At the Mentone Town Council meeting on Wednesday, March 2, are from left: Town Council Member Tim Croy, Town Clerk-Treasurer Nicki Norris, Town Council President Jill Gross and Town Council Member Shelly Krueger. InkFreeNews photo by Leah Sander.

By Leah Sander
InkFreeNews

MENTONE — Mentone has set a firmer process in dealing with unpaid water bills.

The Mentone Town Council approved the new process at its meeting on Wednesday, March 2.

The council set the 16th of the month (or the following Monday if the 16th falls on the weekend) as the time which the town would shut off a person’s water for lack of payment for those whose bills are two months past due.

The town will still charge a $35 reconnection fee for turning water back on. The council also agreed that water would be turned back on only during the utilities department’s normal hours of 6:30 a.m.-3 p.m.

The process is effective immediately.

New deputy

At Wednesday’s meeting, the council also heard an update regarding hiring a new deputy marshal.

Mentone Town Marshal Jim Eads asked for the council to have another executive session to help select a candidate before the council could vote on the hiring at a public meeting.

The council agreed to set an executive session for 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 9, at Mentone Town Hall.

Mentone Youth League

The council also agreed to allow the Mentone Youth League to have an opening day parade on Saturday, May 7, in town. It will start at 9 a.m.

People can still sign up for business sponsorships for the league or sign their kids up to play, with the latter deadline being Sunday, March 20. To do so, they should contact Derek Adamson at 574-527-0564, email [email protected] or reach out through the league’s Facebook page MYL League.

In other business, the council:

• Learned that Clerk-Treasurer Nicki Norris’ new email address has been finalized. To reach her, people should now email [email protected].
• Heard a reminder from Eads to town residents to notify the town’s trash pickup provider, Apex Waste, ahead of time if they are putting out larger items like furniture for Apex to take away. Apex requires advanced notice to pick up those items, and people risk a town ordinance violation if the items stay out in front of people’s homes.
• Heard a reminder from Mentone Utilities Superintendent Josh Shepherd that people need to put leaves and glass clippings in containers for town employees to pick up since it’s not the normal leaf pickup season.
• Heard from Shepherd that the town cemetery cleanup is set for Friday, April 1. Anything not removed from grave sites by then will be thrown away.

The council’s next regular meeting is 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 6, at Mentone Town Hall.