Edgelea homeowners a step closer to repaving
Edgelea homeowners are one step closer to new pavement on their crumbling streets.
On Tuesday the Putnam County Council gave official approval to the expenditure of $150,000 for a repaving project in the subdivision north of Greencastle.
As with previous discussions of the issue, council members expressed a lot of misgivings about the project, but said they couldn't say no with residents of the area paying the lion's share of the cost.
"On all the other roads we're responsible for, nobody else is stepping up and saying, 'We're willing to pay 75 percent.' They are at least putting their money where their mouth is," councilman Phil Gick said.
The measure passed 6-0, with Roger Deck abstaining from the vote.
The repaving project, which will also include curbs and drainage, comes at a $1.45 million price tag. The residents will pay for most of the bond needed to cover these costs through a yearly assessment of $592 added to their property taxes.
The bond will run for 20 years.
Besides the initial cost of $150,000, the county will also pay $20,000 for each of the next 20 years, an ongoing cost that worries some on the council.
Larry Parker, who abstained from the previous vote, said he is unsure where the money will come from as county budgets continue to get tighter.
However, county officials have said again and again they cannot argue with the overwhelming support the project has from Edgelea's residents. More than 90 percent of homeowners expressed their willingness to take on the added burden even though the roads are the responsibility of the county.
The commissioners also approved an additional appropriation of $15,600 for part-time help in the Assessor's Office.
Assessor Nancy Dennis said the money will help her department retain data collectors who are vital in completing the county's reassessment process.
She said the money should get her through to the end of reassessment.
"Right now, I believe the $15,600 will get me through with the people I have presently," Dennis said.
Dennis also noted that the cost is mostly offset by $12,000 she carried over from her 2011 budget.
The council kept its organization the same as 2011, re-electing Darrel Thomas as president and Keith Berry as vice president. All council appointments to board also remain the same.