City awarded grant for safe school improvements

Authored by Jim Langham on Nov 30, 2011

Berne City Building Inspector Shannon Smitley announced on Monday evening that the city has been awarded up to $321,500 in funding to assist with Safe School funding near the area of Parkway St. and the South Adams Schools. The announcement was made at Monday's bi-monthly council meeting.
The grant, funded by the Indiana Department of Transportation, provides funding for infrastructure projects up to $250,000 and up to $71,500 for non-infrastructure.
Jennifer Pyrz, supervising engineer for Parsons Brinckerhoff Inc., visited council several months ago to discuss the firm's Safe Routes to Schools Program. Pyrz told council at the time that the program is geared towards creating and encouraging opportunities for students to walk and bike to school on safe sidewalks. At the time, she told council that due to consolidation of schools, 16 percent of students are walking to school these days, compared to 42 percent in 1969.
"Many of the schools have been constructed on the edge of town or in the country. As a result, many parents drive their students to school," Pyrz had said at the time.
Pyrz said that projects approved through the program are 100 percent funded and are broken down between infrastructure and non-infrastructure construction. She noted that potential funding for infrastructure projects is up to $250,000 and up to $75,000 for non-infrastructure.
"If Safe Routes allows the building of a sidewalk, it would be 100 percent funded," said Pyrz. "The requirement is that the project must be within two miles of the school."
She noted that the State of Indiana receives between $3-4 million a year in federal funding to disperse into the program.
Smitley said that funding would be spent appropriately for the building of sidewalks and improvement of safety measures in the school and Parkway Street area.
Council carried out its annual awarding of bids for street repairs and equipment for the next year. LICA Construction, the only bidder on the matter, was given the nod for heavy equipment rental and street repairs. Harvest Land Co-op, the only bidder for gas and diesel fuel was awarded that contract while McCallister outbid West Side Tractor Sales on the purchase of a new backhoe loader. McCallister's bid was $65,313 while West Side Track Sales submitted a bid of $69,000.
Ron Dull, president of the City of Berne Park Board, noted several improvements for the past year including landscaping mulch in the flower beds to retain moisture, removing small stumps around the park, taking care of necessary cleaning around the horse typing area, spraying weed areas around the park, working the horseshoe pits, painting the brown pump house and working with the Rotary Club with Improvements at the water fountain pavilion in the front of the park.
In addition, council:
- approved a contract with INDOT regarding signage at the intersections of U.S. 27 and Parr Road, U.S. 27 and Main Street and Parkway Street.
- approved the transfer of a station contract between Adams County Soil and Water and the city of Berne.
- heard a presentation by Attorney Mark Burry concerning an easement in the area of Wabash and Hilty Streets. Burry said that he would work with Clerk-Treasurer Gwen Maller in publishing the date of a public hearing concerning the matter after the first of the year.

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