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MILFORD - Milford couple Kevin and Pam Dwyer went to the Milford Council meeting Monday to express concerns about the trail route, among other matters.
Kevin stated he was concerned about the part of the route on CR 1150N that goes on the south side of the road. He said his main concern was safety, saying it goes right by the trailer court and there are lots of kids playing there and lots of traffic. He admitted, “I realize you’re far into the process,” and he said when he talked to Beth Johnson from USI, who is the consultant on the project, she said part of the reason for going on the south side was to keep costs down because they already had most of the rights-of-way, but he still wanted the council to consider his route, which was to go on the north side of 1150N.
Council President Doug Ruch said from the technical meeting he was in, they did take that idea under consideration, but the engineers said with the ground and soil work they’d have to do, it would require more expense. Plus the additional rights-of-way they’d need to acquire when they already had some on the south side. They also considered there might be future housing on the north side and decided it wasn’t worth it.
Kevin countered with the maintenance costs he assumed they would have because of the traffic driving over the stones on the shoulder of the trail and said that might offset any costs they’d have by going on the north side.
He said, “How many years did we not have a trail and you’re rushing into this now — why not wait a year?”
Councilman Ken Long said the town didn’t rush into anything, they’ve been working on this since 2020 and he said, “We’re at a point where it can’t change, we’d lose money.”
Long pointed out that Kevin mentioned he was concerned about safety while also talking about kids playing in that area. He went on to say that he was frustrated because, “For the past three months we’ve had people coming to complain and where were they when they held public input meetings? We’ve given every opportunity for people to express their opinions then. At the end of the day this is the best option, and we’ve already committed to landowners for the cost of purchase. We’re at a point that this is impossible; we don’t have time to do it.”
Pam said, “I am for the bike trail, but I want it to be safe.”
Councilman Jim Smiley said, “It’s going to be safer than what we have now.”
Kevin wanted to know how the town was going to lose money, how much they’d lose and why they couldn’t wait a year.
Johnson explained the town had to put up the 20% match upfront. “If they stop or can’t meet deadlines, they’ll lost the matching dollars,” she said.
Clerk-Treasurer Tricia Gall said they had to test soil, work with rights-of-way, get appraisals, do surveys and that it all cost money. She also said as a government they had to have the money before they could go to bid.
Long said, “We’ve been incredibly open about all this, and we want people to come talk to us, but the dye is set now.”
Ruch also told Dwyer that USI has two “hometown boys” on staff that did their best for the town.
Pam had a “wish list” of items to share with the council, including painting the Waubee sign at the lake and was told the town could probably supply her with the paint.
Milford Fest Car Show
Michael Williams, representing the Kosciusko County Mason Lodge, approached the council to tell them they have outgrown their space at Catherine & Emeline streets, and the too-tight spaces were making the “show car guys very nervous” so they want to move the car show out to the lodge where they’ll have plenty of room. However, they wanted to stay connected to Milford Fest so they were able to get the use of a shuttle van, and he was hoping they’d be able to have space where the shuttle could pick up and drop off passengers.
Smiley, who is a member of the Lions Club, said he would bring it up at their meeting the next night, but thought they’d be able to accommodate him.
Community Crossing Grant
Johnson asked for council to sign the 2026-27 pavement asset management plan to keep the town compliant with PASER (Pavement Surface Evaluation and Rating). She said the cost is not to exceed $15,000. The council approved the agreement.
She also informed the council that with the Community Crossing Matching Grant they could also repair and replace sidewalks, as long as they were attached to a road being repaired or replaced. Council members liked that idea as they currently have a 50-50 match with residents, and it would be better to only have to pay 20%. However, since the street department only has $60,000 set aside to match, that might not be enough to do it this year.
Council did approve Stephen Marquart to seek the grant funds and work with Johnson on what they can accomplish.
Utilities Department
For the wastewater department, the council approved purchasing a new radiator for a generator from Cummins for $16,940.92. Marquart gave them several options — new, rebuilt, on-site, off-site and the cost of renting a generator if they go rebuilt off-site. After all the options and a lengthy discussion, they voted to go with a new radiator.
A representative from Astbury Water Tech Inc. was present to answer questions about their locator services. Smiley said he was asked by residents why they would contract it out after they just bought a locator last year.
Smiley was told that it was more like three years ago and Marquart said he still needed the locator and would use it in a variety of situations other than what Astbury would be doing for them, plus Astbury would be updating the information right into the town’s database.
Smiley said he’d approve it starting in October when Marquart would be busier, but Marquart said it should start soon as “summer is crazy for locates.” The council approved entering into an agreement between Astbury and the town for $500 a month starting May 1.
In other business, the council:
• Approved pay applications Commonwealth Engineer brought, $161,357.50 for Division A to R Yoder Construction and $96,717.27 for Division B to Selge Construction.
• Approved paying Living Waters $1,621.63 for emergency chlorine leak repair.
• Approve a resolution for reimbursing the Redevelopment Commission for the water projects over a course of five years in the amount of $558,783.68.
• Approved getting GPS for 13 town vehicles at $246.35 per month through Verizon Connect. By doing it now they’ll receive a $50 rebate.
• Approved paying invoices to Boyce for renewal accounting system for $8,300, renewal invoice to Utility Supply for $3,800 and paying Commonwealth’s invoice for $40,589.87.
• Approved a resolution for the countywide multi-hazard mitigation plan.
• Approved hiring lifeguards and Frank Brouwer as caretaker.
• Reminded residents if they signed up for line replacement and they receive a card on their door to call the water department right away to schedule a time.
