for public
- comment. Did get any?
- Um, all those in, uh, favor of approving the sound management LLC agreement for digital radio advertisements
- signified by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries three zero. And would you please share with the public
- the remaining early voting hours? Absolutely. Um, so this is the last week ahead of well, Monday until
- noon, but the rest of this week, um, 8 AM to 6 PM.
- all you have to have is your government issued photo identification such as your driver's license or
- a passport and you will be issued the ballot that you would have been issued at your polling site on
- election day on we do have Saturday voting this is the second Saturday that is nine a.m. to four p.m.
- and then Monday eight a.m. until noon if you do not vote by noon on Monday you will report to your
- a sign polling site. I am hopeful that every voter that has experienced a change in their polling location,
- I believe the article said 13% of Monroe County voters has received the postcards that we sent out.
- We also sent out a postcard that gives you the three different ways that you can vote in person, mail,
- travel board, in addition to early in person voting. And so that is
- what we have until you report at six a.m. on election day and we appreciate the I believe it is three
- point seven percent of Monroe County voters who have already turned out and we've got an incredible
- team of people waiting for anyone else who wishes to vote we're ready for you excellent excellent and
- yes and election day is six a.m. to six p.m. because Indiana thinks we're all still farmers anyway
- of us are. Yeah, it works for you. All right. Thank you so much. We appreciate you coming. Have a great
- day. You too. All right. Next item, please. I would like to move to approve ratification of authorization
- to execute documents to participate in the six remnant defendants opioid settlement, fund name, opioid
- settlement, and the amount of percentage of payment.
- We have a motion, and we have a second, and we have Mr. Roddy joining us to tell us all about it. Good
- morning. Yes, morning. As the commissioner is aware, there's been a class action suit with numerous
- opioid distributors, dispensers. The county's received money from other defendants in this before. There's
- since been a new settlement with what's called six remnant defendants. They're listed below. We have
- to opt in by May 4th, which is Monday.
- Mr. Cockrell was actually the one who is the authorized signator. So he was the one that signed this
- agreement. It has been submitted to the attorneys we have on retainer to submit this then to the settlement
- class. So we're here today just for ratification of the opt-in. Okay, thank you so much. So comments
- or questions, Commissioner Medeira?
- I have none. This is one of those things that we just have to get done. It's incredibly important and
- moving forward. Mr. Jones? No, I have no question. We heard about this last week. So it makes perfect
- sense. And the state has determined how this money can be spent in terms of treatment.
- prevention, et cetera. So it's not just free money. It actually has to help alleviate the problem that
- folks like this cause. All right, let's see if there's any public comment on this. Raise your hand on
- teams or come to the podium. None.
- All those in favor of ratifying the authorization to execute documents participate in the six remnant
- defendants opioid settlement signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries three zero. Thank you. And we'll
- move on now to item N. I'd like to move approval for item N resolution 2026-14 building code interlocal
- agreement. Second. We have a motion and we have a second and we have Mr. Schilling joining us.
- Thank you very much Dave Schilling from the legal department presenting to you resolution 2026 14 the
- approval of this resolution would approve and amend and extend the building code local between the city
- and the county and it would authorize the president the commissioners to sign the agreement on behalf
- this interlocal documents
- also have to be approved by either the local council or by the attorney general and the county council
- approved this Tuesday. So this agreement is a renewal of one that has been in place since 1995. Over
- the last 30 years, the city and the county have met on numerous occasions.
- the agreement to reflect changes in the statutes, changes in software capabilities, and this practice
- is specifically called for in the agreement because both parties recognize this continuous maintenance
- of an agreement
- important to the health of these long-term agreements. And with respect to the changes and the extensions,
- Building Commissioner Robert LaRue suggested five or five changes about the city agreed to four. One
- that changes relates to a state law requirement for stop work orders. The city had
- previously has always required us to respect their waiver, a waiver of fees on certain projects and
- we just ask them to present us a written statement as to which projects are going to be available for
- that. We have payments that
- agreement had previously called for being paid quarterly to the city fees collected being paid quarterly
- to the city. I think for years, that's been done monthly. So that change was added to the agreement.
- Like the actual we have extension is now for five years, the term of this agreement is five years. And
- that's the way it traditionally had been buried where it went to
- for maybe three or four years. This is back to five years, but the parties have the opportunity to terminate
- the agreement back to the following year if the termination notice is provided before July 1, and that
- will give both parties, that's the budget process beginning for both parties, and so they will be able
- to respond to any budget impacts, gather that information,
- And so that's the agreement, and we present that to you for your approval. Thank you so much. Comments
- or questions? Commissioner Jones? I know I've heard before. Commissioner Madeira? No, I have none.
- And again, because it is so flexible, I think that's a key provision. So thank you. I'm not worried
- about the five years because of that ability to
- to notice rescind the agreement if necessary. I have sort of a technical question. If the city wants
- the fees for inspection services and permitting waived on a particular property, that doesn't happen.
- No. So Mr. LaRue is shaking his head behind you. So that's why I'm looking. So maybe I'll ask him what
- the fee waiver involves.
- The fee waiver is a city fee and not the building permit. Okay. So it's just the city saying we're not
- charging you, but you still have to pay you for the work being done in our building department. Okay.
- Perfect. Thank you. That's why I needed clarification. All right. Excellent. If there's any public comment
- on this item, raise your hand on teams.
- to the podium. Our building commissioner is here. I don't know, Mr. LeRoux, if you have anything you
- want to add. I wanted to be here in case you had questions. And I do. Yeah, the fee waiver, it's been
- in the ordinance for a long time. It has.
- we have never received any documentation about about not collecting on behalf of the city because that's
- we do collect their certificate of zoning compliance fees at the time of issuance of the building permit
- and so I just asked for clarification as when this is supposed to be in place and if you could write
- me a letter so we can put it in our in our permit application so everybody understands what happens
- perfect great thank you so much
- And I know in the past we've had the renewals of these agreements more often annually because we were
- getting new software and instituting that and the city has software and we have software and do they
- talk to me? It's been a process, but overall this is another example of city county cooperation and
- how important it is for both entities. So yeah, please.
- So you all are aware that state law changes a bunch that affects our departments. The city, class two
- structures for single family homes, duplexes and townhouses, there's a mandated new process. City, the
- softwares don't need to talk to each other. City does what it needs to do, produces a document that
- we receive and we do what we need to do after
- after we receive that document. Commercially, class one structures, it works different. It's the same
- process. I think our process is better than what the state has prescribed. Same process, class one.
- And the city's been fantastic about utilizing OpenGov to receive documents and provide the things that
- we need there to properly administer those.
- That's been working great, and it allowed to get a whole section out of the interlocal about who's shuttling
- what, when, where, and how, right? Yes, yes. Thank you so much. And I don't see any public comment.
- So all those in favor of approving resolution 2026-14 signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0.
- Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you both for being here. Excited, please.
- I would like to move approval for Ordinance 2026-16, amending the Monroe County Code Chapter 270 for
- the Rainy Day Fund. We have a motion. We have a second. We have our auditor, Ms. Gregory, joining us.
- It's like the parade of department heads and elected officials today, and it's lovely to see. Good morning.
- Good morning. Thank you for having me. So I'm here today just asking for your approval of the slight
- adjustments to the Monroe County Code.
