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County highway department questions NIPSCO permit, loses Bridge 170 grant and readies community crossings paving
Summary
Highway superintendent raised concerns about a NIPSCO remediation permit for a recently paved road, commissioners approved a separate NIPSCO boring permit and were told an INDOT bridge grant for Bridge 170 was denied; community crossings paving is expected this summer.
John, highway superintendent, brought two NIPSCO permit requests to the Board of Commissioners on May 19 and said he had outstanding questions about the first request and had not received responses from NIPSCO.
"I have not gotten any responses from them. I wasn't too sure exactly what all it did take. It says remediation of existing pipeline and digging of two length pipeline ends. I don't know exactly what that means," John said, and added, "We just paved that road last year, and I don't wanna dig it up." The board agreed to withhold action on that permit until NIPSCO supplies clarification.
For a second permit (permit 2522) to bore a new line under 400 East, 2,020 feet north of State Road 14, John said the application was more informative. A motion to approve that permit was made and seconded; the minutes record the motion carried 3-0.
John also reported road maintenance activities — pothole patching, grading when moisture allows, laying millings and culvert replacement — and said a deep repair on 250 South has been completed and is slated for paving under the county's Community Crossings program this summer.
He told commissioners he had applied for federal aid for Bridge 170 (over Mill Creek on 1100 West) but that INDOT denied the application because the program received more requests than available funding. "They had a lot of applications... ours got turned down this time," John said. He said staff will re-submit for the next call for projects.
Other operational notes included planned 10-hour shifts starting June 2 and a requested schedule change for the week of July 4; commissioners approved the temporary shift change for highway staff by voice vote (recorded as carried).
