Taking care of a new state mandate and discussion of the effect of impending tax legislation were the main topics of discussion at the Washington City Council meeting Monday evening.
The mayor and council discussed the impact of Senate Bill 1, which deals with property taxes. In the bill’s current form, the City of Washington could face a loss of nearly $1,000,000. The city could also face changes in state community crossing funds used to repair and maintain city streets. There was concern Mayor told the Council the state is discussing mandating cities like Washington to pass a wheel tax in order to receive road funding after this year.
In regular business, the only item on the agenda at Monday’s City Council meeting. The Council introduced an ordinance establishing a special fund for Indiana unclaimed transactions. In the past, if the city issued a check and it was not cashed after a number of years, the council would simply write off the check. Now a new state regulation requires that the funds be placed in a special fund, and after a period of time, the unclaimed funds must be transferred to the Secretary of State’s Office.
At the end of the meeting, Mayor Rhoads announced the upcoming schedule for summer events at the new Commons in Downtown Washington.
Food trucks will be at the Commons the first Friday of each month from 5 pm to 10 pm, beginning April 4th. Grub, Grooves, and Brews will continue each first Friday through September, with the exception of July, when Washington celebrates July 4th at Eastside Park.
Following the short Council meeting, the Board of Works and Safety met. The Board opened bids for a new water supply well in the city’s North Well Field. The city only received one bid on the project. Lane Water Resources submitted a bid for $379,821. Since Lane has provided good service to the city in the past, and the bid was significantly lower than expected, the board agreed to award them the job. In other business, the Board approved two personnel changes in the Utilities Department. The changes were needed because of retiring employees.
