Latest news with #SuzieWeirick
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
County looks at major paving program, bridge replacements
GOSHEN — Millions of dollars in road and bridge projects were advanced Monday by the county commissioners. The Elkhart County Board of Commissioners passed appropriations for several highway projects. They include the annual summer paving program which is partially paid by Community Crossings Matching Grant funds. Kyle Wagner, transportation manager for the Elkhart County Highway Department, said the county received its full $1.5 million ask to help pave a list of road segments amounting to more than 20 miles. The board approved additional appropriations totaling $3.7 million to cover the remaining difference represented by paving, chip and seal and other road maintenance. It's a gap that Commissioner Suzie Weirick expects to widen thanks to actions by state lawmakers. 'I'd like to take half a second to make a little commentary about the new state funding, on road funding, and the impacts between that and Senate Bill 1, and why we're going to see these numbers go up that we're covering,' she said. Roads included in the program include C.R. 6 between 9 and 11, C.R. 13 between 18 and 16, C.R. 46 from S.R. 19 to C.R. 11, C.R. 28 between 13 and 11 and C.R. 7 between 52 and 46 and between 38 and 36. A segment of C.R. 111 will be paved between C.R. 20 and Shaffer Avenue, C.R. 24 between S.R. 15 and C.R. 27, and sections of C.R. 11 will be paved between 48 and 46 and between C.R. 11N and C.R. 11S. C.R. 46 will be paved between S.R. 19 and C.R. 1, C.R. 48 between 11 and 13, C.R. 146 from C.R. 29 to C.R. 31, and C.R. 50 between 29 and 31. Both the Forest Lakes Drive and Timber Ridge Drive subdivisions will be repaved, as well as Clayton Street between Shaffer Avenue and the cul-de-sac. The plan also calls for bridge deck resurfacing for several bridges. They include Bridge No. 183, on C.R. 43 between C.R. 16 and U.S. 20, No. 206, on C.R. 33 between 38 and 40, No. 210, on C.R. 10 between 138 and 38, and No. 351, on C.R. 43 between 44 and 46. The paving project was awarded in May to Rieth-Riley Construction Co. In addition, the road striping program was awarded to C.E. Hughes Milling Inc., at $782,393, and the wedging program, to repair horseshoe damage to county roads, was awarded to Niblock Excavating for $575,422. Monday's actions also included rehabilitation projects for Bridge No. 332, which takes C.R. 142 over the Elkhart River in New Paris, and Bridge 233, which carries C.R. 36 over Yellow Creek in the Southwest community. The board voted to put the replacement of the Bridge 332 deck out for bids. The county closed the bridge between 29 and 42 last summer to assess its condition, then restricted it to westbound traffic after a concrete box beam was found to be deteriorated. The actual costs are unknown until bids come in, but the commissioners voted last month to appropriate $1.4 million for construction, right of way purchases and related costs. Another $700,000 will be borrowed from the Major Moves fund and repaid using tax increment finance district money. The replacement of Bridge 233, which is located between C.R. 9 and C.R. 11, is largely federally funded. 'It is an 80-20 match, federally funded. The construction estimate is $1.6 million, with $900,00 in federal aid and $700,000 local,' Wagner said. 'And then for the construction inspection, it is $300,000 for the project and 40 percent will be reimbursed with federal funds.'
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Coalition focuses on protecting Johnson Street Dam
ELKHART — The future of the Johnson Street Dam is uncertain. A newly formed coalition of community members, elected officials and members of the St. Joseph River Association this week launched the Elkhart County Gives A Dam committee to focus on protecting the asset in Elkhart. The Johnson Street Dam resides next to Johnson Street between Elkhart Avenue and Beardsley Avenue and controls the water flow from the Upper St. Joseph River to Mottville, Michigan, all the way to the Lower St. Joseph River into Mishawaka, where the nearest two St. Joseph River dams are located. The original dam was built from logs around 1868, and eventually transformed into the modern day structure. The dam that stands today is over 100 years old, built in 1912. 'The dam provides so much for our community,' Elkhart County Commissioner Suzie Weirick said. Energy-wise, the dam powers the equivalent of roughly 500 homes, which is not a lot, especially compared to the impact the dam has on roughly 1,000 parcels of land along the Upper St. Joseph River, in addition to dozens of tributaries that the water funnels through. 'There's bass fishing tournaments all the time, there's kayakers all the time, there's random people that put in tubes and flow down it in the summer. I paddle board on there,' Weirick said. 'There's ecosystems that have developed over the last 100 years.' By law, companies that manage energy resources like the hydroelectric production plant that is part of the Johnson Street dam, must periodically apply for licensure through the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to continue maintaining infrastructure. Weirick said last summer AEP had a public meeting where they discussed the Johnson Street dam and licensure surrounding the property. 'They're really looking for any option, anywhere from a complete shutdown to a complete rejuvenation, and the 3,000 options in between,' Weirick said. The company's license is set to expire in 2030, with a required decision on their intent to relicense due by late 2025. Weirick said, in trying to understand the process, she began looking into the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. 'I had no idea what I didn't know,' she said. 'I got concerned. I just wanted to make sure — trust, but verify — that Elkhart County still has the Johnson Street dam when all is said and done.' Utilities companies in possession of dams are also required to maintain the dam. 'That is truly a financial burden on anybody,' she acknowledged. 'It's a very expensive system. It's a very old dam. This current dam is built on top of the riverbed, so it's not attached to the riverbed. … It is not driven into the bedrock below the riverbed. It's a very sandy bottom and sediment keeps coming up with every storm. … It's not something that is easy to maintain and keep safe; it requires a lot of attention and AEP has been doing that and will continue to do that as long as they have their license active.' But for the people and communities that reside along the river, the dam is something that Weirick believes is instrumental to their quality of life. 