The Marshall County Regional Sewer District members held their first meeting Tuesday morning.
Attorneys Andrew Boxberger and Christopher Nusbaum from Carson LLP in Fort Wayne, who represent several sewer districts in Indiana, led the board in the first meeting to get several points of governance taken care of and explained. The first point was to administer the oaths of office to the members who include Don Ecker, Jr., Jay Stone, Diann Parsons, Thomas McFadden, Debbie Palmer, Brenda Meyers, and Christopher Spier. Spier was the only member absent.
The slate of officers was voted in who include Thomas McFadden as president, Jay Stone as vice president, Brenda Meyers as treasurer and Diann Parsons as secretary.
The members approved several resolutions or actions to help develop governance of the board. The bylaws, internal control policy, a remote participation policy, banking matters, conflict of interest forms, insurance matters, and public official bonds were all approved with unanimous votes of the members present.
The professional advisors were approved which include Carson LLP, Baker Tilly, and engineering firm Jones Petrie and Rafinski (JPR), and the board members approved legal services agreements from all entities. It was noted by JPR officials that they are assisting the board with the design of the plan up until the start of design work with the first project.
JPR will be submitting the initial plan for the operation of the District to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management which is due September 12, 2023. The Preliminary Engineering Report has already been done. They will be assembling information involved in that report with a few updated points, and finalizing other documents required by IDEM. They will then submit it to IDEM for review. Once it is acknowledged by IDEM, the board can move toward its first project.
According to the Preliminary Engineering Report completed by JPR, Latonka, Lawrence Lakes, Mill Pond are the primary focus areas for the initial project after District formation. The new District “will provide service to households, the existing campgrounds, and commercial users within the area, and will allow the community to better plan for growth and ensure that essential resources are available to do so.”
Additionally, the board has set a meeting schedule of the third Tuesday of every month beginning after January 1, 2024. Until then, they will meet two other times this year – Tuesday, October 17 and Tuesday, December 19. The meetings will be held at 6 p.m. ET in the second floor meeting room (Room 203) in the Marshall County Building at 112 W. Jefferson Street in Plymouth.
