The Ferdinand Town Council met for their monthly meeting on Tuesday night.The meeting began, as normal, with monthly reports from several town departments. Police Chief Kerri Blessinger stood before the council, with tears in her eyes, as she publicly announced her resignation as Chief of Police effective mid-November. Blessinger will be working in the private sector in a similar role as part of the transition from Memorial Hospital and Health Care Center switching over to Deaconess. A motion was made by Town Council President Ken Sicard to promote from inside the community instead of looking elsewhere for Blessinger’s replacement. The motion was seconded and then approved as Assistant Chief of Police Rob Randle, who was in attendance, was named the new Chief effective November 19th. Randle graciously accepted the nomination and the promotion. Elsewhere the department also purchased an additional FLOCK camera to be installed over the next few months after the proper permits are obtained from INDOT. The Ferdinand Police Department also purchased new hand-held radios that the force were desperately in need of. It was mentioned that Officer Brian Seffernick had been on the job for 25 years this month as the Council members publicly noted how much they appreciated his service to the community. Two sealed bids were read from both Sternbergs and John Jones Police vehicles for a new 2025 Dodge Durango for the Police Departments. Both bids came with several different bids based on trade in or no trade in, a stock vehicle, or decked out with all tools and equipment that police vehicles require. The bids were being taken under advisement and possibly discussed at the next Town Council Meeting but was emphasized the the Chief of Police should have a big say in this discussion. Lastly, back on October 9th, former Assistant Chief Christian Gogel had retired after 30 years of dedication to the Town of Ferdinand the FPD. As a sign of respect for his service, the Council voted to let Gogel retain his service sidearm.
Reports were given by the Fire Departments, Electric, and Water Departments. The Street Department Head Tom Lueken reported that the town wide clean-up held earlier this month was a success with only two pickups rejected for lack of stickers. The department also did some cleaning and PM’s on the 3rd Street Ambulance Station and the Town Hall buildings including painting directional arrows in the parking lot to help with the confusion when entering the Town Hall lot. In addition the Old Town Lake property had two dead trees removed that were safety hazards including one hanging overhead, above the walking trail.
Matt Weyer, head of the Park Department, reported that another Weed Wrangle held in conjunction with the Park Board and the Dubois County Soil and Water Conservation District was scheduled for Saturday, November 9th at the Old Town Lake. Weyer reported a great turnout was held at the event in 2023 and the Park Board expects the same. The Board will be replacing some old and broken playground equipment at the parks over the next few months in addition to doing some work to the dugouts at the ball field and some dirt work to the infield to help with the Spring rainfall and flooding issues that arise.
Kim Fischer was not in attendance but reports were sent out for the Marketing and PR Departments that stated the Town’s new website would be launching soon as the final bugs and tweaking were currently being addressed. It was noted that Billboards are now in place for the annual Christkindlmarkt and the WalktoberFest was a HUGE success as several local merchants expressed happiness and gratitude with how the event turned out and many of them noted seeing first time faces during the event.
The Council discussed the 2018 Ford Taurus that was formerly the Town Manager car. The car, which has 67,000 original miles, still has not been sold because bids coming in on the car are significantly under the value of the vehicle. Bids were originally submitted back in June but held over the last few months to try and get a fair value for the vehicle. The Council discussed at this point calls were going to be made to local dealerships to see what kind of deal they can get on the automobile.
Councilman Debbie Johnson spoke about an upcoming event taking place on Wednesday, November 6th at the Ferdinand Community Center from 6PM to 8PM. This event is being held to discuss the Flourishing Ferdinand Comprehensive Plan. The comprehensive plan is a guidance document for future growth and development that frequently focuses on the next 10 to 20 years. It serves as a roadmap for effective decision-making in private development projects and community initiatives for the public good. Since updating the comprehensive plan is a public process and the Town wants to involve as many citizens as possible, the Ferdinand planning team is hosting a meeting to solicit input and ideas from the public. The public meeting will allow residents to review project data and, through a series of interactive exercises, provide ideas and input on local existing conditions, future growth and connectivity and future priorities for the Town. Project staff will be on hand to collect input, discuss ideas and answer questions. Additionally, residents can provide input via an online survey as well. The survey can be found at this link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Ferdinand.
The Water Tower Maintenance Project, something that has been tabled on and off for several months, was discussed as two bids came in from Pittsburg Tank and Tower Group and MaGuire Water out of Rockport in neighboring Spencer County. Both Contractor bids featured several differently priced bids based on how and when the work was completed. Under the advice of the Town Attorney these bids would also be looked over by Ben Brinkman, the Water/Wastewater Department head and discussed with the Council before a decision was made.
An ordinance about electric rates was introduced by the Council. This was based off a recent study the Council stated. The Town of Ferdinand’s current agreement with their electrical services expires in June 2026. At this time their current vendor has informed them that a significant rise in costs and fees can be expected. The Town opted for the survey to figure out a way to alleviate and avoid a “sticker shock” to residents by seeing a huge percentage increase in their monthly utility bill. The Council, based on information in the survey, opted for a 8% increase which equated to around a $6 increase in monthly bills. A public hearing will be held next month at the November Town Council meeting and if passed the changes will take effect starting in January of 2025.
Finally an ordinance was changed, at the request of the Ferdinand Police Department, regarding permits for Recreational Off Highway Vehicles. At this time, permits are only valid for one year and the FPD requested the change to three years. The Town noted they sell a lot of these, involving lots of paperwork, and agreed it would be helpful and more beneficial if the permits lasted longer. The ordinance was passed and changed effective starting in January.
The meeting was adjourned just minutes shy of two hours after it began. The next Ferdinand Town Council meeting will be held on Tuesday, November 19th at 6:30 PM. Be sure to follow the Town of Ferdinand on Facebook to stay updated throughout the month of all the happenings in the town.
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