- your weather has become more and more common and the associated damage. We are trying to bridge the
- gap between insurance reimbursements and being able to expend and pay for services immediately. So here
- we come with the rainy day fund to be put to that use and the two very minimal updates just allow for the money
- received from reimbursements to go back into the fund where the expenses originated, which will be rainy
- day in this case, of course. And then it also just provides a little direction for how departments access
- this funding, which would be through the county. Thank you so much. Comments or questions, Commissioner
- Madeira? I know this makes perfect sense. And again, the airport insurance has proven to be, I think,
- more expensive than anyone figured as well.
- And so when we have these unexpected costs, I think it's very important to be flexible in how we pay
- for them. Thank you. This makes sense because we are getting large reimbursements from the insurance
- company and the cost of those repairs is
- is huge. It really is big. And I'm grateful that it's being taken care of. Mr. Labarty is managing that
- part of it. And this will help ensure that we are spending the money out, but then getting our reimbursement
- back in, and we're not actually touching the rainy day fund in the long term. Just short. And after
- all, it is called the rainy day fund. It is. Yeah. And it didn't say tornado day fund. I think we need
- a new tornado day fund.
- Unfortunately, we do. All right. If it goes out, then it must come in. Yes. Yes, for sure. All right.
- Let's see if there's any public comment on this item. You can raise your hand on Teams or come to the
- podium. Seeing none, all those in favor of approving ordinance 2026-16 signified by saying aye.
- Aye. Motion passes 3-0. Thank you again for being here. Next item please. I would like to move approval
- for ordinance 2026-14 to amend ordinance stop 86-06 and no trucks 89-01. We have a motion and we have
- a second. Ms. Ridd. Good morning.
- Um, so we, uh, had these requests taken to the traffic commission board and they were unanimous, unanimous
- approved. Um, so it's no trucks on Fluck Mill road due to the, um, uh, the bridge that is overhead.
- And then to delete the stop sign at Bell's road for Kinzer Pike, the stop sign will still remain, but
- it's actually a city intersection. So it does not need to be an art ordinance. So housekeeping item.
- Excellent, thank you. Comments or questions? Commissioner Madeira? No, thank you. Any public comment
- on this item? Raise your hand on teams or come to the podium. Seeing none, all those in favor of approving
- ordinance 2026-14 signify by saying aye.
- I motion carries a three zero next item please yes I would like to move to approve in dot change order
- number nine for Fullerton Pike phase three but name Fullerton Pike fund number forty nine twenty two
- in the amount of one thousand nine hundred and forty dollars and eighty two sets we have a motion we
- have a second we have
- So after the mailboxes that were installed in some of the areas, it was brought to our attention that
- the mail carrier was having to back up into traffic to be able to meander in the area. So actually we
- approved the contractor to adjust the locations of those mailboxes. So it was for the safety of the
- mail carrier to take this change order on. Thank you so much. Comments or questions, Commissioner Jones?
- No, thank you. I don't have any either. I think it's smart move. It's safety issue for everyone. Let's
- see if there's any public comment on this item. Raise your hand in teams or come to the podium. That's
- postal service would be given priority. All right. All those in favor of approving the change order
- number nine for Fulton Pike phase three signify by saying aye. Motion carries three zero.
- Next item, please. In our last, connect the end dots item today. I'd like to move to approve and not
- change order number five for Vernal Pike Sunrise Greetings Road Bridge Project Fund Name Westside TIF
- Fund number 4920 in the amount of $10,672 and 26 cents. We have a motion. We have a second. Ms. Ridge.
- This change order was due to making some adjustments to the railing for the current specifications as
- they are when it was constructed.
- So, that was the need for this change order on the project. Thank you so much. Comments or questions?
- Commissioner Madera? No. Commissioner Jones? No, I don't. I thought those railings were pretty tall,
- but they look tall. They do look tall. They're just tall. But they're still too short. All right. Let's
- see if there's any comment on this item.
- Seeing none, all those in favor of approving change order number five for Vernal Pike Sunrise Greetings
- Road Bridge Project, signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. I think we're at a good point where
- we can take a quick break here. Just a short recess. Let's say we'll be back 11. Let's say 11.
- Is that good? 1125? All right, so we are going to be in recess until 1125. Thank you, everyone. We are
- in recess. I'm gonna call us back to order, yes? Good? Yes. Excellent. We will move on to item S, please.
- Yes, I would like to move approval for the purchase agreement for the justice complex in North Park.
- Funded it.
- ban and edit fund numbers 4816 and 1112 in the amount of $11,375,000. All right, we have a motion and
- a second. Where do we want to start with this? Mr. Beratti, do you want to start or? I can. This is
- a purchase agreement for North Park. This is similar in substance to the one that was presented
- for the commissioners. I believe it was last year. The only major changes that have occurred and it's
- pretty can correct me if I'm wrong, but obviously the operative dates for closing and things of that,
- as well as due diligence periods have changed. There's a small change with regard to what is referred
- to on the property. And then also we are under the new terms of the contract allowed to build just a
- jail, not a complete complex, although we could eventually build
- I will note that the purchase price has remained unchanged. Yeah, because it was based on appraisals.
- And they're still active. In other words, the appraisals are still good because it's been within a certain
- time period. Thank you, Ms. Purdy. You want to add anything? No. OK. You got it all right? All right.
- So yes, so this does not require
- the entire justice complex to be at least bit out before the jail can open as the previous purchase
- agreement had on it. And we appreciate the seller's flexibility and kind of open it up to see what my
- colleagues want to add here. Do you want to reference this, the amended
- private settlement agreement that has brought us here? Yes. We can certainly have that discussion because
- we do have a timeline that have occurred
- Um, so, uh, December, um, 2025, um, the fault agreed to a private settlement agreement to extend our
- deadline for getting something done or started to April 15th. And then we had joint meetings with the
- council, the county council in January and February, which the minutes were just on the agenda, which is weird.
- to continue discussions about that project with that April deadline in mind. There was general agreement
- that indeed the current facility is unconstitutional. And no, it cannot be renovated yet. Somehow all
- of these things have come back to light again, and that's mystifying. And talks stalled on questions
- of multi-floor, single-floor,
- Et cetera. The council then passed a resolution, I don't remember the date, but it was a resolution
- that set April 7th as their own internal deadline to complete site selection and identify funding. Well,
- in a sense, that resolution itself identified funding because it shows existing revenue captured plus
- future revenue
- will exceed $170 million, which is more than we think ballpark-wise, a new jail-only facility will cost.
- So in a way, they already did address that. That's why they asked for it to be attached. Yeah. But it
- did say that April 7th, site selection and funding identified. Well, funding's been identified.
- But here was that date and it came and went and we had executive sessions and they missed their deadline.
- Meetings with Mr. Falk. Yes, we had meetings with Mr. Falk, a couple of them. And in one of those meetings,
- a council member said, could we get 30 more days? Sheriff didn't ask, we didn't ask, I didn't ask, I
- was the only one there. By state statute, by state law,
- I was the only one who could be there. And they asked for 30 days and he agreed. So now we're looking
- at the end of May as the new deadline from the ACLU. So the private settlement agreement is in a sense
- putting on hold the lawsuit again, the lawsuit from 2009. And that lawsuit was filed against the board
- of commissioners and the sheriff of Monroe County, not against the council. So we were,
- The council had already missed their April 7th deadline and we were on the verge of, as a county, missing
- the April 15th deadline. And I, for one, and I think my colleagues would probably agree, I'm grateful
- and I feel like we're lucky and fortunate that Mr. Falk agreed to extend the deadline because nothing
- was happening. And yeah, but we have more to do and we can,
- talk through that as well, if anybody would like. We had originally approved North Park with the other
- contingencies on it because we had thought at the time before the state legislature in its infinite
- wisdom made it impossible, we thought at the time that we could build a co-located facility with LIT.
