One OK'd, two tabled

Downtown Portland will look a bit different after this summer.

Portland Redevelopment Commission on Friday awarded $58,513.78 to Portland Main Street Connect to complete phase one of its plan to “breathe new life” into downtown Portland.

The organization aims to revitalize the downtown area by using the National Main Street model for downtown development. It will use the money for installing sidewalk benches, giving the brick alley a makeover and refurbishing trash cans, among other things.

The commission also tabled votes on funding for Portland Municipal Airport’s planned runway extension and Arts Place’s planned building upgrades and expansion.



Airport

Commission members Joe Johnston, Dave Teeter, Rusty Inman, Reda Theurer-Miller and Mike Simons refused to vote on whether or not to partially fund the Portland airport’s long-discussed runway extension from 4,000 to 5,500 feet because Simons wanted Portland Mayor John Boggs to approach Portland City Council and Jay County Commissioners for funding first.

The commission awarded $150,000 for the project in 2014, city attorney Bill Hinkle said. For that reason, Simons and other members didn’t want to award more money without the board exhausting all of its funding options, they said.

“I’m a little frustrated they didn’t take it up right away and vote on it,” said Mayor John Boggs, who added he understands the commission is making sure the city is doing its due diligence with funding options.

Jason Clearwaters of Butler Fairman & Seufert, Portland Aviation Board’s engineering firm, explained that 555 feet of Alexander Ditch will be enclosed and 140,000 cubic yards of soil will be used for grading the site.

As is the case with all such projects, 90% of the cost will be reimbursed by the Federal Aviation Administration and 5% by Indiana Department of Transportation. The city will be responsible for the other 5%.

Airport manager Hal Tavzel explained the benefits of the runway extension, including increased business to the airport and community as well as the ability to safely land larger aircraft.

From his own business, Tavzel said he is waiting to invest more into the airport until its airport extension is “solidified.”

The commission scheduled an April 3 meeting to provide the airport and its representatives an opportunity to pursue funding from city council and county commissioners before it comes back to the commission.

Boggs said getting the deal done is a priority and that he wants to keep planned FAA timelines on track.



Arts Place

Eric Rogers and Mindy Weaver attended the meeting on behalf of Arts Place, which requested $50,000 to $100,000 to go toward the final $275,000 it needs to reach its $2.4 million goal for its Legacy Capital Campaign.

The millions of dollars will go toward Arts Place’s facility in Portland, including fixing structural issues and adding studio, gallery and lobby space.

Rogers, Arts Place’s executive director, said enough money is in hand to begin construction this summer, but without the final $275,000 it may not be able to purchase new theatre equipment or provide additional space for the many activities it hosts.

“We need to make sure the building lasts for the future,” said Weaver, president of the Arts Place board.

Teeter said it’s less of a question of if the commission is going to give money to Arts Place, since it is one of the city’s biggest attractions and brings significant financial benefit, but with potentially another $100,000 needing to be paid out to the airport project, he wanted the vote tabled for a future meeting.

The commission has close to $800,000 available for projects, with more money coming in this year.

Other commission members justified tabling the vote because they wanted more information on what specific parts of the planned upgrades would need to be eliminated if Arts Place does not reach its funding goal.

Rogers listed in his proposal to the commission that funds would go toward “critical” construction projects that are endangered of being cut without the last leg of funding.



Main Street

Main Street Connect was the only organization to be awarded money by the commission Friday.

Theurer-Miller, a Main Street Connect member who abstained from the commission’s vote, said the group is working on a volunteer community workday to help improve the downtown area. The workday will involve cleaning downtown sidewalks and windows, among other things.

She said it’s vital to get the youth of the community involved with the workday and revitalization efforts to help them buy into the community and find a reason to stay here.

Portland Main Street Connect has already secured bids from Forrest Johnson for installing benches, TJ’s Concrete & Excavation for covering sidewalk grates and B&B Powercoating for refurbishing trash cans.

Portland Main Street Connect will also hold a public meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday at John Jay Center for Learning to explain planned projects and the group’s overall mission.