Common Council

CITY COMMON COUNCIL OF HARTFORD CITY, INDIANA JANUARY 6, 2025 MEETING MINUTES CALL TO ORDER & WELCOME: Mayor Eckstein called to order a meeting of the Common Council of the City of Hartford City at 6:00pm, January 6, 2025 ROLL CALL: Members of the council present were Ron Dudelston, Michael Wolfe, Tracey Witt, Tony Scaggs, and Bill Aspy. Mayor Eckstein, City Attorney Aubrey Crist, and Clerk-Treasurer Dana Whatley were also present. APPROVAL OF AGENDA: Mr. Dudelston made a motion to approve the agenda as presented. Mr. Scaggs seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken. Michael Wolfe – YAY, Tracey Witt – YAY, Bill Aspy – YAY, Ron Dudelston – YAY, Tony Scaggs – YAY. The vote to approve was 5-0. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FOR DECEMBER 2, 2024: Mr. Wolfe made a motion to approve the minutes for December 2, 2024 as submitted. Ms. Witt seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken. Michael Wolfe – YAY, Tracey Witt – YAY, Bill Aspy – YAY, Ron Dudelston – YAY, Tony Scaggs – YAY. The vote to approve was 5-0. OLD BUSINESS: A) 2ND READING OF RESOLUTION 2024-24 - A RESOLUTION GRANTING TAX ABATEMENT FOR PERSONAL PROPERTY IMPROVEMENTS (PETOSKEY PLASTICS): Mr. Aspy made a motion to approve the 2nd reading of Resolution 2024-24. Mr. Dudelston seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken. Michael Wolfe – YAY, Tracey Witt – YAY, Bill Aspy – YAY, Ron Dudelston – YAY, Tony Scaggs – YAY. The vote to approve was 5-0. B) LETTER FROM PUBLIC LIBRARY (TABLED FROM DECEMBER MEETING): With regards to the letter presented to City Council in November 2024 from Michele Risinger from the Hartford City Public library pertaining to the vandalism at the nature play area of the library, Attorney Crist stated that she didn’t think it was advisable for the city to take on this liability. She stated that the library has plenty of avenues to pursue regarding these problems. It was stated that if there is criminal activity or a nuisance then the police can be involved. There was no action taken on this topic. C) NOISE ORDINANCE DISCUSSION (TABLED FROM NOVEMBER MEETING): There was discussion of setting up quiet zones at night. Attorney Crist stated that she would like to get each council person’s input. There was no action taken on this topic. D) 1ST READING OF ORDINANCE 2025-01 – SEWER USERS ORDINANCE REQUIRED BY IDEM: Mr. Scaggs made a motion to approve the 1st reading of Ordinance 2025-01. Mr. Aspy seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken. Michael Wolfe – YAY, Tracey Witt – YAY, Bill Aspy – YAY, Ron Dudelston – YAY, Tony Scaggs – YAY. The vote to approve was 5-0. A second reading will be done at February’s meeting.  E) TRAVIS WILLIAMSON – JETTER TRUCK: Mr. Williamson explained to council that his department’s Jetter Truck is at the end of its useful life and is really limping along. He just wanted to give them a heads up that he will be looking for a new one soon. No action was taken at this time. F) DOG-AT-LARGE DISCUSSION: Mr. Dudelston stated that there is a meeting upcoming regarding the Animal Shelter that may help with this discussion. Mr. Dudelston made a motion to table this discussion until the February meeting. Mr. Scaggs seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken. Michael Wolfe – YAY, Tracey Witt – YAY, Bill Aspy – YAY, Ron Dudelston – YAY, Tony Scaggs – YAY. The vote to approve was 5-0. G) SALARY ORDINANCE AMENDMENT: Clerk-Treasurer Whatley explained that she has added the salary for the new Community Development Director position to the salary ordinance. Mr. Scaggs made a motion to approve the amended salary ordinance. Mr. Aspy seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken. Michael Wolfe – YAY, Tracey Witt – YAY, Bill Aspy – YAY, Ron Dudelston – YAY, Tony Scaggs – YAY. The vote to approve was 5-0. NEW BUSINESS: A) BLACKFORD COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION – TRAILS PROJECT: Ms. Elizabeth Witt, Executive Director of the Blackford County Community Foundation addressed the