Richmond Common Council’s finance committee continues to analyze the city’s 2025 budget.
During council’s Sept. 16 meeting, Justin Burkhardt, the finance committee chair, requested council delay discussion and action on the budget and five salary ordinances. He said the committee “would like to iron out some more details with the administration.”
Council conducted the budget public hearing as advertised; however, no residents stepped forward to speak. It then unanimously approved Burkhardt’s delay request. The budget has been advertised at $60,615,369, including $26,029,544 in the general fund.
After the meeting, Burkhardt said there was nothing particular the finance committee was targeting in the budget. The committee is interested in “diving down and making sure we’re leaving no stone unturned. We want to be able to get behind a good budget the citizens would expect,” he said.
Doing that, Burkhardt said, the committee looks “just to see if we can maybe look at this differently, look at that differently, and we’re not ready yet.”
Council has until the end of October to pass the budget.
Among the salary ordinances, an amended version of the elected officials’ ordinance was presented. The mayor’s 2025 salary of $86,421.02 now reflects the 4% raise planned for all nonunion employees. An error when the ordinance was created originally put the salary $6,200 higher.
Council notification
Council member Doug Goss presented an ordinance amendment requesting council receive “reasonable notice” when the city purchases property. Council passed 8-1 the amendment to the city’s order of business. Gary Turner voted against.
Goss said he first thought about the amendment when there was confusion about the city owning parcels involved in the April 11, 2023, plastics fire on North West F Street. City property purchases generally proceed through the Board of Public Works and Safety or the Economic Development Corporation of Wayne County, and they approve the purchases during public meetings. Council does not approve such purchases.
Mayor Ron Oler said the mayor does not purchase property, so he has no problem with the change.
Turner said that requiring public notice of interest in property establishes a “dangerous slope.” He said recent purchases of North 12th and North 13th street properties are examples that he would not want to become public knowledge in advance.
Zoning request
A petition to rezone a Chester Boulevard property to multiple-family residential (M2) was referred to Richmond Advisory Plan Commission for its Sept. 25 meeting. The petition will return to council for a final decision.
If the zoning change is approved, Marian Development Group plans to merge the property with a vacant neighboring property that already is zoned M2 and build an assisted-living facility. The petition indicates the assisted-living facility will involve an investment exceeding $44 million.
A second Chester Boulevard zoning petition was held because of a vacation and will not be presented at the Sept. 25 plan commission meeting. That petition would rezone Berryfield Park at 1100 North Drive to M2 for a planned 72-unit expansion of Chester Heights Apartments.
Pursuing grants
The city’s parks department and sanitary district received unanimous approval to pursue grants.
Richmond Parks and Recreation Department will apply for $50,000 from the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs’ Building Socially Connected Communities Program to fund a kayak launch and benches at the Test Road entrance to the Whitewater Gorge Park. The city and Wayne County Convention and Tourism Bureau will each provide $25,000 in match money.
Richmond Sanitary District will apply for a $100,000 grant from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management’s Community Recycling Grant Program for marketing and rebranding related to expansion of recycling efforts. A 25% match is included in the district’s 2025 budget.
A version of this article appeared in the September 25 2024 print edition of the Western Wayne News.