Council: No transfer for B&P (4/14/05)

On a night in which they allocated more than $50,000 in unplanned spending, it was two much smaller amounts that were problematic for members of the Jay County Council.

The council, after narrowly approving $3,600 to pay for the relocation of the Jay/Portland Building and Planning Department outside the courthouse, denied a request to transfer funds to furnish that new office space — raising the ire of the head of that department.

Bill Milligan, director of building and planning, was visibly upset after the council voted down the request to transfer a total of $2,300 by a 4-3 margin.

He displayed a copy of an interlocal agreement that gives a joint board authority to determine where the office is located and to furnish that space. Milligan asked council attorney George Lopez to support his contention that the council could not deny the request.

But Lopez said “the council’s approval of the funds has always been the check-and-balance.”

Also Wednesday, council members agreed by consensus to allow the commissioners to pursue the possible purchase of a vacant building north of the courthouse. The building, at 106-108 W. Walnut St., would be torn down and the lot used for courthouse parking.

A resolution to allow the commissioners to pursue the purchase is expected to be passed by the council in May.

Easily the most contentious issue before the council was the planned move by the building and planning department.

Before the vote on the request to transfer the $2,300 to an office equipment line item ($1,800 from postage and $500 from equipment repair), Milligan said, “I really don’t want somebody to jump all over me when I’ve been prudent (with the budget). I’ve saved a lot of money.”

The joint board that governs the department approved relocating the building and planning office into a renovated building on South Meridian Street along with four other local entities. The rental for the space will be $450 per month. The space will be approximately twice that available in the current courthouse office.

The new office space, called the Jay Pride Building, will be open May 1.

Voting to deny the request to transfer funds into the office equipment line item were council members Jim Zimmerman, Judy LeMaster, Marilyn Coleman and Gerald Kirby. Voting in the minority on the transfer were Todd Wickey, Jack Houck and George Meehan.

Meehan is the council’s representative on the joint board that governs the building and planning department. He said nothing during Wednesday night’s discussion.

Council members narrowly passed a request to appropriate $3,600 to pay rental for the remaining eight months of this year.

The relocation of the five entities, which also will include Jay County Development Corporation, Jay County Community Development, Portland Area Chamber of Commerce and Jay County Visitor and Tourism Bureau, has been discussed extensively over the past six months and has been the subject of several newspaper articles.

Several members of the council said they weren’t aware of the situation.

“I realize it’s going to cost money,” Commissioners president Milo Miller Jr. said. “But I can see the vision of what they wanted to do.”

Miller was approached by Portland Mayor Bruce Hosier about the proposed move early in the process.

The commissioners plan to move the Wayne Township assessor into the current building and planning office, and allow the county clerk to have more space in the second floor office now occupied by the township assessor.

“This move, although I’m not happy with it at all, does make sense,” Kirby said before the 4-3 vote to approve the $3,600 additional appropriation.

Jay/Portland Building and Planning, which was created in the late 1990s, combines zoning and other regulatory functions into one office. Half of the expenses are paid by the county and city, with the director and administrative assistant designated as county employees.

Kirby said Wednesday night that he was still unhappy about a request several years ago to fund the purchase of a new truck for the department when the truck currently being used had less than 25,000 miles.

On the issue of the purchase of the 106-108 Walnut St. building, Miller asked for input.

He said the commissioners feel that additional parking is necessary. Employees would be asked to park in the lot and not in the spaces around the courthouse.

Miller also said that the north entrance could be converted into an employee-only entrance, with access via a security key or card, if the decision to restrict public access to one door is ever made. That public entrance would be to the south, which is the only handicap accessible entrance.

In other business Wednesday, council members:

•Gave their OK to spending $27,443 on new computers for Jay Superior Court and a new server for the clerk and court system. The request was made by Jay Superior Court Judge Joel Roberts and Jay County clerk Jane Ann Runyon.

•Allowed an additional appropriation of $11,100 to fund a new position in the prosecutor’s office. The Title IV-D caseworker will assist in child support collections. The position, which will be 67 percent funded by the state, had previously been approved by the council.

•Approved an additional appropriation of $12,340 from the Infrastructure fund to upgrade the fuel pumps at the Jay County Highway Department. The infrastructure money is generated through a host fee paid by the Jay County Landfill.

•Re-appointed Darrell Borders to a four-year term on the Jay County Public Library Board.

•Tabled action on a request to transfer $900 in the budget of the Jay County Cemetery Commission to maintenance of cemetery stone from office supplies. Roy Leverich, a member of the commission, said it wants to spend as much of its $40,000 budget on cemetery restoration as possible. Council members asked Leverich or another commission representative to return with the transfer request after receiving estimates on the repairs in the seven cemeteries it has targeted for this year.[[In-content Ad]]