government

MCEDC Culver Representative 2010-2012

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I have served as the Town of Culver representative to the Marshall County Economic Development Corporation (MCEDC) for the past three years. This took the group through incorporation as a 501(c)6 corporation. Since that time I have been vice chairman of the corporation. My term expired at the end of December last year and I volunteered to be reappointed to the corporation board. I am pleased that the Culver Town Council chose to reappoint me at their meeting, February 10, 2010. (Pilot News Article here.) I have represented Culver to the best of my ability and believe I have served the Town well.

MCEDC has made great strides in the short time it has existed. We have established offices in Plymouth and hired an Executive Director, Administrative Staff and just recently a dedicated Grant Writer. We have a functioning website and have established ourselves as a regional leader with State and local officials as well as site locators throughout the nation. We are currently working to increase our regional position through cooperation and strategic partnerships with surrounding counties.

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Culver Garden Court Property Annexation Continues to Move Forward

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The Culver Town Council held a public hearing on the annexation of 80 acres on South Main Street on January 26, 2010.  Part of this property is the parcel slated for the Culver Garden Court.  There are three properties involved in this annexation.  One property owner is protesting, but the Town Council has chosen to move ahead despite this.  The Annexation passed on the second reading by a vote of 4 to 1.   The article is currently online here and is available in two scans, Part 1 here and Part 2 here.

Despite the protest, this annexation should benefit all three property owners as well as the Town of Culver.  The Town plans to extend water and sewer to this area in an effort to promote future development.  There is a distinct dearth of developable land within Culver that has adequate water and sewer.  The few parcels that do have the potential for development are currently held under ownership with no interest in development on their own or in selling parcels for development.  Two of the parcel holders within this annexation have expressed an interest in development.  Regardless of their intentions for their property, the third property owner will no doubt see and increase in their property value resulting from the potential achieved here.

Safety Update

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We just filled out our OSHA 300A form for 2009 and I’m pleased with the results.  The OSHA 300A form is the summary of work-related injuries and illnesses.  We had one reportable injury with no lost days.  Not bad for all of the hours logged last year.

There are multiple categories including Deaths (0 Whew!), Total Number of Days Away From Work (0), and Total Number of Days of Restriction (0).  Injuries and illnesses break out a lot of things other than injuries, including Skin Disorders (0), Respiratory Conditions (0), Poisoning (0) and Hearing Loss (0).  Zeros across the board on these issues. 

This form will be used internally for training purposes.  (The one reportable accident has already been discussed with those involved as well as others that weren’t there in order to prevent similar incidents in the future.)  It factors into our insurance rating.  It is also a factor in our STEP rating.

Congratulations to everyone at Easterday Construction Co., Inc. for another safe year!

Lapaz Garden Court under Contract

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Lapaz Garden Court Site Plan

Yesterday was a long day, but a good day.  I went to Indianapolis for the closing on the Lapaz Garden Court.  This project is a 14 unit assisted living facility in Lapaz, IN.  The project is funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  This will be the 6th Garden Court facility built by Easterday Construction Co., Inc.  We’re pleased to have the opportunity to work with Garden Court, Inc. once again.

The closings are interesting as there is a flurry of HUD personnel in and out making sure that their different criteria are met.  As always, paperwork is a big part of any government project.  Fortunately the Garden Court team (Hughes & Associates, Real Estate Management and B.A. Martin Architects)  has been through this multiple times in the past.  I think the HUD personnel appreciate what they do and try to make things as painless as possible.  This closing went smoothly and only took a little more than two hours, but in the past we have been phoning, faxing, emailing and otherwise chasing the necessary paperwork.  It seems there is always one more thing required.

Thanks to the work of Garden Court and the HUD, Lapaz will have a new Garden Court facility ready to occupy by this time next year.