Latest news with #BarbRegnitz
Chicago Tribune
6 days ago
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Porter County commissioners raise rates for parking garage to keep up with maintenance costs
To recoup more than $600,000 in maintenance costs, Porter County is increasing the fee to park in the county garage south of the administration building during Popcorn Fest and also doubling the contract fee the city of Valparaiso pays to use the garage after business hours and on weekends. The fee to park during the Popcorn Fest will increase from $15 to $20 for the day and Valparaiso's contract fee is being doubled from $15,000 to $30,000. Under that contract, public parking is free from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. on weekdays and from 9 a.m. to 1 a.m. on weekends. Last year, after a decade at $10 for the day of Popcorn Fest, the parking fee was raised to $15. At the time there had been talk of going to $20 but commissioners were uncomfortable with such a large jump all at once. Commissioner Barb Regnitz, R-Center, asked if any conversation had been had with the city about the proposed increase. 'Whatever conversation we're going to have is going to be one-sided,' replied Board of Commissioners President Jim Biggs, R-North. 'They're not going to like it.' Biggs said Valparaiso didn't cut the county any slack in requiring it to pay a $39,000 building permit fee for the ongoing renovations to the Porter County Jail which is within city limits. 'Love doing business with them,' he said, 'but we have our own business to take care of here.' Porter County Facilities Director Joe Wiszowaty told the Board of Commissioners at its meeting Tuesday morning that $300,000 has already been spent on a complete overhaul of the garage and another $300,000 in maintenance is expected to be spent over the next five years. The garage was built in 1994 and recently had a full-depth restoration in which rebar was redone and deteriorated areas of the garage deck cut out and replaced. An epoxy overlay was also put on all seams. 'It should last a hundred years, easy,' Wiszowaty said. 'We've done all the corrective steps.'
Chicago Tribune
12-03-2025
- Health
- Chicago Tribune
Porter County commissioners dole out latest round of opioid settlement funds to nonprofits
Five Porter County entities will receive a portion of this year's $125,000 in Opioid Settlement money. The county's Opioid Settlement Funds Committee began taking applications for the awards in January and made its recommendations to the Porter County Board of Commissioners at its meeting Tuesday morning. Commissioner Barb Regnitz, R-Center, explained it was agreed five recipients would be selected so as not to create an undue burden in the process. Duneland Schools will receive $10,000 for student education and prevention, as well as developing a diversion program for students who have been affected by the crisis. Moraine House, Portage Recovery Association, and Three20 Recovery will each receive $25,000. Moraine House will use the money for house repairs and remodeling. Three20 Recovery will use the money for music, art, fitness, nutrition and faith initiatives to 'continue to try to remove barriers and meet people where they're at,' said executive director Allen Grecula. Similarly, the Portage Recovery Association will use the money to flesh out a variety of all-inclusive services at its new facility. 'To give them all of these tools to go forward is beyond amazing,' said director Jake Monhaut. The Caring Place will receive $40,000 to aid its women's recovery program. Porter County will receive approximately $336,000 per year between 2022 and 2038. The county sets aside $200,000 of that to pay the salaries and benefits of the two social workers at the Porter County Sheriff's Department. After the five annual awards, a small balance remains in reserve. The state's opioid settlement and litigation page on states that at the height of the opioid crisis in 2012, 112 opioid prescriptions were being written for every 100 Hoosiers. In other business, the commissioners gave General Insurance Services permission for its advisory panel to explore the possibility of the county adopting an Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement (ICRA) for the 1,100 to 1,200 employees and dependants that it insures. GIS Employee Benefits Advisor Candace Arvin explained to the commission that there are long lead times for implementation of any changes and now is a good time to simply understand what else is available in terms of employee health insurance. Regnitz said the switch this year to a health savings account-based plan for employees was already a big shift for the county and it should do nothing more than explore at this point. Board of Commissioners President Jim Biggs, R-North, told Arvin, 'You've got to figure out how to get more aggressive with our plan because it's only going to get more expensive.' Regnitz praised GIS for keeping the county's health insurance cost increases below industry averages. 'But they have another gear, Barb,' Biggs insisted.