- et cetera, and then the legislature did what they did. But that had been approved in October of 23.
- No, 4. 24 by the council. And in that process, after October 24, DLZ continued to work. They'd already
- done the programmatic questions, you know, how much space does each department need, what do they need
- it for, et cetera. But it was really time to put that design together.
- And Scott Carnegie from DLC is here today if my colleagues have questions. But then there was that process
- of reducing the budget because we came in over the 225 benchmark that we had said we wanted to stay
- under. And when that happened, we got back to the drawing board with every unhappy department and county
- government because everything had to be cut. And cuts were made and we were back down
- to 225. And all of this work was done over $4 million worth of design work based on the fact that nobody
- in the council said, nope, we don't want North Park. We went based on their previous vote saying, yes,
- let's move forward with this purchase agreement. How are we to know they changed their minds? So when
- the vote came last October that said, nope, we're not interested in North Park.
- No reasons, they keep saying they've said, but they haven't. And that's why we're where we are. As we've
- looked at this whole process, we have had to look at all these different priorities. Some costs part
- of it, but most of it having to do with single floor location,
- room to expand the courts if needed, et cetera. Transit, where it fits in the community, listening to
- the residents. We've gone out and had meetings with residents at three of the locations as we went further
- into the study process for those locations and those years ago. And time was always there as an issue,
- like how quickly can we get this done?
- But given the ACL lawsuit, time is now the priority, right? It's jumped way up because a building will
- take a certain amount of time to build no matter what. But the problem is all these other lots and sites
- and things don't meet the requirements of time. There is no possible way to meet
- the ACLU's deadline. And based on what the community could see in Mr. Falk's interview and the Herald
- Times, and I can attest to, I can attest to his mood at these meetings, he's done playing around. We
- 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
- accept it personally. And I think he made that very clear in the interview. So I don't feel like I'm,
- telling secrets out of school here. But that's why we're in the position we're in. And no site is perfect.
- If somebody is looking for the perfect site, they will do what has been done. They will dither and dither
- and dither, paralysis by analysis, and nothing will get done. Meanwhile, we have inmates who do not
- receive constitutional care in our facility. And to me, that's part of that time priority.
- and it needs to be brought back up to the top again as well. I would like to hear from my colleagues
- on this because we do have a lot to say. A lot of things have been said without us there. Are we gonna
- take that time at the end of the meeting or would you like to take that time now? I think you should
- do that now.
- I think this is a good time to talk through our options and what's going on. I think for the public
- certification, I think it's a good time. So I think that much of what I've said, I've already said publicly
- in various comments on social media.
- I think this is a difficult moment for Monroe County government. I think the issues before us are serious
- and the stakes are high and the decisions are being asked to make will affect taxpayers and public safety
- and people housing or jail and county employees and service providers and our broader community actually
- for decades. But it's because these stakes are so high.
- that we have to approach the decisions we must make regarding the jail and extension agreement with
- collegiality, with respect, and with a shared commitment to public service. And I think reasonable people
- can disagree about the process, the timing, location, costs, and policy. These types of disagreements
- aren't only expected in local government. They're part of healthy democratic decision making. But there
- is too much at stake to let disagreement become distrust or give rise to personal accusations.
- And it can't prevent us from doing the work that the public elected us to do. Also, we have to see the
- path forward more clearly by looking ahead. We stumble if we continuously look back over our shoulders.
- The 17-year history of this must be a hand on the back that shoves us forward and not a grip on our
- shoulder that holds us back. So I'm going to vote today actually for this purchase agreement.
- And I think, as my colleague Commissioner Thomas said, it shows that we're moving forward in good faith.
- that we're understanding that Monroe County remains under a serious legal threat and that we have serious
- legal obligations relating to this jail's unconstitutional condition. So this extension agreement, thank
- God we got it, it reflects the reality that our county must continue moving forward towards a workable
- solution. It also reflects the urgent need for both us as commissioners and the council to make decisions
- within a defined timeframe.
- including the requirement that we both approve a purchase agreement by the May 29th deadline. But no
- one should mistake this urgency for coercion. This urgency comes from the human rights of the inmates
- in our jail, from the jail conditions, from the risks to county employees, and from the risks of renewed
- litigation. We as commissioners did not create these realities. We're just acknowledging them. We're
- attempting to manage them responsibly.
- Our mutual goal is to work together to avoid a lawsuit if that can be done reasonably and responsibly.
- Litigation won't build a jail, and it won't improve conditions for the people incarcerated in the county.
- It won't expand programming, treatment, reentry services, or transportation. It won't save taxpayer
- money. Instead, it would consume taxpayer dollars and other public resources that could otherwise go
- towards these ends.
- It will increase uncertainty and it will place critical decisions in a judge's hands rather than the
- county's. That's why collegiality matters and why we must embrace it now more than ever. Collegiality
- doesn't mean constant agreement and it doesn't mean silence or abandoning our deeply held concerns.
- It just means that we pledge to keep listening, sharing information and working together from a shared
- premise that everyone
- at the table has a responsibility first and foremost to inmates and second to Monroe County residents
- to get this job done. Respect matters as well. The public deserves to see hard issues debated fully
- and honestly without the debate becoming one in which integrity itself is called into question. Disagreements
- are inevitable in public service. Wars of words and public labels are especially serious for elected
- officials and licensed professionals
- since reputational harm can carry consequences beyond the political moment into our professional lives.
- We have to ask those hard questions. We have to demand financial clarity. We have to insist on transparency.
- We have to scrutinize provisions of agreements, and we have to do so in a way that preserves trust and
- keeps communication open and temperatures down. But we also need courage. It's far easier to delay,
- accuse, and retreat into procedural conflict or wait for someone else to make that hard decision.
- Leadership requires us to confront the hard facts in front of us and insist on answers. It means creatively
- chasing not only the either or option, but the both and. The current jail isn't functioning
- as a constitutional facility. The county faces real legal exposure if we fail to act, and we now know
- the terms. The extension agreement and the May 29th deadline isn't an abstract date. It's part of a
- negotiated effort to keep us moving forward and out of court.
- So today's purchase agreement is a large step towards that effort, even as we continue conversations
- with our city partners and explore other options towards avoiding this lawsuit. So as we move forward,
- it doesn't mean that we ignore these concerns. It means that we identify them and address them seriously.
- If there are questions about transportation to North Park, we will answer them. If there are concerns
- about access to services, we will discuss how to build those services into the plan.
- If there are reservations about costs, we have to discuss them openly. We will address plans for design,
- programming, staff, and long-term operations. These two will be part of the public conversation. The
- commissioners and council have different roles, but we're all part of the same county government. The
- county and city governments have had different spheres of authority, but we're both charged with safeguarding
- our communal wellbeing. Our constituents don't benefit when we act as adversaries.
