Delphi Mayor Randy Strasser announced at the Delphi City Council special meeting last week that he met with Kerlin Building co-owners Kathy and Phil Junkersfeld earlier that day. He said they reassured him they will pay costs associated with the Nov. 25 fire which destroyed the building on Washington St.

Strasser explained that weather was hampering backfill work by Jack Cohee, but completion is expected by Christmas or shortly after the holiday. A gas-line repair of at the back of the building site is expected to be completed at the same time. Delphi Tri-Township Fire Territory Chief Dennis Randle was directed to address an issue with a generator in a nearby building. Randle reported the generator is running in a doorway at the site which is leaking carbon monoxide into a building.

“You are the fire chief,” Strasser said. “It’s your call.”

HHH

Strasser announced that a Hoosier Heartland Highway Corridor meeting will be held Jan. 26 in Delphi at the National Guard Armory from 7 to 9 p.m. There will also be a meeting Jan. 7 at the Burrows Community Center and Jan. 14 at the Rockfield Community Center. Each of the three public meetings will concentrate on one section of the HHH in Carroll County.

Strasser said because work on the HHHC is progressing quickly, the city is working with Butler, Fairman & Seufert Civil Engineers of Indianapolis to negotiate with the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) for the city.

Strasser said the estimated cost to the city could be $2 million to relocate utilities on the east side of the city and $3.5 million to the south. He said a lift station will also have to be moved.

“The city really doesn’t know its costs at this time,” Strasser said.

He said he will explore whether the city qualifies for a state hardship grant.

Globe Valve property

The mayor reported closing on the sale of the Globe Valve building was Dec. 11, one year after potential owners expressed an interest in the property.

“The Globe-Valve building is in the hands of new owners who want to do something positive with the building,” Strasser said. “There is a lot of work being done. The new owners are aggressively looking for tenants.”

City trash removal debate

Attorney Kurtis Fouts said a resolution to a trash removal dispute between Jeff and Krista Watson and the city will happen after the Christmas holidays. He said the couple met with council member Kyle Germond and himself Dec. 16.

“We’re going to try to come up with a solution that is in the best interest of all citizens,” Fouts said.

He said he and Germond rode around with the couple while they showed them their properties and then pointed out similar housing units that are not subject to the ordinance.

“Everyone left the meeting fairly satisfied,” he added.

Collection service

City clerk-treasurer Leanne Aldrich recommended the city hire a collection agency to recover unpaid fees. She said such a service would add their fees to the amount to be collected so there would be no cost to the city.

The council agreed the recommendation is worth pursuing and instructed Fouts research the matter.

2010 salary ordinance

The 2010 salary ordinance for elected officials was passed on third reading after the rules to adopt an ordinance were suspended.

2010 salaries will be paid as follows:

• From the General Fund; mayor $15,588, clerk-treasurer $12,150, judge $2,500 and council $3,500.

• From the Waste-Water Fund; mayor $15,400 and clerktreasurer $12,100.

• From the Water Utility Fund; mayor $15,400 and clerktreasurer $12,150.

Other business

The city will pay for a health insurance policy for 2010 for the spouse of a police officer. A mistake by the city in filing the proper enrollment paperwork with the carrier was made and the spouse would have no insurance until February 2011. “The question is whether or not we do the right thing,” clerktreasurer Leanne Aldrich said. “Because of us, they do not have insurance coverage.”

She said that the policy will cost the city $159.57 per month.

The city will pay for the policy minus the employee’s required portion for city insurance (10 percent of the premium cost).

“We have to do what’s right,” council president Carolyn Pearson said.

Board of Works

The board of works approved city liability insurance with RME Insurance for 2010 at a cost of $43,600 with the deductible set at $1,000. Coverage is for all city departments, including utilities.

2010 meeting dates set

The city council will meet the first Monday of the month at 7 p.m. except for the September meeting which will be Monday, Sept. 13 after the Labor Day Holiday.

The board of works will meet the first Monday at 6 p.m. and the third Monday at 4:30 p.m.

The next city council meeting will be Jan. 4 at 7 p.m.

Delphi Tri-Twp. Fire Territory

Advisory board chair Strasser reported the newly-created budget for the territory has been submitted to the state for approval. He explained that fire territory claims will be approved by the city’s board of works and safety because the city is the “provider” for the new taxing entity. All bills will be paid by the city clerk-treasurer through the city’s bookkeeping system. Aldrich told advisory board members at the Wednesday night meeting she would issue regular financial reports for them.

Strasser reported that work on the planning grant to assess the viability of expanding space the department occupies in the city building is in progress. He said the city council agreed “in part” that the city will purchase a building from the new owners of the Globe Valve property on N. Washington St. The city plans to move the street department out of the current city building into the new location which would allow expansion room for the fire territory.

The board will research a fire-response fee increase before deciding on a course of action.

“This is something that will be drastically different than what we’ve been doing,” Strasser explained.

The territory advisory board will meet quarterly in 2010. Meetings will be on the last Wednesday of the last month of each quarter at 5 p.m.

The next meeting will be March 24.