Etna Green Town Council Members Jason Hanes and Susan Klinefelter sign paperwork during a Feb. 14 meeting.

Text and Photos
By Liz Shepherd
InkFreeNews

ETNA GREEN — Etna Green Council voted to hold a public hearing on a recent state mandate from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management on water valves at businesses during a Feb. 14 meeting.

Clerk-Treasurer Patti Cook presented a cross connection ordinance to council. She said IDEM has enforced an annual water valve check at local businesses to ensure backflow is not entering any of the town’s water. Cook told the council the town must receive paperwork on the valves being checked or the town could potentially be fined.

Six businesses within the town fit the criteria for IDEM’s mandate. Council Member Jason Hanes said he felt like his hands were tied and that council had no choice in the matter.

Council voted to have Town Attorney Nick Jacobs look over the law and also moved to schedule a public hearing for anyone seeking more information.

In other business, council asked Jacobs to create a notice for a public hearing to be held at the next council meeting on a possible rate increase for residents’ sewer bills. The issue was heavily discussed at the council’s January meeting; due to Council President Keith Claassen’s absence at the February meeting, council tabled further conversations on the matter aside from scheduling a public hearing.

The council also approved a motion to pay $150 for a Carol Hoffer Memorial Pavilion sign, which will be placed on the Heritage Park pavilion. Hoffer, a lifelong Etna Green resident who did a lot of landscaping and cleanup work around town and at the parks, died in November 2020. The sign was created by Brad Knisely, with powder coating done by Winona Powder Coating.

The council also:

• Tabled a decision on hiring a new town employee to the March meeting due to Claassen’s absence.
• Approved a Ball State University intern working in town hall over the summer to sort old records.
• Approved items from the Etna Green Museum being temporarily stored at the town hall due to a construction project.
• Gave $150 to the Triton Field Day event.

Council’s next meeting is at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 14, in Etna Green Town Hall.

A sign in honor of longtime resident Carol Hoffer will be placed on the Heritage Park pavilion.