The Chesterton Town
Council has awarded the contract for the West Indiana Ave. sidewalk
replacement project to Walsh & Kelly Inc. of Griffith.
Members voted
unanimously at their meeting Monday night to go with Walsh & Kelly’s low
quote: $113,995.
Two other quotes
were submitted: $196,875, Gariup Construction Company of Gary; and
$249,705.25, Rieth Riley Construction Company of Gary.
“That’s a pretty
good price compared to the other quotes,” Street Commission John
Schnadenberg observed.
Being replaced: the
sidewalk along the north side of West Indiana Ave. between Sixth Street and
South Fifth Street. Funds for the project will come from the $1.8-million
general obligation bond issued in 2018 for paving and infrastructure work.
Battery Backups
In other business,
and at Schnadenberg’s request, members voted unanimously to approve an
expenditure of $6,336 in CEDIT funds to replace the battery backups in the
traffic signals at the six controlled intersections in town.
The backups--which
have a lifespan of five to six years--keep the traffic signals operating for
six to 10 hours during power outages, Schnadenberg said.
“In the past it’s
really paid off,” he added.
CPD Fleet Order
Members also voted
unanimously to approve the purchase from Lakeshore Ford of three new squad
cars for the Chesterton Police Department, at an approximate cost of
$110,000; plus their outfitting by Bartronics Inc. of Chesterton for around
$50,000.
Moneys for the
squad cars come from the Cumulative Capital Development fund, which has a
dedicated property-tax rate and is used exclusively for the acquisition of
emergency vehicles.
Lakeshore Ford will
acquire the squad cars through a state Quantity Purchase Agreement.
Salary Ordinance
Amendment
At Police Chief
Dave Cincoski’s request, members voted unanimously to approve an amendment
to the 2020 Salary Ordinance, under which retired Assistant Police Chief
Dave Lohse--now employed by the Building Department--will continue to act as
the CPD’s grant coordinator, at a time-and-a-half wage of $52.50 per hour.
As grant
coordinator, Lohse administers the federal funds provided by the Indiana
Criminal Justice Institute to pay for the overtime of Porter County Traffic
Safety Partnership officers tasked to blitz duties. Those funds will be used
as well to reimburse the town for Lohse’s wage as grant coordinator.
Cincoski said that
the Lohse will only be working a few hours per month as grant coordinator.
Tax Abatement
Meanwhile, members
voted unanimously to renew the tax abatement for the Addison Pointe Health &
Rehabilitation Center, after Associate Town Attorney Julie Paulson reported
that Addison Pointe has been found in “substantial compliance” with its
employment commitments.
This will be the
tenth and final year of the abatement.
Engine
Commissioning
Fire Chief John
Jarka took a moment to invite members, staff, and the public to attend the
formal commissioning of Engine 515 in a ceremony at 11 a.m. Saturday, March
14, at the CFD fire house.
Engine 515, a 2019
Spartan/Smeal Custom Pumper, replaced Engine 512, a 2000 Pierce Saber and
the CFD’s primary backup engine, after the latter threw a differential in
July 2018 during routine driver training.
Engine 515 has a
750-gallon water tank, room for 2,200 feet of different sized hoses, and
carries three ladders, a full complement of extrication equipment, a
chainsaw, a rotary saw, large ventilation fans, and a wide variety of
handtools.
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