La Porte Board approves payrolls and claims, selects consultants and OKs NIPSCO interconnection for city solar
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Summary
At its Feb. 3 meeting the La Porte Board of Public Works and Safety approved routine payrolls and large claims, authorized consultant selections for sign and intersection projects, approved a NIPSCO interconnection agreement for city solar sites, and discussed rising utility bills and support options for residents.
The La Porte Board of Public Works and Safety on Feb. 3 approved routine payrolls and claims, selected consultants for multiple infrastructure projects and authorized an interconnection agreement allowing the city to sell excess solar generation to NIPSCO.
Board members voted to approve the Jan. 21 meeting minutes and passed payroll and claims measures including a $141,861.19 employee bonus payroll, $576,128.02 civil city payroll for Jan. 30, $1,153,419.11 in civil city claims, $957,581.49 in sewage claims and $221,498.07 in water claims. The board also approved a $95,663.77 transfer from the credit-card clearing account into the civic nonreverting fund (5504) to record December and January credit-card revenues. The board accepted Councilman Franke’s 2026 conflict-of-interest filing; filings are posted to Indiana’s Gateway transparency portal.
City planning staff presented a preliminary and final plat from Bridal King Realty to split a West State Road 2 parcel into two lots, with one lot for a Rural King development. Approval was conditioned on transferring utilities to city ownership; planning, legal and wastewater staff reviewed the plat and told the board it met lot standards in the zoning ordinance.
Jamie Novak presented RFP scoring for two consultant selections. USI Consultants ranked highest for construction inspection on a sign-replacement project; Loch Mueller Group ranked highest for preliminary engineering and right-of-way services for intersection improvements at Boyd, McClung and Bach. Both selections were approved pending INDOT (in DOT) concurrence.
The board approved a general-services agreement with Lochmuller (task orders to be project-specific) to continue work initiated under departing staff member Nick Munich. Nick Minnick of Lockmiller Group described that task orders will be issued either to the mayor or to department heads for signature depending on amount and purchasing authority; larger task orders would come back to the board for approval.
Wastewater staff presented two maintenance proposals for generator servicing and recommended McAllister (annual cost $9,822) over Buckeye Power Systems ($12,515); the board approved McAllister based on cost and local service availability. The board also renewed wastewater-hauler discharge permits for Bridal (portable toilets) and Free Flow Environmental; the permit fee was cited as modest (about $100).
On energy matters, the board authorized an interconnection agreement with NIPSCO for two city solar generation sites (water treatment plant and Kankakee Wells). Presenters noted the city lacks storage for surplus power, so excess generation would be sold to NIPSCO at rates determined by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC). One presenter said payback estimates on the roughly $2 million investment put the project at about a 12-year payback under current assumptions.
The board tabled an OpenGov item for additional review and voted to run a new telephone line to restore City Hall’s fire alarm monitoring. Department heads reported on recent events and operations: Parks noted Lake Fest and upcoming Winter Wonderland Fair; Water described main-break responses and plans to replace an aging leak-detection correlation system; Wastewater reported improved bio-reactor performance after repairs.
Votes at a glance • Approval of minutes (Jan. 21, 2026): passed (unanimous). • Employee bonus payroll $141,861.19: passed (unanimous). • Civil city payroll $576,128.02: passed (unanimous). • Civil city claims $1,153,419.11: passed (unanimous). • Sewage claims $957,581.49: passed (unanimous). • Water claims $221,498.07: passed (unanimous). • Transfer of $95,663.77 to civic nonreverting fund: passed (unanimous). • Bridal King preliminary/final plat (West State Road 2 split): passed (conditioned on utility transfer). • Interlocal inspection agreement authority with Valparaiso: authorized (unanimous). • USI Consultants selection (construction inspection for sign replacement): approved (pending INDOT approval). • Loch Mueller Group selection (intersection design): approved (pending INDOT approval). • Interconnection agreement with NIPSCO for city solar sites: approved (unanimous). • Generator maintenance contract with McAllister: approved (unanimous).
The board adjourned after routine business and department reports. The board directed staff to follow up on pending task orders, consultant agreements and the OpenGov review at future meetings.