By Tim Arnett
WABASH,Indiana – At the Wabash County Council meeting late Monday afternoon, the council approved a total of $788,000 from the county’s Cumulative Bridge Fund for designs and construction on bridges numbers 118, 510 and 645. Thirty-five thousand dollars is for Bridge #118 design, $750,000 is for Bridge #510 construction and $3,000 is for the Covered Bridge in North Manchester.
The cash balance in the Cum Bridge Fund is currently over $3.6 million. County Council Chairman Mike Ridenour explained that the total amount apportioned Monday is money the county already has and no additional tax dollars are being used in the $788,000 appropriation. He added that the matter was merely a clerical one in order to use the money already in place.
Sheriff Bob Land then asked for an additional appropriation of $27,718.00 out of the LOIT Public Safety Fund to replace a truck to be used for the Drug Task Force. He explained to the council that the previous vehicle used in undercover work for the Drug Task Force was hit and totaled in Lagro in November 2015. That vehicle, he said, was leased and any insurance money from the accident will go to the lease company. The measure passed unanimously.
The saga involving the county health board also took center stage Monday afternoon at the meeting. Last year, the County Health Board obtained a lawyer to look into what actions to take against the county after they did not get the appropriations they wanted. In order to obtain the legal council, the Health Board needed to have approval by the County Council, which they failed to do. Later, the Health Board wanted reimbursement for the legal fees in the order of $14,784 from the county. The County Council refused to appropriate the funds for attorney fees. The issue Monday was whether the Health Board could receive money for legal fees out of grant money, specifically the Strengthening Public Health Infrastructure grant. The council tabled the measure to give the county attorney a chance to study the issue. County Attorney Steve Downs.
The council also approved the disbursement of grant money Community Corrections and the Probation Department has already received totaling $140,400 and $88,400, respectively.