By David Slone
Times-Union

WARSAW — A revote by the Kosciusko County Council on Thursday, Nov. 9, means the Downtown YMCA facility in Warsaw will receive $100,000 in county American Rescue Plan Act funds after all for a security system.

The County ARPA Committee had recommended $100,000 for the YMCA. The county commissioners approved the recommendation. When the council voted on the recommendation at their Oct. 12 meeting, it appeared it was a 3-3 vote so the motion was declared dead. Council members Sue Ann Mitchell, Dave Wolkins and Tony Ciriello voted in favor, while Council President Mike Long and members Joni Truex and Kimberly Cates were counted as having opposed the motion.

Councilwoman Kathleen Groninger abstained because of her past involvement with the company developing the Gateway Grove housing addition at the old Madison Elementary School site. The YMCA has purchased the Madison gym and is renovating it for the Downtown YMCA.

When the video of the Oct. 12 council meeting was watched later, it appeared as though one council member voted for and then against the motion so a clarification on the vote was necessary.

At Thursday’s council meeting, Long said they had some questions to how the vote went at the Oct. 12 meeting “so we’re just going to bring this up for a revote.” He said he “kind of visited” with all council members and he thought the majority were OK with the revote.

Before any action was taken, Long asked YMCA CEO Jim Swanson, who was present, if he had any additional information he would like to share.

“We caught the vision for the Madison building because this town being an unreached community for the Y, and I know discounts had been mentioned and things like that, and we would offer discounts to the county and its employees whether or not this money is approved,” Swanson said. “So it’s important, I think, that you know that. That’s what we do is offer corporate memberships to businesses in town in order to offer access to families.”

When the county commissioners approved the ARPA Committee’s recommendation, Commissioner Bob Conley suggested the YMCA could offer county employees an discount for the use of the downtown facility.

Swanson told the county council, “We think our position downtown definitely has an opportunity to improve the health and wellness of this community and the downtown business area, and some of the renovations and great things that are happening.”

Ciriello made a motion to approve the ARPA Committee recommendation, with Wolkins offering the second. The vote in favor was 4-2, with Long, Ciriello, Mitchell and Wolkins voting in favor and Cates and Truex opposed. Groninger abstained.

The council also voted on approving $50,000 to Stillwater Hospice for 2024 as part of the county’s grants to nonprofit organizations.

The county contributed to Kosciusko County Home Care & Hospice over the years, but in 2022 KCHCH merged with Stillwater. Since that merger, council members had concerns about making sure the county’s grant went specifically for patients in Kosciusko County. Mitchell also expressed some hesitation about donation as no other county in Stillwater’s service area provides funding.

Glenn Hall, Stillwater outreach director for Kosciusko County, and Stillwater CEO Leslie Friedel attended Thursday’s meeting to answer any additional questions the council may have. Hall said Mitchell met with Stillwater Chief Medical Officer Mary Shankster, but Shankster was unable to be at Thursday’s meeting due to a prior commitment. He said information also was provided to try to answer the council’s questions about the grant request.

“I do want to report that we did have a positive meeting and covered a lot of things, and I think that they are clear that this is money to be used to help people with their services and, specifically, with their services for our county and that they will be able to track it,” Mitchell said, and Stillwater will provide quarterly reports.

Ciriello said after reading what Stillwater submitted to the council, he thought it was still vague and there were no specifics.

Mitchell made a motion to accept paying the grant for another year with an expectation that the council will get reports on a quarterly basis and, if those reports aren’t forthcoming, the funds won’t be either. Groninger provided the second for the motion.

After further discussion, and Mitchell amending her motion so that if the reports aren’t what the council wants to see by the end of the second quarter the funding is done, the council approved the $50,000 by a vote of 7-0.

Health Department Administrator Bob Weaver gave a brief update on the Health First Indiana fund that was offered to all 92 counties in Indiana if they choose to make the budget for it and it’s approved.

After conferring with many people, including the Kosciusko County Board of Health, Weaver said he submitted a budget Sept. 1 for the funding and it was recently approved.

While he didn’t need an approval Thursday night for the Health First Indiana 2024 budget, the council unanimously approved it.

The budget totals $968,263.83.

In other business, the council:

• Approved Kosciusko County Highway Department Superintendent Steve Moriarty’s request to apply for the Highway Safety Improvement Program grant in the amount of $661,000. The county has to provide 10% of that, or $66,100. The grant is for road striping, and Moriarty said approximately 50 miles will be striped. The commissioners approved the request Monday.

Wolkins asked if the striping is done in-house or contracted out and if $12,000 per mile was the going rate for road striping.

Moriarty said the KCHD does contract that out. “If you do just center line – like sometimes when we pave roads, we just do the yellow line. This is fog lines, center lines and outside lines. And it’s the average because if you have a passing zone, it doesn’t cost as much. A non-passing zone, then the road costs a lot more,” he explained. “And with the paint that we put in for, it’s the highest quality.”

• Approved the Kosciusko Coalition On Drug Education 2024 budget of $84,800, as presented by Prosecuting Attorney Chief Deputy Dan Hampton. He said the grant applications for funding from the budget were reviewed by the committee in October. Grants will be awarded in 2024 in the areas of prevention and education, intervention and treatment, and law enforcement and justice.

• Approved Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Mike Mulligan’s request to apply for a $15,000 2024 Indiana Department of Natural Resources grant for boat patrolling. The commissioners approved the request Monday.

• Approved Superior Court I Judge Karin McGrath’s request to apply for a $70,000 Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative for the seventh year. The commissioners approved the request Monday.

• Approved a 2024 new hire request from Assessor Gail Chapman because she has one employee on active duty with the National Guard.

• Approved Abbey Sponseller as a new trustee on the Bell Memorial Public Library Board of Trustees. Her term expires Dec. 31, 2027.

• Approved Mark Koehler as a new trustee on the Lakeland Regional Sewer District Board. His term expires April 18, 2025.

• Heard from the Kosciusko County Soil & Water Conservation District that on Monday the district received the District Showcase Award presented by the Indiana Association of Soil & Water Conservation Districts. The award is given out to three counties each year, with Kosciusko County being one of them this year. They will be recognized at the annual conference on Jan. 9.

• Approved the 2024 council meeting dates, the October encumbering report and the 2024 interlocal agreements with the Kosciusko County Solid Waste Management District and Kosciusko County Convention and Recreation Visitors Commission, as presented by County Auditor Rhonda Helser.