County to get grant funding

A recently-awarded grant will give a local entity at least three more years to work on improving the Salamonie River water quality.
Jay County Soil and Water Conservation District educator Bettie Jacobs informed Jay County Commissioners Monday morning that the Upper Salamonie River Watershed Commission received a $75,000 Clean Water of Indiana grant. The commission was one of 16 projects that were granted funding from a group of 30 applicants.
The funds, which will be disbursed from 2015 to 2017, will be put toward paying coordinator Tim Kroeker’s salary, as well as the implementation of the project’s management plan, which covers both Jay and Blackford counties.
“We’re going to give it a whirl,” said Jacobs. “We wanted to stop by and give you a good piece of news.”
The project was originally funded by the Federal 2014 Clean Water Act Section 319 Grant, with a two-year contract to end in 2016. After missing the newly-introduced intent to apply deadline with the Indiana Department of Environmental Management for the second phase of the grant, Kroeker and Jacobs were left scrambling before finding the Clean Water grant through the Indiana Department of Agriculture’s Soil Conservation Board.
Kroeker explained that most of the funds will be used in its second year when the improvement plan is put into effect.
Fifty percent of the grant is given up front, with the rest given at the end of the grant period, but both Jay and Blackford counties’ soil and water conservation districts have agreed to pay part of the other 50 percent up front to allow for a lump sum of funding. The counties will be reimbursed when the second half of the grant is received.
Kroeker intends to apply for the second phase of the original grant some time in the next three years to continue his work after the Clean Water of Indiana grant is up in 2017.
In other business, commissioners Milo Miller Jr. and Faron Parr, absent Jim Zimmerman:
•Approved disbursing $19,702 of infrastructure funds to the City of Dunkirk for renovations of Dunkirk Community Pool, including roof and deck repairs, purchase of tables and lounge chairs and a possible expansion of its concession stand. The available funds are from a one-time allocation to each municipality within the county.
•Were told the next meeting of the study commission to review confined feeding operation regulations will be 5 p.m. Thursday in the auditorium of Jay County Courthouse.
•Heard an update from Sheriff Ray Newton on Jay County Jail’s recent state inspection. Newton commented that the inspector was there around three hours and found it to be one of the cleanest jails in the state.
“Another outstanding job done by everyone to get through that,” said Newton.
•Were presented a draft of a resolution to detail the process of how agencies within Jay County should file a federal grant application. County attorney Bill Hinkle review it and bring revisions to a later meeting.
•Heard a presentation from Charles Malinowski of Malinowski Consulting Inc. to work with Jay Emergency Medical Service to find additional reimbursements from Medicaid. The firm would bill the county half of whatever it received back, up to $9,500. JEMS director Pat Frazee said she’d contact him after the first of the year to find the best course of action.
•Were informed by Frazee that JEMS’ ambulances are now outfitted with body suits in the case that the county encounters an Ebola outbreak.
•Signed two supplemental agreements with Beam, Longest & Neff for bridge inspections in 2014 and 2016.
•Heard a recommendation from highway superintendent Ken Wellman to purchase the Case 721 F XR from RPM Machinery, Fort Wayne, for $147,750. The bid is one of five that was accepted at last week’s meeting and is based on a three-year buy back program and maintenance agreement. Commissioners gave Wellman permission to contact banks for financing if the department is satisfied with a test drive of the wheel loader.