Culver
Damore Amphitheater
Always nice to see our projects make the paper! The Damore Amphitheater made the front page of the Culver Citizen on May 9th. Check out our name on the dedication plaque when you’re there taking your selfie!
Rights Should Outweigh Expediency
There was an interesting conversation at the end of Culver’s April Plan Commission meeting. Some commission members were expressing their frustration at the time and expensive necessary to move buildings that have been deemed unsafe through the court proceedings. They wanted to explore ways to expedite this process.
The discussion revolved around the County-wide Unsafe Building Committee which was formed last year. The committee was formed with the intent of streamlining the process. The committee requested a judge cede jurisdiction to them and expedite the process of condemning property.
Note: This is what I heard at this Plan Commission meeting and others. I have no direct knowledge of how these cases have proceeded.
In most of these cases, the judge hearing the case had granted the property owner time to obtain an attorney, time to present their case and time to make improvements recommended by the committee. At times the judge had sided with the property owner on allowing them to make improvements in lieu of condemnation and reduced the extent of the improvements required.
Listening to this from the outside, I felt the goal of getting the property cleaned up or condemned is worth pursuing, but not at the expense of proper representation and property rights. Not to disparage the current committee, but I don’t think bureaucracy is a suitable substitute for an elected judge. The current committee may be knowledgeable in property rights, but there’s no guarantee that this would always be the case. It’s also unclear what the route to appeal is if the judge cedes authority to the committee. Since the complaints aired by the Plan Commission had to do with the length of process, I am concerned that the rights to due process could be hindered.
It will be interesting to see how this moves forward. I am concerned that this is a case of needing to be careful what you wish for… I don’t know that we want these powers to be unchecked. Thus my choice of title for this post, “Rights should outweigh Expediency…”
Congratulations to Jim Clevenger
Congratulations Jim! I’ve worked with you as Culver’s Town Attorney, Marshall County’s Attorney and briefly as MCEDC’s Attorney. I’ve always known you to be cautious and ethical, working to keep his clients out of trouble. No surprise that you were on the State’s Ethics Commission, though I didn’t know about it until seeing this award upon your exit from the Commission. 14 years! Way to go!
Best wishes for your next endeavor. Thanks for your years working to keep the State on the straight and narrow. Please keep up the good work and apply those principles here too!
Elkay Visits Sand Hill Farm Apartments
One of Elkay’s crews at the Sand Hill Farm Apartments Site Visit October 16, 2018
Earl Lilly, Plant Manager of Elkay Wood Products in Culver, brought a large contingency of Elkay employees to observe the cabinets going in at Sand Hill Farm Apartments this past Tuesday. Representatives of several divisions that worked on these cabinets were there including engineering, scheduling, production & shipping. They often don’t get to see their products in place, so this was a great opportunity to see a large installation underway just a block from the plant. Steve Deford of Deford Kitchens, the cabinetry installer for the project, was onsite to discuss how the installation was going. The installation is going well!
It was great to see some of the people that work in our community and could potentially be future residents at Sand Hill Farm Apartments at the site. The optics of the private/public partnership that occurred here was instrumental in Culver’s success in the Stellar Communities program. Elkay Wood Products and Easterday Construction Co., Inc. helped developer Culver Sand Hill Farm, LLC step up to the challenge of creating affordable housing for the Town.
Shelby Harrell, editor of the Culver Citizen, was on site to document the event. Her article appeared in The Pilot News on October 18, 2018. (See the article to the right.) The exposure can only help the project’s success. We count this as part of the community effort to see more entry-level housing in Culver. Thanks Shelby!
Unfortunately progress is currently impeded by the late start on the street. Lack of utilities is slowing us down and may force a stop soon. Currently we’re moving 5 gallon buckets of water to the site from our office in order to keep working. NIPSCO could not bring gas and electric to the building without the completion of street utilities. The furnaces are ready but can’t be fired without gas and electric, so we’ve started providing temporary heat with space heaters in order to keep things warm enough for the various sealants, adhesives and paint needed to finish out the project. The fire sprinkler system is full of water and in danger of freezing with the cold nights we’ve been having.
The lack of fire protection is also a concern, since the sprinkler system has water in it within the building, but does not have a hook up to the Town water system yet. The fire hydrants that serve the building currently have no connections. We’ve been assured these things will be available soon.
Affordable Housing
Courtney Papa, District Director, Office of Senator Todd Young
Affordable Housing continues to be the buzzword. A couple of weeks ago I was at a meeting with Governor Holcomb and we spoke about the issue. One of his staff members is trying to connect with me on that. MacKenzie Ledley, Library Director for Pulaski County Public Libraries, made a connection with Courtney Papa, District Director for Senator Todd Young’s office. Courtney and MacKenzie met me for a tour of Sand Hill Farm Apartments this past Wednesday. The issue is on Senator Young’s radar as well.
It is clear that our political leaders recognize that there is an issue. In my discussion with Governor Holcomb, he had just finished a presentation on the great job climate in Indiana and their efforts to reverse out-migration trends. I raised the question regarding where these new residents were going to live? This seems to be a harder question to answer than how to bring in new business. I get it. I don’t have a solution either. He took notes and then proceeded with the follow-up.
What I do in these situations is explain what we’ve done here in Culver. It may not be an universal solution, but without the Town of Culver becoming a partner in these efforts, Sand Hill Farm apartments wouldn’t be here and there would be no consideration of The Paddocks, the next phase of housing at Sand Hill Farm development. Without the proposed IHCDA funding, The Paddocks will not happen.
