Council approves Major Moves appropriation tied to Tipton Street overpass settlement with Spectrum recycling

The La Porte Common Council on Sept. 15 opened a public hearing and approved a $200,000 additional appropriation from the Major Moves construction fund intended to help pay a settlement connected to the Tipton Street overpass project.

City attorney Nick Otis explained that the appropriation will be used as part of a proposed settlement with Spectrum Recycling resolving complex eminent-domain litigation tied to right-of-way and relocation costs for the overpass. Otis said Spectrum’s parcels were the only ones the city had to pursue through eminent domain for that project and that valuation and relocation complexities made negotiations lengthy. Mayor Thomas P. Dermody said most of the funds for the project are being supplied by the State of Indiana and that resolving the Spectrum dispute will improve public safety by eliminating frequent train-related delays that restrict emergency vehicle and public movement.

The appropriation was advertised in the Herald-Dispatch on Sept. 5 and the council opened and closed the public hearing Sept. 15; no public speakers appeared during the hearing. The council approved the resolution to appropriate $200,000 from Major Moves for the local portion of the project. Otis said the Board of Works would consider the settlement agreement the next day.

The appropriation is intended to cover part of the settlement payment and related project costs; details of the settlement agreement itself were to be considered at the Board of Works meeting that Otis referenced.