Porter County expects to have the restoration of its Elections & Registration Office complete by the end of August following catastrophic flooding on Feb. 16. The Porter County Board of Commissioners approved a $43,000 contract Tuesday morning with Tudor Cleaning and Restoration to clean up the space at 155 Franklin St.
“It’s a pretty extensive job, upstairs and downstairs,” said Porter County Facilities Director Joe Wiszowaty. He said property damage is estimated at $250,000 to $300,000.
The replacement of voting equipment which was damaged when water from the burst hot water heater pipe on the main floor leaked into the basement is estimated at just over $1.4 million.
All damage will be covered by insurance. Wiszowaty told the board that the basement ceiling and walls will be cleaned and treated beginning Wednesday and he expects to have quotes for restoration work to the office and basement storage space at next month’s board meeting.
“It’s nice to see an absolute clean slate, start all over and do it right this time,” said Commissioner Barb Regnitz, R-Center, referring to conversion of the space at 155 Franklin St. just last year.
The Elections & Registration Office staff moved into the former Mexican restaurant from a smaller space in the basement of the Porter County Administration Building which has been given over to expansion of the health department.
In other business, NWI Activists and NWI NOW were given permission to hold their next 50501 protest on the south lawn of the Porter County Courthouse from 11:45 a.m. to 2:15 p.m. on May 23.
The groups have been organizing the local protests against the Trump administration which are designed to happen at 50 locations in 50 states on one day approximately every two weeks.
“I do have an observation in that that is the only business entrance,” Regnitz said of the south side of the courthouse.
“The problem is you all don’t want us on the other (north) side because it’s Lincolnway and you all are the county seat,” said Deb McLeod on behalf of the organizations seeking the permit.
Then Regnitz suggested perhaps Saturday would be a better day for the protest as the courthouse is closed on the weekend, but McLeod said they have been trying to avoid Saturdaystoo limit impact on area businesses.
“We’re trying our best to balance everybody’s needs,” McLeod said.
Board of Commissioners President Jim Biggs, R-North, told McLeod not to occupy the sidewalks leading to the building and said he would have Wiszowaty tape off areas where the county doesn’t want protestors standing.
Biggs and McLeod then set up a time to meet with Porter County Attorney Scott McClure to discuss the possibility of the protestors applying for multiple permits at a time.
“I’m just going to be upfront with you, that don’t look real good right now,” Biggs said, adding that he would prefer the applications continue to come in separately for individual protest dates.
Finally, as has been the case over the last several commission meetings, multiple people spoke out against the data centers proposed for Wheeler.
LaPorte resident Becca Goodman, who said she’d like to move back to the area, told the commissioners that 86% of Indiana’s wetlands have been lost since the state began hosting data centers.
The safety of the Union Township School Corporation school children, whose campuses would be concentrated near the centers, was raised yet again.
“Like our superintendent said, you wouldn’t let us build a school next to a data center, why would we allow the opposite?” Goodman asked.
Union Township resident Mark Chavez said as the father of high school and younger children he’s completely against the centers and will be a single-issue voter in the next commissioner race based upon their voting on the issue.
Shelley Jones is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
