MENTONE – While the wheels of the World War I era cannon in the Mentone Cemetery are being repaired, Town Marshal Jim Eads’ Ford F150 truck is facing repairs, too, the town council heard Monday night.
The council also approved changes to the town’s 2016 budget as suggested by Clerk-Treasurer Barb Ross.
Tim Croy, council president, said the town has been trying for years to get the wheels on the cannon redone. He was told it was brought to Mentone in 1945, and it was eventually moved to the cemetery in the 1970s.
Utilities Superintendent Josh Shepherd, utility employee Mervin Jones and Croy finally removed both wheels and they are being repaired by Swartz Wheels in Bremen, Croy said. It will take several months to repair them, at a total cost of $1,780.
While the wheels are off, Croy said he is getting an estimate to have the cannon repainted but doesn’t have one yet.
If anyone wants to donate money for the cannon, Croy said they can give those to Ross and make sure she knows it is for the cannon repairs.
“Hopefully, it will be back to looking like new,” Croy said.
Eads then told the council how he’s been having issues with the police vehicle he drives, a 2010 F150. He said he took it to Rice Ford two weeks ago and they gave him a list of things that could be wrong with it. Rice Ford will call him with a repair estimate.
On Jan. 19, Eads said the F150 ran out of its warranty; then on Feb. 11 he had the same issues that he’s having now but Rice Ford told him they couldn’t find anything wrong with it at that time.
“In February, they couldn’t get it to do what it was doing with me,” Eads said.
He said they think it’s the cam phaser bearings in the front of the vehicle.
“They won’t commit to a price,” Eads said.
He said he didn’t know what to do about the vehicle so he was seeking the council’s guidance on what they wanted him to do.
Councilwoman Jill Gross said they really can’t say either until they know what needs fixed and how much it would cost.
Until Eads gets his truck back, officers are sharing the other vehicle.
At the start of the meeting, Ross told the council she wanted to make changes to the 2016 budget. On June 16, the council held its budget workshop.
After the June 16 workshop, the General Fund was at $438,496; Local Roads & Streets, $18,200; Motor Vehicle Highway, $42,400; Cemetery, $11,200; Cumulative Capital Development, $60,000; Cumulative Capital Investment, $5,000; County Economic Development Income Tax, $62,000; and Riverboat Fund, $15,000.
Last night, Ross said she wanted to increase the amount for fencing in the Cemetery Fund by $2,000 to $5,000. That would make the Cemetery Fund $13,200, she said.
In the MVH, she asked to increase construction of roads by $10,000 to $25,000 for a total budget of $52,400.
The LRS needed to be decreased in the construction of streets line from $16,000 to $12,800, which puts the LRS fund at $15,000. “I think we may need to go a little lower than that (later),” she said.
In the General Fund, Ross requested to move $3,000 from trash removal into new equipment. “We won’t need that there,” she said. That move also will increase the new equipment line in the fund to $43,000 unless Ross has to make more cuts in the fund “but I think I’ll be squeaking by this year, hopefully,” she said.
Croy made a motion to allow the changes and the motion was approved.
Ross then informed the council the public hearing for the budget will be at 6 p.m. Aug. 3, with the adoption set for 6 p.m. Sept. 8.
In one last issue, Gross requested the council have an executive session. It was scheduled for 6 p.m. July 15, and Gross requested Eads attend.
She did not say what she wanted an executive session for, but executive sessions are limited to “government strategy discussions with respect to collective bargaining and litigation, interviews of prospective employees, job performance evaluations, and the purchase or lease of property by the public agency,” according to Indiana code.
(Story by The Times Union)