- They benefit when we solve problems together, when we recognize that no single office, no single branch,
- and no single elected official can solve this issue alone. So this isn't a time for division, it's a
- time for steady leadership, for lowering the temperature and focusing on facts and working together
- at the issues at hand. We can disagree with that becoming dysfunctional and that's what our public service
- requires and what we remain committed to doing. So let's get this done and get this done right because
- we have so much more that we all need to do together.
- Thank you. Sorry I took so many words to say it. No, I appreciate it. Thank you. Did you want to add
- anything at the moment? Well, I agree with everything that my colleagues have said so far. I'd just
- like to say that I think that the people who keep on being forgotten in this discussion or ignored or
- unimportant
- are the people who are in our jail. I can't imagine what they think watching these arguments go on that
- to them must seem pretty petty. It's just really sad that we have forgotten apparently about that population
- that is suffering
- this time and we aren't actively moving forward to do that. Thank you. That's well said. I would add
- here a couple of things too because we've been hearing a lot.
- One of the things that we've heard is that members of the council have stated that the parameters of
- the private settlement agreement was established without their input. Yes, that is true. Why? Because
- they are not party to the lawsuit. It was up to us to work with the sheriff to agree to the private
- settlement agreement. Yet it was a county council member who had asked for that 30 day, it turned out
- to be about 45 days, but that 30 day extension.
- And again, thank goodness. Thank goodness we got that. I think it's been very clear. He says he's done
- playing games. This is it. But to use terminology like lies and coercion, I think, is a real disservice
- to the process. And it doesn't fit. It sets a terrible example for our community.
- It does nothing to address, as Commissioner Jones pointed out, the lack of constitutional care in her
- jail. It just undermines our government processes. We have systemic issues that have to be addressed,
- and I think it's become clear that these issues need to be addressed. Our staff has been disrespected,
- and I appreciate what Commissioner Madeira said. If a staff member says to a group of
- elected officials, we spoke with X and received information Y. That statement should be taken on good
- faith. Automatically doubting it, interrogating it, demanding proof damages morale of Monroe County
- employees who are dedicated and work so hard every day for this community. It also undermines claims
- of collaboration. Sowing distrust is destructive and there is no
- place for it. We expected as well. This is not a competition or rivalry. We will not always agree and
- we shouldn't. But we should speak with one another rather than speaking about someone else. Yet here
- I am speaking about someone else. But I feel like the time has passed. I have let this go on long enough.
- And I will not let it go on anymore.
- And I will call it out as I see it. There were even some things mentioned Tuesday by council members
- that suggested an assumption that we as a board are not to be trusted. You know, there's no place for
- this. What benefit does this bring? This malignancy of disrespect has infected the public discourse
- and public media, social media, public meetings,
- and you know, social media, get behind a keyboard, you're anonymous, you can say whatever you want,
- it doesn't have to be true, and most times it's not. The people in Monroe County need to know that we
- are more interested in solving the problem than scoring political points. So I've joined my colleagues
- in asking our colleagues on the county council to lower the temperature here. Let's focus on
- the project. We've tried to. Now I've had to point this out at a public meeting and I will do it at
- every opportunity here after. Because our staff deserves. So. Here's the thing. I appreciate that the
- city is interested in this project. A lot on their plate. You know we we just kind of
- They've got to figure out the Convention Center Hotel. They've got Hopewell. I don't know what's going
- on with that. They've got a lot going on. Great, thank you for your interest. But here's the thing.
- There were things said at the meeting last week at the City Council that need to be addressed because
- something gets said just flippantly off the cuff
- build a little fear or to get people excited or ginned up for something. And it turns out to not be
- true. It takes so long to dispel that. So I'd like to take a shot at dispelling some of the things that
- we heard. And I invite my colleagues to chime in if they heard something I didn't, because there was
- a lot that was said. At one point, a city council member claimed that this project, co-located project,
- was going to cost each resident of Monroe County $5,000.
- Well, even with a low ballpark census number, that's $800 million. No, we are not talking about $5,000
- per person. There are questions about the facility size. Well, if you build it big, you'll fill it.
- There is a functional bed space with a 400-bed facility, and that's about 323 beds. It allows
- the jail staff to separate out felon misdemeanance, to acknowledge gender identity, it allows them that
- ability that they don't have now, the way they should. And this number came out of multiple studies
- conducted by this county as the
- number that we should aim for, and ACLU has accepted that number. Now, Vigo County, just a few years
- ago, we went to Vigo County with DLZ and some of their staff to look at their jail. It was almost ready
- to open. And I heard a little murmuring from somebody who was on the tour from Vigo County who said
- something along the lines of, well, the county council cut the budget. And I didn't think much of it,
- because I'd heard that every single jail
- We toured. We heard that, right? We heard that in Arizona. We heard that in Kentucky. We heard that
- everywhere. So I didn't really pay much attention, but it turns out that their jail is actually too
- small. And they are now being forced to build it in Vigo County. So there is a danger in building it
- too small. And not something I think any of us feels like doing.
- Again, we cannot renovate the current site. I was kind of mystified that people were talking about it
- on the city council and acting as though nobody had thought about it at the county. And yes, we've done
- our due diligence. We have supporting documents on our website. So no, we don't need a copy of that
- study because that's where that study came from was our website. So we're good.
- And I also want to make it clear to all the residents of Monroe County, despite the fear mongering of
- $5,000 per person, this is actually a tax, a local income tax that is already being collected. There
- is some that has been set in reserve. The City Council, by the way, is the one who passed this tax increase
- in 2022. Thank you, City Council. So yes, thank you for your help. We appreciate it. And that income tax,
- money has been collected, set aside, that plus future tax revenues will pay for a new jail. I can say
- for me, and I don't know how my colleagues feel, but obviously with the way the legislature is and the
- way they're changing all of the tax structures, after 2029, when everything switches over and the sky
- opens up or the earth opens up, and I'm not sure which,
- We will, I want us to talk about co-location because to me, I know this is Mr. Falk's interest and our
- sheriff's interest. It's in our interest to get this jail done, to provide constitutional care.
- But long-term, there's a huge cost to keeping two buildings going when you really only need one. I would
- like us to pursue co-location at the appropriate time and finish this project the way it should be.
- That's another battle for another day. But just to be clear to everyone, this is not a new tax. This
- is a tax that's already being collected and it will cover the cost of building a jail facility and purchasing
- the property. So to my city friends, thank you for your interest. Here's what we need your help with.
- We do need to provide transit. Now we're already providing you transit thanks to rural transit.
- as a shadow service to the urbanized areas outside of Monroe County. We're already doing that. And the
- council supported it. Thank you, council, county council. And great, we're already doing that. We can
- figure out a way to make a route to go anywhere in the county, including North Park. It can be done.
- If BT wants to help us, Bloomington Transit, great, let's talk about it. That's something the city can
- help us with.
- The other thing the city can help us with, and my colleague, Commissioner Madeira, can speak to this
- more directly, is with opioid funding. We just heard today about more funds coming our way. We have
- this pile of opioid funding. It's limited in how it can be spent. Why can't the county and the city
- get together, share the money, and provide substance use disorder treatment, inpatient, outpatient,
- mental health treatment? Why can't we use the money for that?
- That would be a help to Monroe County government. That would be a help to every resident of this county.
