Near $400,000 Grant Awarded For TLC Renovations
14 Dec 2006

Town Council learned December 6 that North Manchester would receive a $394,975 Community Focus Fund grant to renovate the historic Thomas Marshall Town Life Center.
The Town Life Center will get a new roof, a new electrical system that will take the building up to safety code specifications, new ADA compliant restrooms on the first level, and preservations/retrofitting to the existing windows, including scraping and painting the interior and exterior.
The Community Services of North Manchester has worked with the Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana and a grant writer from Region III-A to secure the grant through two previous grant proposals.
Apparently the third time is the charm for a grant proposal that went through the competitive Community Development Block Grant Program (CDBG), which receives federal funding from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The $507,300 project includes a $20,000 match from the town and donations from local contributors. The grant award funds will take some time to come in—the town was told not to expect to see them until summer 2007.
The next steps include the writing of the bid specifications for a variety of construction firms, which will be handled by the architect firm involved in the project, Scearce Rudisel Architects.
Lt. Governor Becky Skillman commented on the grant award in a press release dated Dec. 4.
“Community Focus Fund grants are a vital source for Indiana’s rural communities,” said Skillman, who serves as Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development. “I am pleased that the Town of North Manchester recognized the importance of strengthening their town and improving the quality of life for all residents.”
The Town Life Center is home to a variety of community organizations, including the Learn More Center, the Garber-Simmons Senior Center, and Manchester Area Programming.
In other news, Fire Chief Dan Renz reported that the department has been awarded another “Assistance to Firefighters” grant from FEMA.
The grant, which was prepared and written by Cam Kissinger, will bring $52,000 to the community.
The fire department will receive $2,500 of the grant and is planning to purchase 11 new SCBA’s and a laptop computer with a power point projector.
Council took a look at this year’s leaf pickup costs, which were substantially higher than in past years.
Fuel cost increases and mechanical problems put the cost for 2006 at $18.998, as compared to $15,026 in 2003 and $15,501 in 2004.
The total number of loads also played a big role in the cost increase. The town hauled 246 loads this year, compared to 176 in 2003 and 213 in 2004. There was no report for 2005 due to understaffing.
Council passed on second reading the 2007 salary and wage ordinance, which includes a 3% raise for town employees.
Council member Stan Escott abstained, taking the same stance he took at last month’s meeting, when he proposed an exception to the ordinance that would cut Town Clerk Nancy Reed’s 3% raise. He had argued that her response during a disagreement about mandatory direct deposit for town employees merited the exception.
Park & Rec. Director Kathy Staton reported that the department would be conducting phone surveys among town residents as part of formulating a five-year master plan.
A public hearing will be held concerning the plan in the near future.
Council also heard that the Tree Advisory is seeking to increase residents’ participation in the Walrod Tree Program, which provides trees at a reduced cost for homeowners to plant on tree lawns.
Members of the advisory are scouting the town for gaps in the tree lawns, and will be notifying homeowners of places they could plant trees on their properties.
Council unanimously voted to write off a list of bad accounts, most of which were sewer and water accounts.
The next town council meeting will be held Dec. 20, 5:30 p.m., at the Public Safety Complex and will include the election of officers and next year’s calendar.