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Commissioners back preservation letter for Alice Dean shipwreck, forward park and highway funding requests to council
Summary
The board agreed to let the commission president sign a letter seeking federal and state support to preserve the Alice Dean wreck; commissioners forwarded two parks appropriation requests (service truck $76,871; ADA sidewalk $17,900) and multiple highway contract and equipment requests to the county council for funding consideration.
Harrison County commissioners on June 2 authorized Commissioner Nelson Stepro to sign a letter supporting preservation of the Alice Dean shipwreck and asking the county's congressional and state delegation for help adding the wreck to the National Register of Historic Places.
Scott Fluhr, president of the County Park Board, told commissioners the parks department and county government lacked capacity to fund preservation work but supported seeking outside assistance to recognize the site. The board approved allowing Commissioner Stepro to sign the letter by a 3-0 vote.
County resident Clarence Merk provided documentation from state and federal agencies to support the wreck's historical value and urged the commission to fund phase-one research to map the site to meet National Register requirements.
Parks superintendent Larry Shickles requested two additional appropriations: $76,871 to replace an aging service truck and $17,900 to replace an ADA-accessible sidewalk at Battle Park to maintain eligibility for federal funds tied to ADA compliance. Commissioners forwarded both funding requests to the county council for consideration, voting 3-0.
On highway matters, County Engineer Kevin Russel presented several procurement items including a 2026–2029 bridge-inspection contract with SJCA, Inc., and a task order with United Consulting for rehabilitation of Bridge #37 and Bridge #75. Commissioners approved the SJCA contract and the United Consulting task order (each recorded 3-0); several other projects and fee proposals were listed as pending council funding or INDOT review and will return to the commission for final approval once funding and reviews are complete.
Highway Superintendent Glen Bube presented options to purchase three new highway trucks (chassis, upfitting, bed options, and snowplow/spreader configurations) and requested forwarding the purchase options to the county council so council members could select preferred funding and configuration; commissioners agreed to forward the request 3-0. Bube also presented a credit application with Beard Equipment Company to continue vendor relations after an acquisition; the commission approved the credit application pending county-attorney review.
Commissioners did not take final funding votes on the park or highway purchases at the meeting; those items were forwarded to the county council for decision.