- Every resident. And it would help keep our incarceration rate down. Great. Let's do that. Just because
- the cells are there doesn't mean they're going to be full. And they don't have to be full. But this
- is a priority now. And again, time has floated to the very top of the priority list. We can't wait.
- We cannot wait.
- When the council rejected North Park again, didn't know. Oh, why? Heard things, nothing directly. There
- was an effort then by the county council to rehash everything. Start from square one and let's look
- at every property again. Well, we've done that. We've done our homework. We've been doing the homework.
- We've been doing the research. The properties that may have worked had studies, environmental studies
- done on them.
- We talked about where designs could go and what's going on. We've done that, but we said, fine, let's
- go back and do it again. And we did it again. And guess what? We're at the exact same place minus six
- months. This has to stop. Now, I'd like to say a few words about the other sites because I think
- That's something the public may be interested in. Fullerton Pike near the corner of I-69 was one of
- the sites we've looked at. We spent about, DLZ developed a basic design. We did a petition. We went,
- because it's in the city of Bloomington, we went to city planning, went to the city council and didn't
- see anybody.
- I had one, there was one county council member showed up at one meeting, but we were there to fight
- for it, to ask for a rezone so we could put a jail and criminal justice facility there. We lost a year
- of time, the vote was no. Different mayor, different city council, that's fine, but that was a year.
- This is how things get backed up the way they get backed up. Because while you're doing that, you kind of,
- put all your eggs in that basket because you can't just put in six petitions for six different sites
- and you know you you one at a time you have to do it and that takes time and it's further from downtown
- Bloomington where we sit right now than North Park is it's in the city well what does that get you a
- longer commute a longer drive there's nothing else there what's the benefit I don't know
- We own Thompson. We own that property. That's a huge plus. And we recently spoke with, the last few
- months, we spoke with city planning, who told us that it will take six to nine months to get a petition
- through city planning and the city council. And that's because, and we would first have to do a design
- and a petition, which would take probably a month. I don't know.
- just to get the proposal in front of the city officials. There is no way to shorten that process. My
- friends in the city seem to think like, well, maybe there's some way we could do this. And without being
- undemocratic, there's no way to do that. You have to go through that process. It's a public process
- with public input. I cannot imagine that they're claiming they can just
- make a decision about planning. I imagine developers will line up around the block for that deal if
- they don't have to have the democratic public process engaged. Mr. Falk stated clearly he will not be
- okay with another entity, i.e. the city of Bloomington, making a decision for us to be in a position
- to make a decision about whether or not we get that jail site. And there's no guarantees that that would
- happen. Now let's say, let's just say that worked out.
- Let's say that Ken Fahl decided for some reason that he's okay waiting another year to see if that works.
- We have other questions about that property that need to be addressed. And now we did get some good
- news from the city about some of the slope issues and the potential for a different roadway, which would
- eliminate us having to buy a million other piece of property to access Thompson. So there was some good
- news in there. And I had a couple of weeks of hope that things would get better.
- and that there was a possibility. Not my favorite spot, but fine, let's go for it. But we still have
- cars features to deal with. We still have the timing of the construction of the road from the summit
- development into Thompson, which we can't control and the city really can't control. We have the issue
- of fill dirt and most traveling. And the thing that will take the longest is we have to have high voltage
- power lines moved, which Duke Energy says will take at least a year and a half. And that, of course,
- isn't free either. None of these are free.
- Um, we know from our work in highway, if you look at the Fullerton project, you look at the sample road
- project, we always struggle a bit with some of our utility providers, especially electrical providers,
- because they have other priorities. So a year and a half would be very optimistic. Well, let's take
- that. So even if everything worked out perfectly, we would be years away from breaking ground.
- Are you going to tell that to an inmate who is not receiving constitutional care? Well, I just really
- want this in the city. Is that worthwhile? North cart shovel ready, shovel ready. I never say that,
- but I did say that shovel ready. It can go out to bid this year. Construction can begin early 2027.
- First law potentially.
- It could be open. The jail could be open by 2030. Now, this would be a facility that, and I'm looking
- at Scott Carnegie who's like, yeah, if everything goes well, yeah. I mean, there's weather. There's
- all kinds of things that can happen. But that's the hope. That's the hope. It's doable. It's not guaranteed,
- right? And I hope I've said that correctly, Mr. Carnegie, that it's doable, but it's not guaranteed
- that it would happen.
- Um, we, um, the, the purchase agreement needs to be done before Mr. Falk's deadline at the end of May.
- The council needs to initiate the bonding process by July. The bond has to be completed by the end of
- July. End of December. Sorry. December of the year. Sorry. Everybody's looking at me like, oh no. Sorry.
- It's a lot here.
- We can figure out transit. We will figure out transit. We've done it already. We can do it again. We'll
- figure out transit. I mean, one of the things that we don't even provide now is what if somebody is
- released and it's Sunday? Because buses don't run on Sunday. So we can look at things like getting a
- ride share contract, a cost per ride. It's like what DT does for their micro system. We can look at
- getting a contract.
- and making sure people get somewhere in the county. And it won't cost us that much. And that would be
- worth doing. So again, even if everything went perfectly great with Thompson, we are years away from
- starting. And Mr. Faulk will not abide by that. And I don't think we're interested in pursuing that
- chase. So.
- speaking far too long but I need to say this and I apologize. I don't because I'm gonna say it. We're
- in the bottom line. This has gone on long enough. If Monroe County fails to meet the provisions of the
- settlement agreement we're going to look at the council and ask why. That the failure to abide by this deadline
- I've heard it, oh, I'm shaking in my boots about the ACLU. Oh, you should. We don't know what a judge
- is going to order. Why would you give that, why would you abdicate your responsibility and decision
- making to a judge? And if that, that could be punitive, it could be, I'm looking for the right word,
- injunctive, right? It could be both, we don't know.
- And to have counsel talking about, well, it only costs a million dollars a year to move inmates to another
- jail. Oh my gosh. And that's in perpetuity. And that gets us nothing built. That builds us nothing.
- Unitive damages build us nothing. If you want a federal judge to decide how big that jail could be,
- because man, they could decide on something else. They could decide on a much higher number if they
- wanted. I don't know why they would, but they might.
- If you want to hand that responsibility over to a federal judge, that is a shame. And it shouldn't happen.
- We cannot prioritize fighting over constitutional care. We have to provide constitutional care. And
- that impacts the safety of our officers in that jail. That matters. Let's do the right thing.
- And I look forward to seeing the council consider this. It is on their agenda in May. Let's go forward.
- Let's move forward together and do the right thing. The time has passed, but the time is now. And I
- appreciate everybody's patience with me. Did you have anything you wanted to add? I think everything
- has been covered, at least. Hopefully we can move forward.
- I think we have different ways and different modes of expression, but I think that the key phrase really
- is, don't look back over your shoulder, look forward, and come together, and we pledge to work
- productively, respectfully, and collegially. And so that's something we have to do, and creatively.
- And so we don't know. I think we're going into a lot that we don't know with this process. Every process
- is different with the ACLU. They have done this 12 times before. Interestingly, none of the 12 counties
- that they have sued get out of jail free.
- And so all of them find themselves in settlement agreements not all of them have to build a new jail
- because that's not what is required of each county some of them just have to make changes to a to existing jails.
