The Town of Porter
is ready for winter with the Town Council unanimously adopting revisions to
the town code’s regulations on snow removal.
The changes were
also welcomed by a few residents from Hunter’s Glen subdivision who
commended the Council for taking action after experiencing issues for a
number of years.
According to the
ordinance, residents in the subdivisions of Baillytown, Dune Meadows,
Hunter’s Glen, Indian Trails, Marquette Point, Porter Beach, Porter Cove,
Summer Tree, Wagner Hills, Woodlake Springs and Woodlawn Acres will be
required to move their vehicles off of the streets in order for plows and
emergency vehicles to get through. Those who don’t could face fines of $50
each time there is a violation.
Resident Carol
Buehler said she is “one thousand percent” in favor of the measure so
emergency vehicles can reach the residences they need to get to.
Ginger Potter who
sits on the board for the Hunter’s Glen Property Owners’ Association further
mentioned ongoing issues of residents who argue “they can’t get up the
street” and feels this will improve the situation. She thanked the public
works department for its support in the past.
“It will help
eliminate the complaints I get and you get,” Potter told the Council.
Council President
Greg Stinson read a letter from Bruce Snider, also of Hunter’s Glen, who
wrote in favor of the ordinance for its intentions of improving safety.
Police Chief Jamie
Spanier commented that the new rules are “going to be a learning experience
for a while” for his department which is in charge of enforcement and
issuing the citations.
Stinson pointed out
that the parking ban is for only for those subdivisions mentioned and not on
the Town’s public roads, although cars typically aren’t parked on public
roads during a snowstorm.
The ordinance also
states that residents and businesses within the Town limits will be required
by the ordinance to remove snow and ice from their sidewalks within 24 hours
of snow fall, or face a fine of $50. It shall be prohibited for property
owners or private contractors to push or blow snow into any public street,
sidewalk or alleyway.
Council member Elka
Nelson said that if someone has a neighbor who is not physically able to
clear their walkways, such as if they are sick in the hospital, to let the
Town know.
“If we can
communicate well, we can avoid problems,” she said.
Council member
Jeannine Virtue asked how information about the snow removal rules can get
to subdivision residents. Clerk-Treasurer Carol Pomeroy said she can include
the information on the next sewer bill and the ordinance will be printed as
a legal notice.
Leaf collection
meets
football helmet
It amazes Town
Public Work Director Brenda Brueckheimer what people will rake into their
leaf piles without even knowing.
Brueckheimer showed
the Council remnants of things that have been swallowed up by the Town’s
leaf vacuums including a mangled Chesterton High School Football helmet.
“It took 16 hours
of down time to fix that. Four employees in four hours. That was a $2,000
repair ,” said Brueckheimer, who added should like to hear from whomever is
missing their football helmet.
The vacuum also
suffered damage when a piece of rebar was picked up near Hunter’s Glen
causing an 18-inch rip. Another time, a whole cement brick went through the
system and some residents’ even throw animal waste in with their leaves,
which makes the job unpleasant for workers.
Brueckheimer asked
residents to be more considerate of what’s in their leaf piles. “It’s
important. It is a safety issue for us,” she said.
Hawthorne Park ball
field
The Council
supported 5-0 a request from Parks Director Brian Bugajski to use no more
than $800 in the Town’s share of County Economic Development Income Tax to
purchase 22 tons of surface material for the Hawthorne baseball field for
next season.
The parks
department will be contributing $500 from its donation fund and $250 out of
its operating budget but that would leave a gap of about $700 for the
purchase, Bugajski said, which CEDIT will now fill.
Bugajski added that
members of the Girl Scout Brownie Troop 30352 is undertaking the initiative
to get a new bench for Hawthorne Park. To do that however, they will first
need to collect 400 pounds of bottle caps, which according to Bugajski “is a
lot” and encouraged residents to save their bottle caps for the troop.
The bench is
planned to have a rainbow design and if the bottle cap drive is a success,
the bench should arrive early next year, he said.
Also, the
department will be having an ice cream social on Sunday, Nov. 22 from 2 to 3
p.m. at the Community Center to thank its volunteers for the year.