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Warren expects extra traffic during Ind.-5 project

Replacement of a culvert under Ind.-5 just north of Warren will likely increase traffic on town streets as motorists take an unofficial detour around the construction.

The Indiana Department of Transportation, which is doing the work on Ind.-5 this summer, has offered to reimburse the town for street repairs necessitated by the increased traffic, provided the town meets certain conditions.

During a special meeting on Thursday, Feb. 13, members of the Warren Town Council agreed to those conditions, which include allowing INDOT to inspect the damage before it is repaired.

Replacement of the culvert is scheduled to start July 7, and the project will close the highway until approximately Aug. 14.

While the official detour will use I-69, Warren Utility Manager Lee Poulson said, local traffic is likely to use Wayne Street and CR 900S to get around the construction. That's where INDOT will consider reimbursing the town for extra wear and tear on the streets.

Council members agreed to hire Commonwealth Engineers, on a contract not to exceed $15,000, to tie up loose ends remaining on the town's wellhead protection program and sewer separation projects. Both projects have been complete for several years, Clerk-Treasurer Marilyn Morrison said, but somehow documentation with the Indiana Department of Environmental Management "fell through the cracks."

Public hearings on the wellhead protection plan must be held and documented, she said, and testing must be done to prove to IDEM that the storm and sanitary sewers have been separated.

In other business:

• Poulson said two town trucks were damaged while town crews were clearing recent snows. Crews also found that the town's dump truck was too small to haul away large amounts of snow and deal with debris from water main breaks, Poulson said, adding that he plans to ask for quotes to purchase a larger dump truck.

Citizens Telephone Company allowed the town to use its truck to haul larger loads.

• Council approved the purchase of new light poles and LED lights to be installed at Salamonie Heights and on Bennett Drive this spring, at a cost of $15,000. Bennett Drive currently has no lights, and the lights at Salamonie Heights are "in sad shape," Poulson said.

• The addition of four volunteer firefighters to the Warren Fire Department was approved by council. The new firefighters are Austin Hartman, Luke Eppard, Matt Ralston and Josh Sunderman.

• The council re-appointed Brady Smekens to the Warren Board of Zoning Appeals.

Morrison told council members that board will meet Feb. 19 to consider a request by Salamonie Mills to rezone a property at Fifth and Wayne streets. The property is now zoned for residential use, but Salamonie Mills wants to locate an office on the property.

• Council members thanked Poulson and other town employees for working long hours removing snow and repairing broken water mains during the recent cold, snowy weather.