council and explained that the foundation has acquired a grant in the amount of $3.1 million for a 1.32-mile expansion of the greenway. The Foundation will be responsible for financial reporting along with the collaboration of the Blackford County Economic Development providing oversight, and the City providing maintenance. B) 1ST READING OF (AMENDED) RESOLUTION 2024-25 – A RESOLUTION GRANTING TAX ABATEMENT FOR PERSONAL PROPERTY IMPROVEMENTS (SPECIALTY T, LLC): Mr. Dudelston made a motion to approve the 1st reading of Resolution 2024-25. Mr. Scaggs seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken. Michael Wolfe – YAY, Tracey Witt – YAY, Bill Aspy – YAY, Ron Dudelston – YAY, Tony Scaggs – YAY. The vote to approve was 5-0. C) RESOLUTION 2025-01 – RESOLUTION SUPPORTING PUBLIC PURCHASE: Mayor Eckstein explained the purchase plan for the golf course, including legal agreements and appraisal processes. The closing date is set for March 28, 2025. The City plans to sell agricultural land to fund the purchase. Mr. Dudelston made a motion to approve Resolution 2025-01. Mr. Scaggs seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken. Michael Wolfe – YAY, Tracey Witt – YAY, Bill Aspy – YAY, Ron Dudelston – YAY, Tony Scaggs – YAY. The vote to approve was 5-0. D) HARTFORD CITY FIRE DEPARTMENT – PERMISSION TO SPEND OVER $10,000: Chief Parrott is requesting to replace the 1996 pick-up truck with a new one. He plans to use LOIT funds and funds from the fire contract proceeds to pay for the new truck. Mr. Wolfe made a motion to give permission to spend over $10,000. Ms. Witt seconded the motion. A roll call vote  was taken. Michael Wolfe – YAY, Tracey Witt – YAY, Bill Aspy – YAY, Ron Dudelston – YAY, Tony Scaggs – YAY. The vote to approve was 5-0. E) WEILER PLAZA – ELECTRICAL USAGE: There was discussion about a vendor plugging a 110 system into a 220 outlet which caused damage to the vendor’s equipment. There are plans for implementing lockouts for electrical systems at Weiler Plaza to prevent any future incidents. MAYOR’S COMMENTS A.) Mayor Eckstein introduced Ms. Cheri Brown as the city’s new Community Development Director. He explained that she has been in Hartford City for the past 9 years working in a similar capacity through Purdue University. He thanked Mr. Bill Aspy and Mr. Michael Wolfe for sitting on this concept board and helping in the interview process. B.) Mayor Eckstein invited everyone to attend the State of the City Chamber luncheon on Thursday, February 6, 2025 at 11:45am at City Hall. To RSVP just call Monika Smith the Mayor’s Assistant. C.) Mayor Eckstein explained that the new Fire Training Center is complete and there will be an open house for the community soon. D.) Mayor Eckstein also stated that he wants to revise the employee handbook this year. E.) Mayor Eckstein also wants to have a discussion on creating a social media policy for city employees to ensure accountability and prevent negative comments about the city. CLERK-TREASURER COMMENTS: NONE COUNCIL COMMENT: MS. TRACEY WITT – Ms. Witt complimented Mr. Jeff Thomas and his department on how good the streets looked today after the snow. MR. RON DUDELSTON – Mr. Dudelston mentioned planning a time to take down the lights at Weiler Plaza. He welcomed Attorney Crist. He also wants everyone to be mindful that 2026 is the city’s semi- quincentennial celebration. PUBLIC COMMENT: MS. CHERI BROWN - Ms. Brown explained that the city has received a planning grant for a Pedestrian/Bike trail. She said that we will need a lot of community input into this planning process. MR. TRAVIS WILLIAMSON – Mr. Williamson also reminded the council that he has filed a non- compliance report with IDEM because of an industrial issue we have with a business in Hartford City. He stated that it is still an ongoing issue, and he will be filing another non-compliance report this week. ADJOURNMENT: With there being no further business, Mr. Scaggs made a motion to adjourn the meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 7:00pm. FOLDER 2/REC 54