Police fuel cost increases weigh town’s 2027 budget

Centerville Town Council adopted its 2027 budget during a brief Oct. 13 meeting, which included a seven-fold increase in the police gasoline budget.

Council’s unanimous vote in favor of finalizing the budget happened without discussion. No residents spoke about the proposed spending levels during a Sept. 28 public hearing. Officials noted then that the main changes over 2026 are a 5% increase in utilities, a 3% increase in utility salaries, and an over 600% increase in police department fuel expenses. 

The town had maintained the same gasoline budget of $6,000 for years, but CPD chief Josh Millsaps said actual costs are closer to $45,000.

Council president Dan Wandersee said Indiana Department of Energy representatives would be coming to the area the next day to recognize the success of the town’s electrical grid resilience upgrade projects since 2024, which included moving several 4 kilovolt circuits to more dependable 12 kilovolt circuits and related replacement of hardware and infrastructure. Wandersee said the town should be proud of the milestone.

Main Street Centerville board member Kevin Sparks sought and received council’s approval to use Maplewood Park for a Dec. 5 Christmas in Centerville event. It will start at 4 p.m. with a parade at 7 p.m. The parade route is expected to be shorter than in past years, traveling from 4th Street down Main Street, then up Morton Avenue to end at the park.

In other business:

• CPD reports a successful annual food drive to provide boxes for several families in need during the holiday season.
• Council heard from Town Manager Kevin Slick about various public works projects in progress.
• Council approved contracts with attorneys to perform legal work related to fire territory paperwork and a wastewater and stormwater rate study and related projects.
• Council tabled a request from residents to waive some wastewater and sanitation fees after their homes became unlivable in recent flooding.
• The meeting celebrated the work being done by Rodney Cole to restore the old gas station and noted that while work remains, it is now off the unsafe building list.
• Code enforcement: the town recently conducted 15 investigations, 11 were cleared without any enforcement action, two remain open and two were determined invalid.

Upcoming public meetings include a plan commission meeting Oct. 21 at 7 p.m., a council work session Oct. 27 at 7 p.m. and a stormwater meeting Oct. 29 at 5:30 p.m. Trick-or-treating will be Oct. 31 from 5-7 p.m.