- Here, I think we would have to not only make changes to this existing jail to remain constitutional
- because we kind of get a free pass while the settlement agreement is in place. When the settlement agreement
- is dismissed, we have to have a constitutional jail suddenly. That will require transferring people
- out of the county from what I understand that includes or could include, in 2021 dollars, a cost of
- $75 per inmate
- per resident per day with an average of 50 estimated transfers. And so that's going to have, that's
- the million dollar a year expense, but that also includes $100,000 in 2021 dollars for a van and six
- additional guards per year. So that's 500,000 in 2021 dollars for how many years? So that is easily
- another two million. But we also have to make remedial changes to the jail structure
- that we never recouped the cost of. And so those costs are estimated in 2021 dollars, three to 11 million.
- 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
- a building that is dead.
- every single aspect of that building is dead from the jail which has mold in the showers to the offices
- which have sewage pouring into judges offices and we're just getting the remediation emails out to people
- for what is certain to be another long spring and summer
- for our employees in that building. It is a sick building, it is a dead building, and every day we have
- to stay in that building and our employees have to stay in that building is a day that we wish our employees
- did not have to stay in that building. But we have to build a jail now and we have to build a jail as
- fast as possible. And so we're looking for the most expeditious way to do so that does not involve a
- lawsuit. But we will move forward and we also have to look again for the
- interests of our citizens. They have voiced opinions that we do very much appreciate and we do want
- to build, we looked to build a jail downtown. We looked very hard. It turns out most of the downtown
- is in a floodplain. It also turns out that a lot of the properties that were for sale, they did not
- want to sell to the county to build a jail. Nobody wants a jail in their backyard. That is a frank truth.
- or in their front yard or in their side yard or anywhere around them, quite frankly. And so we were
- an unpopular neighbor, but we worked diligently with the council. We worked collegially and we will
- continue to do so and we will work with as many people as we can to creatively find a way. Just because
- we move forward with this purchase agreement, by the way, does not mean that if a better option presents
- itself, we don't have to go
- down this road. If we have a better option that presents itself tomorrow, we can go with that option.
- But this is the option that is before us on the table today. So to all of those who say the commissioners
- love North Park, this is not so much a vote for North Park as it is a vote against this lawsuit. And
- it is not, I think, a site that
- even the commissioners wanted any of them, even when they looked at this the first time, it is the only
- viable site they saw when they looked at the accumulation of properties that they considered. So I think
- that that's where we find ourselves today. Thank you. And I'm going to offer
- my own opinion on if something else comes up. I don't think there's any possibility that anything else
- can come up and be ready for a bond, a bond initiation in July because you would have to have everything
- else done. I just don't see that that's even possible. I mean, we should work. It's just not, we've
- kind of as a county, we've backed ourselves into this corner and the time is now.
- make the right decision, make the hard decision. One of the things we can do is we could sell Thompson.
- That could put that property back into the tax rolls for the city. It could become housing. We could
- use part of it maybe for substance use mental health treatment. I don't know, but you know, and then
- once we get everyone hopefully to North Park in the co-located facility, that's a healthy building,
- we can sell that building. And that again becomes another
- part of the tax base for the city of Bloomington, and it could be offices. Lord help me if it's more
- student housing, because I will just scream. But looking at the occupancy rates, I don't know why that
- would be. But anyway, there are benefits to see Bloomington as well. And nothing is perfect. We have
- found a very good solution. We're out of time.
- We have no other choice. That's where we are. And we've got other problems to solve and other things
- to deal with. Let's move on. So anything? Not around. We pledge to do so respectfully. Absolutely.
- Absolutely. Absolutely. No name calling. I call myself names, but that's a whole nother. All right,
- so. I'm lucky some days if I can remember my name. There we go. All right. So let's hear from the public.
- I'm sorry, publicly had a whole lot to talk through because we've been hearing a lot of things that
- aren't true and we had to address them. Anybody wish to speak on this item? You raise your hand on teams
- or come to the podium. Your patience will be rewarded, sir. You did, thank you.
- First of all, thank you both Commissioner Thomas and Commissioner Madera for being at the City Council
- meeting the other day. It was really helpful. I know you were online, but you were there and you were
- present. And what was also interesting is that you actually had a dialogue. And I thought, this is what
- we need more of, you know, to have this kind of discussion. It was very substantive. It was very meaningful.
- And we just need more of that. And to see it in action,
- It was also very civil and very grounded and helpful. So I just want to acknowledge that. I also want
- to acknowledge that 17 years is really, I think, perceived as a failure in leadership. And I'm talking
- about a collective leadership here. And there's no way around that. And I think a lot of things that
- you explained today were instructive.
- but we have to have a bit of introspection and acknowledge that we could have done better and we could
- do better. But I agree with all three of you, we need to look forward. And in that context, I do appreciate
- the complexity of this situation, but that's why we elect you folks, or appoint really good people to
- work with the electeds. So this is part of the job. And in that context, I think there's a lot of work,
- it seems to me, my perception, is being discussed at meetings
- But my plea that I've made to, before the mayor, before the city council, before the county council,
- just the other night, is to please do the heavy lifting, the hard work between meetings. There's a lot
- of work that needs to be done, even if this proposal goes through. That's my plea. I also think you
- acknowledge Commissioner Thomas to characterize the ACLU as the bad guy here. And I know Jody, Commissioner
- Madera, you said the same.
- I think they've been beyond patient and to somehow suggest that they're trying to wrest control from
- the local government. It's actually we've been ceding control to the, not just the ACLU and the litigators,
- if you will, but to a judge or a CIB because we're not governing, we're not handling this head on.
- So finally, in the context of calling ACLU the enemy, it reminds me of a,
- Some of you have heard this already, but an old Pogo comic script that says, we've met the enemy and
- the enemy is us. And I just want to make sure that in the spirit that you've said, and I think Commissioner
- Videra, you said, let's find some common ground. Let's find a way that we can work together.
- We may agree, disagree, but we have some of the brightest, most dedicated, I got choked up talking about
- this, some of the best people in elections.
- office in this county in the city. We figure this out. We can do this in my plea. And my prayers is
- that we just do that. Let's get this done working together. Thank you. Mr. Richardson, would you give
- your name and county? Sorry, I forgot to ask. It's my fault. Thank you so much. We can do this. Thank you.
- Anyone else? I have public comment. We've probably talked them out of late meeting. Okay. All right.
- So let's move on. All those in favor of approving the purchase agreement for the justice complex in
- North Park signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0. We even drove the lawyers out of the room.
- We did. I hope I'm doing everything legally right now.
- Whenever he leaves, I'm like, oh, don't let me forget. He will return. Yeah. All right. So thank you,
- everyone, for being here. Let's see. Is Mr. Smith present from the planning department still? Got to
- be on his 10th cup of coffee. He is. Great. Excellent. Can you go ahead and make a motion on the next
- last item?
- I would like to move to approve Ordinance 2026-12 Highlands Parcel EPUD Outline Plan Amendment 2. Second.
- We have a motion and we have a second. Mr. Smith, your patience is undeniable and appreciated greatly
- by all of us. Please tell us about this. Absolutely. Give me a second here to share my screen.
- Okay, can everybody see that screen okay? I will take that as a yes. So the request before you is an
- outline plan amendment. The second one to be exact, which pertains to the Highland PUD, specifically
- parcel E. This is also known as the Lynx Edge subdivision or perhaps more commonly known as the WIC
- apartments.
