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New Carlisle to solicit bids for full municipal code overhaul; council to begin comprehensive plan work
Summary
City Manager reported an internal audit identified roughly 80 conflicting or obsolete code provisions and recommended hiring an outside consultant to “cleanse” the codified ordinances; council members agreed to begin work on the comprehensive plan concurrently.
The City Manager told the City of New Carlisle City Council that an internal audit of the city code found “at least 80 specific codes” that require amendment, change or removal and recommended soliciting bids for an outside consultant to perform a full codification and cleanup.
The audit, completed by Mr. Moore, surfaced conflicting provisions across chapters and subjects — from animal rules to signage — that the City Manager said make enforcement “paralyzing.” “I thought Mr. Moore did a fantastic job. He told me it took him about 4 months to get through the entire code,” the City Manager said during the council meeting.
The City Manager said the work likely will exceed his $35,000 spending limit and that bids should arrive within a month. He estimated an in-house effort could take “3 to 5 years” while an outside consultant could complete the work in “a year, year and a half,” depending on scope, and said his goal is to have the code ready to be enforced “by this time next year” if possible.
Council members emphasized parallel work on the comprehensive plan. Councilwoman Wright said she did not want to delay the comprehensive plan while the code review proceeds and urged staff to start both efforts. The City Manager agreed that the city need not wait for a final code product before beginning the comprehensive plan process.
Council discussion also flagged practical questions the audit raises, such as whether historic downtown zoning should differ from newer areas and how recurring audits might prevent future conflicts: “This is probably something that should have been done about 30 years ago,” the City Manager said.
Council asked staff to circulate the audit findings to members and said they expect proposals and cost estimates in coming weeks. The City Manager recommended soliciting multiple bids and suggested the work could include several years of follow-up legislation and working sessions once a consultant’s report is returned.
The item will return to the council when bids and a proposed contract scope and budget are available.
