City, Corps part ways

A three-year planning period between Portland and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will result in nothing.

Portland Mayor John Boggs said near the end of the city’s council meeting Monday that the Corps agreed to terminate the agreement last month before it was set to expire in October because of a disagreement about how to effectively deter downtown flooding.

The mayor also told council he is expecting a report Wednesday from the Indiana Department of Transportation’s chemical examination of the former Sheller-Globe south building at 510 S. Bridge St.

That inspection could allow the building to be officially sold more than a year after a bid from John Goodhew of Goodhew’s Roofing and Metals was approved by the council.

Boggs said in May that he was leaning toward terminating the agreement or letting it expire because he believed the Corps’ $7.9 million solution, which called for the creation of a 40-foot wide ditch that would carry overflowing water from Millers Branch to Cartwright Ditch and eventually the Salamonie River, was too costly.

In addition, the Jay County Fair Board, the Tom Homan family and the Tri-State Gas Engine and Tractor Association refused to turn over the land required for such a ditch, instead suggesting that storm sewers be run underground.

The Corps refused to fund an underground solution, repeating that an open ditch was the most cost effective solution.

In a meeting last month, representatives said the Corps will provide all studies it has conducted since Portland first asked for help with a flooding solution in 2015. That will allow the city to use those studies as it looks at potential solutions in the future.

Those studies cost the city and Jay County $154,000 to commission.

The city’s flood advisory committee, which recommended the agreement’s termination earlier this year, met with Butler, Fairman and Seufert last month about the potential creation of a detention pond to collect overflowing water from Millers Branch.

Boggs said after the city council meeting he’ll likely ask the engineering firm, which is also working to extend Portland Municipal Airport’s 4,000-foot runway to 5,500 feet, to create a contract to explore that option.

He also referenced the city’s recent agreed-upon $97,466 contract with Wessler Engineering Inc. to oversee the repair of sewer lines under Meridian Street and other planned measures in the city’s long-term control plan as alternative ways to combat downtown flooding.

In other business, council members Michele Brewster, Matt Goldsworthy, Janet Powers, Dave Golden, Mike Aker, Don Gillespie and Kent McClung:

•Voted to allow the Town of Bryant to utilize Portland City Court to litigate ordinance violations.

•Heard from clerk-treasurer Lori Phillips that utility payments have remained steady despite some delays throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

“People are catching up,” she said.

Council passed an ordinance extending its pause on shutting down utilities for late payments through Sept. 29, matching an executive order by Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb.

•Paid $1,066,316.95 in claims.

•Heard a recommendation to the mayor from Golden that all full-time firefighters and police officers be paid a one-time stipend of $1,000 and all part-time first responders receive a $500 stipend for their efforts during the pandemic.

Boggs said he’ll discuss the stipend with city attorney Bill Hinkle and could put it on the council’s agenda for its next meeting, which is scheduled for July 20.