- This site is located off of South Rockport Road. So from South Rockport Road, you turn on to South Wickens
- and then it'll be on the left-hand side, Rangeview Circle. This pertains to the entire inner loop of
- South Rangeview Circle. So the purpose of this outline plan amendment
- is to make South Rangeview Circle, which is the street before you, a private road instead of a public
- road, which is what it was originally approved to be a public road. So changing that road classification
- from a public to a private road would mean shifting that responsibility for maintaining that roadway
- to that of a private entity. So in this case,
- that private entity would be a developer. If the developer were to sell this property to either another
- developer or maybe they would create an HOA, that shifting of the responsibility would go to whoever
- that private entity would become. So upon inspection of the roadway, County Highway had noted several
- deficiencies. I included a list here on the screen. I'll just go through those briefly.
- There were a number of issues pertaining to sidewalk cracking, cross slopes for the sidewalks in the
- right of way were greater than 2%, which for the public's input, that means it is not ADA compliant.
- The proposed buildings were built at a higher elevation than what the plans called for. There were mailboxes
- located within the right of way. Parking stripes were painted incorrectly. There were also private signs
- that were located within the right of way.
- Also, they had noted that there was a manhole that was uneven with the street. And the highway department
- felt that their sand trucks that would go through or their plow trucks would not be, the roadway would
- not be wide enough when you encompass the incorrect parking striping that has been developed here on
- the site. So the development otherwise has been
- completed. So there have been certificate of occupancies issued for all the buildings. So they are being
- to our knowledge inhabited. But to resolve many of these issues, especially as it pertains to ADA compliance,
- that would likely require deconstruction of existing driveways, sidewalks, and potentially
- absolute worst case scenario being deconstruction of the existing structures on site. On the screen
- is the approved phasing map. So much of the deficiencies that the highway department had noted are in
- phase one and phase two. I don't believe there were any in phase three specifically, but certainly the
- outer loop there.
- I did want to provide just at least a brief background on petition. So this subdivision is in the Highlands
- PUD, which was originally approved under the city of Bloomington jurisdiction back in 1996. So that
- is ordinance number 96-05. And then in 2018, the developer did receive approval for the current subdivision
- and development plan with a revision to the outline plan
- having been approved by the board of commissioners to have a reduced setback from 25 feet to 15 feet.
- It was noted at least during that time that the developer would have preferred to have a privately maintained
- street. However, during the course of those meetings, the plan commission had felt that
- Making the streets private would be shifting an economic burden onto future residents of the subdivision.
- So ultimately, they voted to keep Rangeview Circle as a public road, not a private road. So that is
- what the developer should have developed Rangeview Circle to be, which is a public road.
- And of course, there's a timeline of events that occurred. I had already briefly mentioned that in 2018,
- this had received approval in its current form for the development. This did go to a number of different
- meetings, ordinance review committee. This was reviewed twice at planning commission administrative
- meetings. And then it also had two planning commission regular sessions
- happening this year within the past couple of months. And on the screen here, you'll notice there's
- a lot, there's a lot going on here. Planning staff did take initiative to try to create a visual aid
- for Plan Commission, but also Board of Commissioners to
- really see where all of those deficiencies that the Highway Department had noted are located. So I included
- on the left-hand side of the screen directly from the Highway Department's inspection report noting
- the deficiencies. Planning staff had met with the developer and the developer's engineer, Daniel Butler,
- with Bynum-Fanhiel.
- And we just went through the list step-by-step through each individual item that was marked as deficient
- and just, I mean, really straightforward conversation. Are you willing to make this improvement? Yes,
- no. And then we just went through the entire list. So on this particular screen, these are the deficiencies
- the developer ops not to make improvements for.
- So again, those include the sidewalks, asphalt, curb and gutter, private signs, the manhole, and the
- parking stripes. So all of that is located here on the screen. I can or Highway can also explain in
- more detail exactly what they would expect for the developer to come into compliance
- with their standards, but I will keep continuing with the presentation here. And then on the screen
- before you are the deficiencies the petitioner is willing to make. So you'll notice that there is range
- view circle in Wiccan Street. Wiccan Street is not part of this particular
- area, but certainly a street that Rangeview Circle connects to and derives access from. So the developer
- and the petitioner's representative or engineer, Daniel Butler, didn't foresee an issue with making
- these improvements. Planning staff, as far as to our knowledge, we're not entirely sure a timeframe of when
- these improvements will be made. I do know that the developer has been communicating with the Highway
- Department to what capacity, I'm not sure. Perhaps the Highway Department could elaborate a little more
- on that. But as far as planning staff is aware, the developer is willing to make these improvements.
- And then on the screen before you, I have some site photos of the site. So again,
- As I stated in the beginning of the petition, the development has already been completed. To our knowledge,
- the units are being occupied. This photo is depicting issues with slope and the driveways that were
- constructed. Highway Department noted in their report
- their concerns with the driveways. Also the parking stripes. This particular area also includes the
- ADA non-compliance. And just some other site photos showing sidewalks, mailboxes,
- The petitioner or I should say the developer is required to maintain landscaping in perpetuity. So if
- there are any damages to any of the plantings that are on site and they end up dying and they are no
- longer viable, they will have to replace those. It did include a letter that was signed by the highway
- director, Lisa Ridge,
- the highway department's position as well as their concerns. They had initially been in support of keeping
- the Rangeview Circle a private road. And that is primarily based on the fact that they cannot take in
- liability for accepting a road into the county road inventory that doesn't meet county standards. And
- this is also in the packet.
- On the left-hand side of the screen, this was staff's recommendation to the planned commission. We detailed
- two different scenarios, one in which planning staff's original recommendation was to forward a positive
- recommendation to the county commissioners due to the physical constraints of the site and based on
- the highway and stormwater reports, we had
- that we had included in that recommendation, and then we also provided an alternative in the event that
- the planning commission opted to send a negative recommendation to the county commissioners and what
- that would look like. The planning commission ultimately did vote five to two to forward just a negative
- recommendation to the commissioners, and I will take any questions.
- Thank you so much. We were having mic problems, but I do appreciate all your time and attention to this
- very detailed petition. I just want to see if my colleagues have questions or comments at this point.
- No, and I'll just note that I have to abstain from this vote. Okay, thank you. I think one of the things
- that's unusual, just as the
- who sits on the Planning Commission is that we typically support staff recommendations, but there was
- a clear discussion at that March 17th meeting about the tradition of noncompliance from this particular
- developer. And that's really unfortunate because, you know, Monroe County gets a bad rap as does the
- city for having
- zoning requirements. Um, you know, yeah, your driveway can't be at a 45 degree angle, things like that.
- Um, but it's really up to the developer to comply because they're the ones with the petition. Um, and
- you know, at any point, for example, the reason those driveways are so steep is because the houses are
- built at a higher, um, level than they should have been a higher, a higher point on the ground.
- And before building, that developer should have come to the planning department and said, hey, I hit
- a whole bunch of rock. What can we do? And we would have figured something out. And it's just unfortunate,
- because that communication has to be a two-way street, and we count on people doing the right thing.
- I think the things that I found interesting was
- There's an unwillingness to change the parking stripes. And that's pretty much a almost zero cost kind
- of thing you can do. That to me, I don't understand. But there's also things on, I think it's still
- on the Wickens property, which is the other. But sidewalk has to be replaced due to rain. Well, rain
- should not wash out a sidewalk. So something else is going on there.
