Council OKs $ for Pennville library

Remaining costs for the Pennville library expansion will be covered by the county.

Jay County Council OK’d contributing $93,500 Monday toward the library construction using economic development funds from wind farm projects. (Council previously agreed June 10 to a $50,000 request.) The decision came after Jay County Commissioners’ choice June 14 to up its contributions by the remaining $58,400 needed to afford construction of the expansion in its original design.

Bids for expanding the structure at 195 N. Union St. in Pennville were estimated at about $350,000 last year. In April, the lowest bid came in at more than $443,000 from Muhlenkamp Building Corporation. (Jay County Development Corporation executive director Travis Richards previously explained the rise in price resulted from increased material costs.)

Construction plans originally included expanding it by about 1,700 square feet from its current 1,000 square feet with a new structure to the south with a breezeway/entrance as a connector, two new bathrooms and a parking lot. (The project is mainly being funded by the $333,000 awarded to the Jay! Region for being a finalist in the 2019 Stellar Communities process. Commissioners also provided a 10% match.)

After receiving the bids, which came in more than $90,000 over the budget, JCDC and Pennville residents made cuts to the project, deciding to switch from brick to vinyl siding, downgrade window and door materials and remove the parking lot addition in an effort to bring costs down.

County auditor Anna Culy mentioned in a commissioners meeting earlier Monday several local municipalities still have funding left over of the $50,000 allocated to each from the Bluff Point Wind Energy Center economic development payments. Pennville has about $5,500 it could use toward the library project if needed, she added. (See related story.)

“I don’t think Pennville has asked for much, have they?” asked council member Ray Newton. “I think they’re entitled to it.”

Council members Ted Champ, Mike Rockwell, Faron Parr and Newton (absent Jeanne Houchins, Amy Barrett and Matt Minnich) then approved the extra funding request.

Also, Jay County Personnel Committee –– commissioner Chad Aker, Champ and Houchins –– met following council’s meeting and heard requests from three county departments.

Jay Emergency Medical Service director Gary Barnett requested an increase for paramedics’ and other EMS employees’ pay. Specifically, he explained, he would like to widen the pay gap between paramedics and Advanced Emergency Medical Technicians –– currently paramedics only make about $1 more per hour.

Mike Brewster and Brayden Fields of Jay County Coroner’s Office requested a wage increase for the coroner, chief deputy and other deputies over the next three years. Raises would help Jay County coroner’s worker wages equal those of surrounding counties for similar positions, Fields said.

Jay County Sheriff’s Office chief deputy Patrick Wells also requested the department change its contracts when hiring new county deputies to include a requirement for each deputy to stay a certain amount of time with the department after completing training or be required to pay the county back for the cost of training at Indiana Law Enforcement Academy.

The committee agreed to meet at 2 p.m. July 8 to discuss requested wage increases.