Larry Siegel, left, vice president of the Syracuse Town Council, presents town attorney Mike Reed with a plaque thanking him for his service to the town. Reed is stepping down after recently being elected as the Circuit Court Judge of Kosciusko County. (Photo by Lauren Zeugner)

Brett Konarski of Jones Petrie Rafinski, formerly Wightman Petrie, the town of Syracuse’s engineering firm, provided an update on the U.S. 6/SR 13 Industrial Park during the Syracuse Town Council’s monthly meeting Tuesday night.

Cripe Excavating has completed most of its work with installing 60 feet of force main pipe remaining. It is off-site until spring. The council’s concerns about flooding by the site entrance have been addressed. A storm culvert will be installed to allow storm water to flow from north to south and discharge into nearby wetlands.

Larry Siegel, council vice-president, asked the solution is guaranteed. Councilman Brian Woody asked if high water in the spring will be a problem. Kornarski said the wetland was the lowest part in that area so it should not be a problem since water will be collected in the swale along the roadside as well.

Another concern being addressed is a request from AT&T for $6,000 to move fiber optic cable in the project area. An attempt will be made to pay AT&T from the Economic Development Administration grant.

Siegel presented town attorney Mike Reed with a plaque of appreciation. This was Reed’s last meeting serving as town attorney. He is now the Circuit Court Judge for Kosciusko County.

Reed thanked the board and department heads saying he enjoyed working with them over the years. He praised Julie Kline, clerk-treasurer and wished the town the best. Vern Landis will be taking Reed’s place as town attorney in January.

“Mr. Landis is a great friend of mine. He’s a great attorney. You made a great choice,” he told the council.

Town manager Henry DeJulia reported a grant agreement was executed for Oakwood. He and town marshall Tony Ciriello met with the Oakwood Property Owners to discuss some concerns. DeJulia is also working with NIPSCO on an agreement to bring electricity and gas to Oakwood Park.

Ciriello reported there has been a change in how drug arrests are dealt with. They are now being handled directly through the prosecutor’s office. He also requested that vacation time for Joe Salazar and himself be carried over into 2013 with the proviso they be used by Feb. 28. The council approved the carry over.

The council also approved an inter-local agreement between Kosciusko County and Syracuse for terminal services data. Ciriello explained the county purchased software for the computers in police cruisers and allowed other departments to come on board and use it. Syracuse is being asked to pay $5,000 as its share of the maintenance fees. The system allows for information sharing between departments and increases officer safety. Council approved the expenditure.

In light of what happened in Newton, Conn., Ciriello told the council he has met with school officials and made some immediate changes to the school safety plan.

Chad Jonsson, park superintendent, reported 850 breakfasts were served during this year’s annual Breakfast with Santa. Registration for the adult basketball league is the end of December with games starting in January.

Work on the Harold Schrock Athletic Complex has slowed down. All the concrete work but two dugouts and bleacher pads has been poured.

Kline reported the health insurance increase came in under budget at 9 percent. The town’s insurance agent checked to see if a better rate was available and could not find one. Kline also received the renewal for property and equipment insurance which went up 5 percent.

In discussion from the floor Sharon Fowler asked why ordinance violations are not pursued when there is a town ordinance in place. “I know of a dog that doesn’t have a license. I know of something with a basketball hoop that could be hit by a car. There are violations that need to be enforced, “ she told the council. “There doesn’t seem to be a lot of code enforcement any more.”

She also asked where the fines go. Kline said the fines collected go into the general fund.

The council approved Ciriello as police chief; Gary Green and Paul Hoffman to the tree board; Ben Plikerd and Dan List to the Syracuse Board of Zoning; Shirley Connolly to the park board; Siegel, Councilman Paul Stoelting, Dan VanLue and Ernie Rogers to the Syracuse Redevelopment Commission; Woody to Turkey Creek Fire Territory and Vern Landis as town attorney.

Councilman Bill Musser will be council president for 2013.

For a more in-depth report of the meeting, see today’s issue of The Mail-Journal.