(OOLITIC) – People are either going to clean up their property or will pay to keep it that way, says Oolitic Town Council President Bill Kendall.
The Oolitic Town Council addressed enforcing existing ordinances during their meeting Wednesday evening.
The first step, to enforce those ordinances, came a couple of weeks ago when the town council asked the Town Marshal Jon Jeffries to start enforcing the abandon vehicle ordinance.
“It’s time people start cleaning up their property. People are either going to clean it up, or they will pay to keep it that way,” Kendall reinforced at the meeting.
Mark Love, who resides on Indiana Avenue in Oolitic, addressed the Council with issues with a residence next to his.
He described how boards, shingles, trash all litter the property next to his. And the house is ready to collapse.
“I am joyful that they are finally addressing these issues. I try to work and keep my property looking nice. And others should do the same,” Love stated.
Resident Bill Tolbert was concerned about what he described as a “junkyard” at 109 Lafayette Avenue. Tolbert told the Council that for more than three years, that particular property had looked that way.
Marshall Jeffries told the council the vehicles on that property were tagged.
“We will start addressing the abandoned vehicles first, and then we will be moving to make sure lawns are kept mowed,” says Kendall
Jeffries told those attending property owners they have three days to respond if they are warned about an overgrown yard. Town crews will then mow the property and charge the property owners $75 per hour per employee. If they don’t pay, the bill will be added to the property owner’s taxes.
Town Council Member Glen Gross stated, “it is time we start enforcing this ordinance townwide. And start enforcing them all, and not in one particular part of town.”
In other business:
- Zack Bell was hired as a supervisor for the town street department after a vote; Glen Gross abstained from the vote because he was not present during the Executive Session when interviews were being conducted. The town will be advertising for a laborer. Last, month all three employees quit which left vacancies. Only one labor position now remains vacant.
- Bids for dumpsters for a town-wide clean-up were taken under advisement. The town is hoping to have a town clean-up day in the near future with the residents being able to remove trash from their property. This will also, help the town employees who are already overworked. Bids from Republic and K&S were taken under advisement.
- Street signs that have been knocked down or stolen have been replaced. Any resident that knows of a missing sign needs to contact the Street Department.
- Indiana Department of Transportation is responsible for the stop-light on Hoosier and Main Streets. The Town cannot do anything with the light. The town is responsible for electricity. At last month’s meeting, there was a discussion on taking the stop light down and helping the town with expenses. The Indiana Department of Transportation is responsible for maintenance and repair of the light.
- Tipton Construction has not started on the water project yet. They are other jobs that they are working on that must be completed before they start on the Oolitic Project. Tipton Construction awarded three contracts in the April meeting. The first project is a water line and meter placements located at Vista Drive, with a bid of $17,853.11, and two other water sewer projects located on Vista Drive at $15,790. Due to personal reasons and other projects that have been delayed due to weather have delayed in work in Oolitic.
- The City of Bedford rejected the bid of $500 for the chipper. At last months, meeting they submitted a proposal of purchasing the chipper. The board now approved submitting a bid of $2,500. A used chipper will cost around $5,000 to $7,000. The chipper is a ton equivalent. The purchase of the chipper will save the Town Workers a lot of time when taking care of brush in the town. A chipper is used to mulch brush that is placed at the curbs in the town.
- Three town employees passed their drug tests: Employees Zack Bell, Wes Tipton, and Ted Maze all passed their drug screens.
- The council took under advisement bids for gravel to repair two driveways located on 10th and 11th streets. Hooper Construction submitted a bid for both projects at $3,150, and Gary Moore of Moore Construction a bid of $3,500.
- A representative from Southern Indiana Economic Development Corporation was in attendance to see if they were in questions regarding the grant they plan to pursue.
- According to Town President, they are still interested in the water/sewer project as that project will benefit the town the most. An economic survey will have to be conducted, and an engineering firm contracted to start getting the process underway. The project will cost around $600,000 to $700,000 with a ten percent match.
- Residents also addressed other concerns which included, speeding vehicles in residential neighborhoods, ATV’s, and overgrown lawns.
