Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Cars & Coffee will be back on Saturday mornings in downtown Warsaw during the month of October.
At Friday morning’s Board of Public Works and Safety meeting, John Lacheta, on behalf of a group of car enthusiasts in the Warsaw area, requested the closure of Buffalo Street, between Center and Market streets, from about 7:45 a.m. to noon Oct. 10, 17, 24 and 31.
“We had delayed this request due to the road closures and things like that on Indiana (Street) earlier this year. Would like to at least salvage a little bit of it this year, and then as we move forward into 2027, come before you and ask for another request for 2027,” Lacheta said.
He said it was likely the Cars & Coffee would be done earlier than noon and he had indicated that to most of the downtown businesses he had talked to about the road closure. If it gets done early, they’ll reopen the road early.
“Previously, in 2025, we had done it in conjunction with the farmers market, and had used Buffalo and that was where we requested,” Lacheta stated, but other streets in the downtown area would be sufficient. He said they were just asking for space for 20 to 40 cars.
Main Street Warsaw was in favor of the request, Mayor Jeff Grose said, as well as the businesses along Buffalo Street. He pointed out that one business was in favor of the road closure as long as the road was opened back up early if the event ended earlier than scheduled.
The Board of Works approved the road closure request 3-0.
Before giving Julio G. Albor his ceremonial oath of office as a Warsaw Police Department officer, Grose recognized everyone in law enforcement at the board meeting by having them stand.
“I appreciate what you do for this community, I’ve told you countless times. You have another young man who is willing to join the team,” Grose said. “As my dad, a former police officer, said, ‘Jeff, he is pledging to run to trouble while the rest of us are running away.’ So a great deal of appreciation for that, what you do each and every day. Julio has family here, they’re part of this commitment, too, and, again, on behalf of everybody in the city and the community, I thank you for your service.”
Grose then gave Albor his oath.
In other business, the Board of Works approved:
• Pay application #15 for $470,186.29 from Robinson Construction for the Warsaw Street Department facility, as requested by Community and Economic Development Director Jeremy Skinner on behalf of the Redevelopment Authority.
He said the work continues to progress out there and the bulk of pay application #15 is for electrical, plumbing and the fire suppression system, as well as the delivery of the prime building package.
• Payment application #11 from Core Mechanical Services for $19,726.71 for the City Hall HVAC improvements, as requested by Public Works Director Dustin Dillon. He said the project is winding down with some finishing touches to be completed.
• A change order from Pulver Asphalt Inc. for the reconstruction of Clark Street from Cook Street to Maple Avenue, as requested by Dillon.
“These were quantity adjustments that we ended up adding to the project, so it’s an increase of $63,416.65. There were some ADA ramps that were out of compliance that were existing that we thought would be OK. We ended up going ahead and updating those as well. There were some driveway approaches that we extended, and then there was a wedge leveled in, as far as asphalt, to improve the storm water drainage. These were things we met in the field on, decided what’s best for the project and needed to happen,” he explained.
The change order brings the total contract price to $324,880.40.
Dillon also presented, and the Board of Works approved, the only and final pay application from Pulver Asphalt Paving Inc. for the Clark Street project in the amount of $324,880.40. He pointed out that even with the change order, the project was still well under any other bid that they received for it to begin with.
• The preventative maintenance agreement for $3,142.50 with Core Mechanical Services for the Warsaw Parks and Recreation Department office and maintenance building, as requested by Superintendent Larry Plummer.
He said they’ve done the preventative maintenance since the facility was built and he just wanted to continue with them. Core Mechanical service the building’s heating and cooling twice a year, and Plummer said it seems to be working out.
Plummer also presented, and the Board of Works approved, a preventative maintenance agreement for $2,670 with Core Mechanical Services for the Zimmer Biomet Center Lake Pavilion.
• `Pay application #138 for $15,702 from Wessler Engineering for the drying bed design out at the wastewater plant, as requested by Utility Manager Brian Davison. He said that project is getting ready to go to bid before too long, with construction potentially through the winter or early spring.
• An agreement with M & D Lawn Care for $7,794.50 for chemical application and seeding process at the wastewater plant, as requested by Davison.
“We want to basically kill some of our grass out at the plant and do the native species,” he explained, adding that it would save them from having to mow it out there every week, it’ll have some environmental benefits and will look nice because of the flowering plants.
• Pay app #7 for $28,090.16 and #8 for $21,491.99, the final two pay applications, from Insight Pipe Contracting LLC for pipe lining work that was completed around the city of Warsaw in late spring, as requested by Davison.
• A request from Warsaw Police Department CARES to apply for a $2,100 grant through the K21 Health Foundation.
CARES Coordinator Mikaela Bixler said the grant funding would bring a suicide intervention and prevention training called ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training) to Warsaw.
• The new hire and change in payroll report, as presented by Human Resource Director Denny Harlan. It included Albor’s biweekly pay of $2,678.39 as his probationary period is over, effective Sept. 27; and a merit increase for Danielle Morris as the administrative assistant at Oakwood Cemetery, making her hourly pay $23.75.