'Our property values are based on that, our property purchase price has been based on that and there are so many public launches and public accesses, there are so many people that use the river — all of us, use it as a lake,' she said. Weirick also noted that in addition to property values, changes in the river levels could also cause changes in property tax collection for the county, Elkhart and Bristol. 'It wouldn't function as a lake anymore,' Weirick said. Changes to the dam could also allow potential flooding on the Lower St. Joseph River, specifically, near the Elkhart Aquatic Center. On the other hand, on the Upper St. Joseph River, the lack of dam would lower water levels to the point that it would no longer be a boat-able height. 'Think about all of the development on the riverbeds on either side, the Upper, the Lower, the east, the west, the north, the south, depending on where the river is curving, all of that property is impacted in value by the river, hence, the dam,' Weirick said. Weirick said the committee is working closely with AEP to make sure they have information as soon as possible. The Elkhart County Commissioners have also all pledged support for the project, and local state and federal legislators are also aware. 'We're all trying to work together to make sure that this is the best solution for everybody involved, which is not easy,' Weirick said. 'It's kind of a monumental task to get everybody on the same page and in the same direction.' Community members are encouraged to visit to sign up for updates and share what the St. Joseph River means to them. Ongoing updates and community conversations can also be followed on the St. Joseph River Association's Facebook page at 'All we have right now is a voice,' Weirick said. 'Elkhart County Gives a Dam and all the social media around that is to make sure that we inform people of the process, make sure that they know when to speak out … and make sure that people are engaged and informed because our voice needs to be heard. It's better to be at the table earlier than on the table for dinner.'
Yahoo
20-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
County officials: State tax overhaul leaves murky future
GOSHEN — Questions abound over what effects the state's property tax overhaul will have on Elkhart County, but county officials believe that none of them will be good. Members of the county council and the board of commissioners on Thursday voiced frustration and disappointment with the 350-page tax overhaul signed into law this week by Indiana Gov. Mike Braun. Senate Bill 1 promises to lower the homestead property tax bills of two-thirds of Hoosier homeowners starting next year compared to this year. The package offers a tax credit of 10 percent or a maximum of $300 to every homestead. Additional tax credits are then awarded to seniors, veterans, the disabled and the blind. But Elkhart County Commissioner Suzie Weirick sees the state legislature's actions as an 'attack' on local government as funding to local governments will be affected. 'Obviously, we're at the end of the legislative session. This session has been 'interesting,' is one word to use,' she told council. 'There has been an overt attack on local governments, and whether or not we are included in that, it seems very personal to me and I've heard several others say the same thing.' She pointed to not only the tax overhaul but also the state budget bill and restraints on the Health First Indiana program as casting Elkhart County's financial future in doubt. Weirick thanked the council, which is responsible for the county's spending, for setting Elkhart up to weather changes in the short-term. 'I do think that we are going to have some challenges in front of us, and I look forward to working with you guys. I know, as commissioners, we're still trying to figure out how this is going to impact what we've got going on. We had some legislation today that went through that's going to impact us further financially,' she said. 'But I think I would speak for all of us when I say thank you, because over the years you have set us up in a position to deal with this in the short-term. This is a short-term solution, using some of our rainy day funds to get through this, but I do think that we need to look forward and take the opportunity to influence some future policy.' Some council members remarked on the murky nature of a sweeping law like Senate Bill 1. 'It got up to 350 pages and I have not talked to a single state legislator, whether it's a representative or senator, that can tell me everything that is in it,' Councilman Adam Bujalski said. 'They don't know. They signed it, they went forward with it.' He said it's clear that nobody will be happy with the bill once its effects are fully understood. It held a few unpleasant surprises for those who dug through it, such as a cap on the taxes that newly established fire territories can collect which will likely torpedo plans like those in the works in Madison County. Bujalski said it will take time for Elkhart County leaders to understand the impacts of the bill before it goes into effect. He urged people to read Senate Bill 1 for themselves rather than take anyone's word for what's in it. 'It's going to take time, I have started to read it. Nobody knows what's going to happen, and I don't think any side of the aisle, whether you're against property taxes or you're not, is going to be happy because it didn't really do much at all,' he said. 'They added a lot of stuff. I'm a fan of clean bills, I like whatever's actually on the front page to be inside the bill, that is not the case with SB1... There's going to be a lot of changes drastically: statewide, local, townships, libraries, and nobody does know what's going to happen right now.' Councilman Steven Clark said he's around 200 pages into the bill. He was struck by the burdens placed on local governments which don't apply to the state. 'What I find comical is the amount of things that are put on us that are not done by the state. So for example, 'We want you to vote on the same tax every year.' Great, why don't you do that on the sales tax as well, or the income tax, which is how it's recommended after 2030,' he said. 'I'm all about transparency. Just be willing to do the exact same things you're asking locals to do and stop taking power away from local municipalities.'
