By MARGARET L. WILLIS

Budget discussions for 2009 will get underway in Burns Harbor on Tuesday, August 19, at 4:30 p.m.

The meeting will precede a Sanitation Board meeting set for that evening.

The council must submit a budget to the state Department of Local Government Finance by Sept. 30.

“We’re running against the clock,“ said clerk-treasurer Jane Jordan.

Council members expect to have an hour and a half to discuss budget issues with department heads in this planning meeting for next year.

Council members decided that if they need additional time, they would reconvene following the Sanitation Board meeting. The meeting is open to the public.

The council hopes to have the budget finalized and be ready for adoption at their September meeting, Wednesday, Sept. 10.

In other business, the Town Picnic, set for August 23, from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m., will be preceded by an open house of town departments. Residents may visit the Town Hall, Building Dept. and Fire Dept., town council member Toni Biancardi announced.

Large Garbage Day is set for Thursday, Sept. 25, Street Commissioner Doug Wentz reminds residents.

In July, the Police Department responded to 10 vehicle accidents, Police Chief Jerry Price reported; two of those caused personal injuries. Officers made 20 arrests, two of them felony; they issued 102 citations and gave 111 written and verbal warnings. Squad cars traveled a total of 8,761 miles.

Delivery of new squad cars is expected within a couple weeks, Price said.

In the search for a new officer, the department has received over 30 applications. Price said he is impressed with the quality of the candidates. Physical testing will be held on August 24 at Lakeland Park. Price said members of the public are welcome to observe.

Also, anyone who may benefit from Project Share, assistance with home repairs, may contact Biancardi. Project Share day is set for Saturday, Oct. 11.

No Action on Zoning Change

The council took no action on the proposed changes to the zoning ordinance. At issue were changes that members had been previously unaware of in regards to minimum square footage requirements on multi-level and multi-family dwellings.

Mike Perrine withdrew his motion to approve the zoning amendments once discussion and reading revealed the changes that some council members either knew nothing about or took issue with.

The ordinance will be referred back to the Advisory Plan Commission.

The Teen Night and Back to School community events both went “very well,” reported park board member Leann Perrine. Over 100 attended the Back to School event and 38 teens participated in Teen Night.

A “Rock Walk for Cancer” will be held at Lakeland Park on Sept. 13, L. Perrine announced. Food and entertainment will be provided and walkers will be raising funds to battle cancer.

The council approved the expenditure of up to $3,000 from the General Fund for purchase of a tree, or trees, to be planted in Bolinger Park, in memory of Elsie Bollinger . The park is named for former town council member Dick Bolinger, who, as council member Mike Perrine pointed out, has “put a lot of time and effort into this town.” Bolinger has served on the Town Council and Park Board, and been a community activist in the Burns Harbor Lions Club and the Westport Community Club.

A new parks foundation may be in the offing in Burns Harbor. The council designated Mike Perrine to be the council’s liaison to attorney Welsh to work on establishing a foundation which would serve as a fundraising arm for the park and as an agent for providing matching funds or land donations to secure grant funds.

Building Commissioner Bill Arney reported that department has been “busy.” Thirteen building permits were issued in July, five were rejected and three certificates of occupancy were issued, while 10 violations tickets were issued.

The Fire Department responded to 21 calls in July, Arney reported in his capacity as Fire Chief. Firefighters put in 140 training hours and 18 duty hours. Firefighters responded to five EMS calls and three vehicle accident scenes. The department provided mutual aid to Portage and South Haven (1 each), Arcelor Mittal (3) and Porter (3). Four dive calls were answered and one fire investigation made. Total hours on scene at emergencies was 27 hours and 55 minutes.

Council member Cliff Fleming, in a short report about meetings at the Northern Indiana Regional Planning Commission, said the possibility of an east-west linkage of bike/hike trails through the Marquette Plan area is getting attention. The Open Lands group based in Illinois has expressed interest in helping facilitate the connections which may be made possible through the donation of land in Burns Harbor by ArcelorMittal Steel. The pedestrian and bike friendly corridors were first proposed in the Burnham Plan in 1909, which called for open spaces throughout the southern end of Lake Michigan from Wisconsin to Michigan, Fleming said.

Posted 8/15/2008