Redkey council talks preservation

REDKEY — Working to help preserve historic buildings in the downtown area here was a major topic at Thursday night’s town council meeting.
Of particular interest is the fire station building that formerly served as the Redkey town hall, clerk-treasurer Sandy Kirby said.
Located at the northwest corner of High and Oak Streets, the building is owned by the town and includes a clocktower.
Kirby said the structure is historically significant, and in her opinion certainly merits being preserved.
The discussion about upgrading and preserving the downtown structures continued for quite a while, Kirby said, noting that several property owners are currently in the process of making improvements and the Historic Redkey organization is being rejuvenated.
She said the possibility of applying for some grant funds to help with downtown improvements was also discussed, but no definite action was taken. The issues have been discussed by the council several times over the past year.
“I’m hopeful we can get the fire station building saved because of its historical significance,” said Kirby, who is resigning as town clerk effective Dec. 31.
The clock in the tower reportedly has the potential of being repaired to working order.
Kirby said the town could seek grant funds to complete repairs on the building.
On a more immediate note, Redkey Fire Chief Randy Young said Thursday the two overhead doors at the fire station needed some repair work, and town council members agreed to proceed with having that done.
Also at Thursday night’s meeting, town council members:
•Approved the purchase of 10 new pagers for the fire department at a cost of $400 each. More such pagers will have to be purchased in the future to upgrade the department’s equipment to meet new state standards, Kirby said.
•Discussed the idea of leasing the former Indiana State Police post building on Ind. 67 for use as the town’s police station and possibly the site of municipal offices as well. Kirby said the general consensus of town board members was to explore this idea further, but added that “all discussions were tentative” at this point.
The possibility of a 10-year lease and some remodeling of the building to include a meeting room for the town council was mentioned, she added.
•Agreed with a recommendation by Debbie James, who is slated to replace Kirby as clerk-treasurer on Jan. 1, to hire Redkey resident Trenda Oakley, 20 E. Logan St., as the new office assistant at town hall, starting next month.
•Set a special meeting to handle year-end business, including payment of outstanding bills, for Thursday, Dec. 30 at 6 p.m. in Redkey Town Hall, 20 S. Ash St.[[In-content Ad]]