Plans for new recycling center advance

Jay County Solid Waste Management District is planning to build a recycling center on the southwest side of Portland.

County officials OK’d another step in the process this week.

Jay County Commissioners approved a real estate purchase agreement Monday with Portland Economic Development Corporation for 9.18 acres of its 75-acre parcel along Tyson Road, west of Tyson Foods and Community Fiber Solutions.

The agreement serves as a formality — Portland Economic Development Corporation is donating the land to Jay County Solid Waste Management District for its proposed new office and recycling facility.

Portland Board of Zoning Appeals approved a special exception use request in September for the building, which is estimated at 60 feet by 140 feet with a 40-foot wide driveway. The facility is expected to sit approximately 100 feet away from Tyson Road. The western wooded portion of the property should remain untouched, allowing trees to cover the front of the building and avoiding wetlands on the property.

Hopes are to construct the new, larger building to replace the district’s current structure at 5948 W. Indiana 67, Portland. (That building is leased from Waste Management, which operates Jay County Landfill.)

According to Jay County Solid Waste Management District director George McGinnis in September, the building will feature a drive-thru door for Jay County residents to unload their materials inside. 

Items will then be inserted into a chute that will funnel into a sealed compactor. Full compacted units will be hauled to Muncie’s recycling center.

Commissioners agreed in April to pay for the land and wetlands surveys to figure out the building’s placement on the property.

County attorney Wes Schemenaur noted plans to put out a request for proposals in January to seek potential designs and costs for the project.

Commissioners approved the agreement.

Relatedly, commissioners OK’d paying filing costs — $25 with Jay County Recorder’s Office and $10 with Jay County Auditor’s Office — for the donation.

Also Monday, commissioners approved an ordinance establishing stipulations for county contracts.

County attorney Wes Schemenaur explained the ordinance relates to Indiana House Enrolled Act 1158. The bill enacted in July lists procedures for county elected officials to approve contracts.

“The county executive (commissioners) may, by ordinance, require standard contractual language to be used in all contracts entered into by the county,” according to the law. Among other changes, it also stipulates contracts must be executed or submitted for review to commissioners by a “county officer” — generally defined as elected officials — if the contracts are necessary for the county officer’s duties and if funds have been appropriated for it by the county fiscal body (county council). Under certain conditions, once a contract has been reviewed by commissioners or 20 days pass, the county officer could execute a contract without their approval.

“You can still reject it, but the elected official can still sign it over your objection as long as the money is (appropriated) in their budget and it is for a statutory or constitutional duty of their office,” explained Schemenaur.

According to the new county ordinance, all county contracts shall be in the name of Jay County and set for a specific term with clear termination provisions. They must be interpreted using Indiana law and related lawsuits must be filed in Jay County.

Automatic renewal clauses are not acceptable in county contracts moving forward.

Other requirements include: providing notice of defaults, breaches or modifications to the commissioners, county auditor and county attorney; indemnifying Jay County for any liability arising out of the other party’s performance of the contract; requiring the other party to the contract to submit claims or disputes arising out of the contract to mediation prior to filing a lawsuit for enforcement or breach; and adding provisions as required by state or federal law.

Commissioners also approved a rezoning request for Darrick Plummer of rural Geneva.

Jay County Plan Commission approved the request, which involves rezoning two parcels (approximately 12 acres) in Pennville from a single family residential to a multi family residential property. Plummer plans to turn the lot west of South Street just south of Max Drive and the lot south of Daisy Lane into a mobile home park.

In other business, commissioners Rex Journay, Brian McGalliard and Chad Aker:

•Signed a letter of support for rehabilitating two bridges and fixing a problem on the road in between the bridges on the Blackford/Jay county line approximately 1.5 miles south of Indiana 18. Blackford County highway superintendent John Pluimer shared plans to apply for a 2030 federal grant to help pay for the work, which is estimated at $4.2 million. (If the grant is received, Blackford County’s portion would be $848,960.) The work should help extend the bridges’ lifetimes by at least 50 years.

•Approved the following: an engineering contract with construction engineering firm EGIS for replacing a bridge along county road 700 West between 200 and 300 South in 2026; a resolution establishing the county’s contribution to Health Savings Accounts for employees in 2025, with county auditor Emily Franks explaining the county will be putting in an additional $100 quarterly to single employees and $200 quarterly to employees with other family members on their plan; a $6,325 heater from Laux Plumbing & Heating of Portland for Jay County Highway Department barn; cleaning the arsenic removal system at Jay County Country Living as part of regular maintenance; paying a $218,750 quarterly claim — Jay County serves as a pass-through organization for the service payment, which is covered by the state — from LifeStream Services; a $12,000 claim from Ritter Strategic Services for its work in helping the county join the Integrated Public Safety Commission’s 800 megahertz statewide radio system; granting up to five $150 scholarships for Jay County groups or individuals participating in grant writing workshops hosted by Jay County Purdue Extension Office and Blackford County Purdue Extension Office on Jan. 16 and Jan. 30 at Innovation Connector in Muncie; paying $2,484,360.18 in other claims; purchasing up to $60 in refreshments for an employee health wellness event Tuesday, Dec. 3.

•Heard Jay Emergency Medical Services’ financial breakdown for October from director Gary Barnett. The department had $115,898.11 in expenses and $100,172.65 in income.

•Reappointing Jerry Whetzel, Trent Paxson and Christina Schemenaur to four-year terms on Jay County Health Board.