Kosciusko County commissioners approve routine contracts, payments and grant applications

Kosciusko County commissioners approved a series of routine contracts, payments and grant actions and heard operational updates from transit and hospice providers during a regular meeting.

The commissioners voted to accept a quote from D and D Electric to replace exterior courthouse lighting wiring, approve a one-year planned-maintenance contract with Core Mechanical Services for HVAC work across county buildings, and to authorize submission of a participation/release form connected to the proposed Purdue Pharma bankruptcy settlement. Commissioners also approved a payment request to a Park & Rec contractor and granted the county emergency management office permission to apply for a federal homeland security grant.

Those actions matter because they commit county funds and administrative authority to maintain public facilities, pursue federal grant funding, and position the county to receive a share of any future opioid-settlement proceeds.

The lighting work: County Highway Department staff presented a D and D Electric quote to replace aging exterior wiring on the courthouse, saying the existing wiring is deteriorating. The county approved the quote, which staff reported as $16,808 for the full project.

HVAC maintenance: County maintenance staff said Core Mechanical Services will continue planned maintenance on the county's HVAC systems under a 2025 contract costing $26,295, a $1,116 increase from the previous year. Commissioners approved the contract for all county buildings.

Opioid settlement participation: A county staff member advised commissioners that Indiana law treats counties as subdivisions eligible to participate in the Purdue direct settlement linked to Purdue Pharma's bankruptcy. "It is my recommendation that the county go ahead and participate and execute the release form," the staff member said, while noting the amount the county might receive is not yet known and will be determined later in bankruptcy proceedings. Commissioners authorized the president to sign and submit the release form.

Park and recreation payment: Parks & Recreation staff said their contractor, Niblock, had requested another pay application and recommended a payment to advance the project toward completion before winter. The transcript records the payment amount in unclear form as "2.59 2.00 9.26." Commissioners approved the payment request. The exact dollar figure was not clearly stated in the meeting record.

Emergency management grant application: EMA Director Kipp asked permission to apply for the federal fiscal-year 2025 State Homeland Security Program (SHSP) seeking $75,000 to purchase a vehicle for the emergency management office. "I'll do everything in my power to find a grant to help support this," Kipp said. Commissioners authorized staff to submit the application.

Transit and hospice updates: Kristen from CABS (the county's rural transit provider) asked approval of a second-quarter operating claim for $258,274 in eligible operating expenses. Kristen said the funding breakdown is $125,970 from federal Section 5311 operating funds, $62,985 from the state match and $62,985 from local sources; commissioners approved the payment. Kristen also said CABS will implement on-demand fare increases effective Sept. 1 and will launch a deviated fixed route on Sept. 8, with a ribbon-cutting scheduled for Sept. 29 at 10 a.m. "We will be launching our deviated fixed route," Kristen said.

Stillwater Hospice: Mary Shankster, chief development officer for Stillwater Hospice, provided a quarterly report. For the second quarter (April 1'June 30), Stillwater reported $12,500 in expenditures tied to county-supported services, 14 palliative-care consults totaling 19 days, 67 hospice patients totaling more than 2,226 days of service, 184 residents who received bereavement outreach, and six individuals who received a total of 18 individual grief-counseling sessions. Shankster noted counseling sessions are ordinarily priced at $150 each but are provided at no charge by the nonprofit.

Other business: Maintenance staff presented a list of surplus items recommended for auction; commissioners approved disposal. A local reporter asked the commissioners about proposals to eliminate mail-in ballots; the board said election matters are primarily handled by the election board and that, locally, they have not been made aware of specific problems with absentee or mail-in voting.

Votes at a glance: - Approve claims and minutes: approved (voice vote; individual votes not recorded in transcript). - D and D Electric quote for courthouse exterior lighting wiring ($16,808 reported by staff): approved (voice vote; individual votes not recorded). - Core Mechanical Services HVAC planned maintenance contract ($26,295): approved (voice vote; individual votes not recorded). - Participate in Purdue direct settlement (execute release form): approved; president authorized to sign and submit (voice vote; individual votes not recorded). County staff said potential settlement amounts to the county are not yet known. - Park & Rec pay application to contractor Niblock (amount reported unclearly in the transcript as "2.59 2.00 9.26"): approved (voice vote; exact amount not specified in meeting record). - EMA SHSP grant application (requesting $75,000 for a vehicle): authorized to apply (voice vote; individual votes not recorded). - CABS second-quarter operating claim ($258,274) funded by federal Section 5311, state match and local funds: approved (voice vote; individual votes not recorded). - Maintenance surplus/auction items list: approved (voice vote; individual votes not recorded).

Meeting context: Department heads gave brief, largely procedural presentations and the commissioners acted on routine procurement, contract and grant-authority items by voice vote. Discussion was brief on most items and no roll-call tallies were recorded in the transcript. Several agenda items included follow-up or implementation steps (e.g., grant application, ribbon-cutting scheduling for transit service).

Sources: meeting transcript of Kosciusko County Commissioners (public session), statements by county staff, EMA Director Kipp, Kristen of CABS, Mary Shankster of Stillwater Hospice, Parks & Rec staff, and a county maintenance representative.