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No room for park house renovation in 2023 budget
For more than two hours earlier this week, the Greencastle City Council studied the proposed 2023 city budget.
The Council doubled funding for road repairs in 2023, endorsed five percent across-the-board raises for fulltime city employees and suggested putting more money in the pool repair budget.
What it did not do was provide any funding in the 2023 budget for the renovation/repair of the park house at the Bloomington Street entrance to Robe-Ann Park.
The elephant in the room during the budget review, the park house was discussed several times but in the end no money was allocated for what has been estimated as at least a $142,000 major renovation.
Consequently, the likely alternative is demolition and the end of a decades-old tradition of housing the park superintendent in the 2,100-square-foot home at 405 Bloomington St.
“Does a decision on the house need to be made tonight or do we continue to let it dangle?” Councilman Darrel Thomas asked.
While no such vote was deemed necessary, Councilman Dave Murray asked for a straw poll, asking if there was anyone on the Council who did not think putting $142,000 or more into the renovation was a bad idea.
Stacie Langdon raised her hand.
“We haven’t put any money into it for years,” the Council liaison to the Park Board noted. “We hear it’s structurally sound. I keep asking what it’s worth. If we can find $150,000 to $160,000 in the budget somewhere and don’t have to finance it, that would be great.”
But that would also be impossible according to the financial picture laid out by City Clerk-Treasurer Lynda Dunbar who said the park budget is $133,000 in the hole this year compounded by the reduction to a five-day week at the city pool and could be looking at a $201,000 deficit in 2023. The Indiana Department of Local Government Finance (DLGF) would not approve that park budget if submitted, she said.
The city clerk noted that although the low bid for the renovation work was $142,000 from Energy Conservation Solutions (ECS), contractor Bill Mentgen of ECS indicated renovation work would likely uncover other issues. Thus Dunbar used the figure $175,000 for the work to be done.
“It’s a lot of money,” she said, adding that there are too many what-ifs involved as well. “There are so many other better things we could spend $175,000 on.”
Councilman Cody Eckert said he agreed with Park Board member Pete Meyer’s idea of demolishing the house and creating a new park entrance.
“I’m disinclined to spend the money to repair the house,” Eckert said.
“I’m with you,” Murray replied, “tear the son of a gun down and quit throwing good money after bad.”
“I’m fine with letting it go,” Councilor Veronica Pejril said.
Neither Council President Mark Hammer or Councilor Adam Cohen was in attendance, but Langdon indicated neither was in favor of spending money for the renovation.
While the Council was technically in agreement not to fund the park house renovation, no official vote was taken. That will come as part of the budget approval process when the Council considers the 2023 budget at forthcoming meetings with first reading expected Sept. 8.
Meanwhile, Dunbar said Park Director Greg Ruark’s annual salary will be increased by “plus or minus $12,000” to reflect the compensation of the park house and utilities he was promised upon his hiring in March. Ruark has yet to live in the park house and will receive back pay for the period he has been park director.
Another uncertainty in the park budget is the possibility of a pool filtering system repair that could cost $120,000 or more. The city is waiting on a recommendation from Spear Corp. about the issue.
If the system goes down during the pool season, it would require a shutdown for repair work, followed by refilling the pool and waiting on testing of the water before reopening. That could result in an untimely two- or three-week closure.
Meanwhile, Dunbar noted that the city budgeted $415,000 to spend on streets in 2022. She recommended doubling that to $830,000 next year.
“We have not worked on any side streets,” the clerk-treasurer added.
“It’s time,” Pejril responded.
Looking at salaries, Dunbar said going to five percent increases would mean there won’t be anybody working fulltime for the City of Greencastle making less than $20 an hour.
Dunbar also said she will look into the scenario of providing $1,000 employee bonuses at the end of the year if the budget warrants that expenditure.