- And it's either a drainage problem or the sidewalk was put in before the drainage was corrected.
- I don't know. But that should never happen. But these things all just kind of build up on one another.
- And it was a pretty resounding message from the County Planning Commission members about this. I do
- want to say that I think
- It's unfortunate that we're in this position. And it was not an easy vote for me to take because I would
- much rather just get this done the right way in the first place. But there has been a lack of compliance
- on a number of these projects. And that's the issue.
- think in a way we feel a lot like Ken Falk and we're just like, we've had enough. We just need this
- done right. The carrot that was offered was to do the other project right. And well, that's your project.
- So yeah, you should do it right. So not much of a carrot. I really hope that this can get resolved.
- I think it can. I think it can. But I think to just allow developers to do what they want and then come
- back and go, well, didn't work out according to the plan I gave you.
- I built it differently. Oh, well, let's just take it out of, we won't just put it in county inventory
- and it's okay. Well, ADA compliance is universal. You know, that's the important thing. So let's see
- if we, I don't see Mr. Butler here. Petitioner or petitioner's representative here?
- I do not see them on the list. Okay, well, that's too bad. Does anybody wish to speak in favor of this
- petition, meaning going against the Planning Commission vote? Anybody wish to speak in opposition to
- this petition? Or have any other public comment?
- With that, we're going to come back. Commissioner Redira has stepped away. Are you ready to vote on
- this item? Okay. I'm going to go ahead and ask to approve ordinance 2026-12 to signify by saying aye.
- That's a vote of two zero and one absent slash abstention. So the motion passes. All right. I would
- like to make a motion to appoint Linda Williamson to the property tax board of appeals, which is run
- through the assessor's office. This would be a one year appointment.
- Um, ending May 1st of 2027. Um, all those in favor of approving her appointment. Did you second? Oh,
- 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
- still at the vote. We haven't voted yet. Okay. So we have a motion and we have a second. Thank you.
- Um, parliamentarian.
- Jones. All those in favor of approving the appointment signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries 3-0.
- And Commissioner Madera, yes, is back. I want to thank Ms. Williamson for her willingness to serve.
- And we're grateful that we have what will be a full board for Assessor Sharp, which she really needs.
- It's a lot of work. It's important work, and we thank everybody who does it. So just a reminder that
- early voting continues at 501 North Morton. That's the North showers area and parking lot. The door
- opens onto Morton and early voting continues today until 6 p.m. tomorrow, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. That's May
- 1st already. Saturday, May 2nd, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- and Monday, May 4th, 8 a.m. to noon. After that, as the clerk pointed out today, May 5th is election
- day. And if you have questions about where you're supposed to vote, check your mailbox because we all
- got postcards. Or you can go online to our county website for assistance. And
- just because we've had a long meeting, and we do actually have a work session, by the way. Sorry. We
- are still accepting applications for boards and commissions. Just go to our website, iam.gov slash county
- slash Monroe to find out what's available. We still need somebody to serve on the library board.
- Unbelievable. Such an important job. If you aren't willing to do it, is someone you know willing to
- do it? Think about it.
- We have a blood drive on election day, Tuesday, May 5th, 1 PM to 6 PM, and Thursday, May 7th,
- 10 AM to 3 PM. That's at Ivy Tech. Thanks, Ivy Tech. Make an appointment at redcross.org. And a reminder
- to please sign up for the alert notification system. Our resident alert system will let you know when
- there's a tornado warning, like it did last week, or a flood warning. Or this week. This week. I'm sorry.
- Yeah, it was this week, wasn't it?
- It feels like it was last week. It was this week. It was this week. I was sitting in the pantry. We
- have a new county motto. We spin you right round, baby, right? Right? That's it. That's it. We're going
- to have a mascot. We're going to do everything. We're going to do. We're going to sell shirts. We're
- going to do everything we can. That was crazy. Yeah. But, you know, I've trained my dog to come to the
- pantry because that's the lowest
- floor of the house, the most interior room I could find without a window. But yeah, it's crazy. It's
- crazy when those things come up. One of your neighbors had a tree go over their house. Oh, they were
- trapped. Yeah. Oh, no. Yeah. But everybody's fine. We're all good. No injuries. Well, minor injuries,
- but nothing serious. And we got through it. But hey, if you want to know about stuff before it hits,
- I highly recommend you go to iam.gov slash county slash when you're on sign up for the Resident Alert
- System. It's free. There are services out there. We pay two, three bucks a month for this service.
- It's free. We're covering the cost. Every county resident, whether they live in the city, town, or not,
- can sign up, text, email, and or phone call. Anyway, we do have a work session. Probably would have
- helped if I'd had breakfast.
- So I guess we can come back at one for the work session, okay? A couple items on there. Hopefully they
- won't take terribly long. So we're gonna adjourn this meeting. Our next meeting is May 7th, next Thursday,
- right here in the NETU Hill Room. And then we'll come back at one o'clock for our work session. And
- thanks everybody for your patience. And I hope that we've explained ourselves well. Can I spare some
- things in there? Please.
- Just a couple of remarks. Thank you so much for, I'd like to express my appreciation for all the law
- enforcement and first responders who were there on Saturday and who did a great job with the unfortunate
- incident that occurred at Little Five and just how the community has come together since then. Because
- some incidents, although unforeseeable, really test the community. And we have great, great, great emergency
- personnel.
- There's no better way to express my appreciation, I think, than just saying it. And so we are grateful.
- Absolutely. Absolutely. And however, whatever other public response they've gotten, you know, let's
- let the loudest voices be one of appreciation and respect. And so also, you know, just get out there
- and enjoy the weather. I know that we've had tumultuous, dry,
- in spring, but graduation is almost upon us with Indiana. University getting out soon, and so we have
- another bunch of happy events occurring, and so lots of celebrations about to occur. Yeah. And then
- the high schools at the end of May, right? Nope, that's never going to happen because, nope, we're never
- going to acknowledge that. Oh, sorry. Sorry. No, I mean, it's a joyful time. It's a beautiful time in
- Bloomington.
- I kind of appreciate the cool spade weather, because I've got a lot of holes to dig in my garden. And
- it's a little wetter now and cooler, so we can do it. But yeah, it's important to thank our first responders.
- They did amazing. See, that felt like two weeks ago. Yes, absolutely. Yes. But yeah, they did a great
- job. And the hospital had their own flooding issue. I mean, there's stuff going on all around this community.
- Those folks stepped up, and I want to thank our jailers, jail staff, and sheriff, because they had to
- deal with little five. Not directly, but indirectly. Well, it's yes, directly. So they had to deal with
- it. So thank them, too, in the mix. They may have been behind the scenes, but they had a lot of extra
- work. Judges, prosecutor, public defender. It's a busy time. It's a busy time, and they all worked hard.
- did their utmost to keep us safe in a state where anybody can carry a gun anywhere. Yes, absolutely.
- And thanks, state of Indiana. And our next meeting is after the primary. So that will be as well. Oh,
- yeah, right. See, time just flies. But yeah, OK. So thank you all. Thank you. Yeah, be sure to get out
- and vote. Appreciate it. Thanks, everyone. And we're adjourned until 1 o'clock for our work session.
- Thank you. Thanks for bringing that up.