Council OK's funding (03/12/2009)

The Jay County Council approved funding for the surveyor's office to move forward with its cornerstone project.

The council approved the $26,000 appropriation for the installation of a Global Positioning System to track the county's cornerstones, which serve as reference points for surveyors. The money will initiate the first steps of the countywide project.

"The $26,000 is going to GPS ... Wayne Township and put a base station on the courthouse," explained Jay County Surveyor Brad Daniels. When completed throughout the entire county, the project is estimated to cost about $100,000.

The money in the cornerstone perpetuation fund is supported by fees charged when deeds are transferred. Daniels said the fund contains around $35,000 at this time.

About $9,000 of the asked-for amount will cover the installation of the base station, which will centralize the GPS system at the courthouse. Installing one terminal will reduce costs compared to several smaller transmitters located throughout the county, which could require additional maintenance due to weather or other factors that could cause damage to the substations.

The remaining $17,000 will be used to plot nearly 150 cornerstones in Wayne Township. In future years, the program will be expanded to add other townships.

The Jay County Commissioners were happy to alter the original plans to install the single station as they unanimously approved it in late February.

The GPS will be purchased from and supported by Seiler Instrument Company, Indianapolis.

"They already have a series of base stations across the state," Daniel said, which will allow the county to link into the larger network.

Daniel said the system will allow surveyors to link up with the satellite system to locate the cornerstones for a faster and more accurate job.

The use of GPS will also save the money in the long run and keep county roads in better condition since surveyors won't need to dig into pavement to locate the buried spikes.

"If we're saving taxpayer money, it's a good idea," said councilman Fred Bailey. The council approved the request unanimously.

In other business Wednesday night, the county council:

•Approved an appropriation of $1,500 from probation user fees to be used to purchase a new copier for Jay Circuit Court.

•Approved an additional appropriation of $5,000 for Jay County Emergency Medical Services to purchase a new copier. The total cost of the copier is $6,490, but JEMS will be refunded two years of maintenance paid on its old copier, which could not be repaired.

•Approved two appropriations to cover expenses incurred related to the jail expansion project. One addition of $75,000 was added to a miscellaneous fund to cover expenses such as asbestos removal from the expansion site. Another $150,000 was added to pay for architectural fees.

Both of those amounts will be refunded to the county general fund when bonds are secured for the project.

•Approved a transfer of $500 to a miscellaneous expense account for Jay/Portland Building and Planning to cover cost of janitorial supplies.

•Signed an abatement for real estate property taxes for Stay Jay Hotels.

•Approved a loan of $750,000 from the rainy day fund to the county general, which is currently in the hole while awaiting tax draws from the state. The total is about half of the $1.43 million rainy day fund and will be repaid when the county general fund is replenished.[[In-content Ad]]