Kosciusko County Hoosier Enduring Legacy Program Community Coordinator Amy Roe speaks at the Kosciusko County Commissioners’ meeting on Tuesday, April 11. InkFreeNews photo by Leah Sander.

By Leah Sander
InkFreeNews

WARSAW — Kosciusko County and several of its towns have moved closer towards making improvements using some American Rescue Plan Act money.

At their meeting on Tuesday, April 11, Kosciusko County Commissioners approved strategic investment plans for doing projects as part of the county’s participation in the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs’ Hoosier Enduring Legacy Program.

The state created HELP to assist local governments with spending their ARPA money on projects to better their communities in four specific areas: Advancing E-Connectivity; Enhancing Quality of Place; Promoting Community Wellness; and Strengthening Local Economies. Kosciusko County was selected to participate and county representatives invited any of the county’s cities and towns to take part as well, with Pierceton, Mentone and Milford joining on.

Through HELP, the state is promising the county and the participating towns special funding to use along with their ARPA money. The county also hired a HELP community coordinator, Amy Roe, to facilitate the process. She was present at Tuesday’s meeting.

The plans lay out the projects the county and three towns wish to do. For the county, those are: creating a canoe/kayak launch at James Lake; extending a greenway west of Warsaw by creating a road between Chinworth Bridge and North CR 350W; improving broadband infrastructure; and working on an initiative to help with health aspects countywide.

Following commissioners’ approval, the Kosciusko County Council will also have give their blessing to the plans. Roe said at the end of April she and Kosciusko County Commissioner Cary Groninger will also meet with state officials to iron out final details.

County leaders should soon after that be able to determine which of the projects the county and towns wish to do may be accomplished.

In other business, commissioners:

• Allowed Kosciusko County Health Department Administrator Bob Weaver to apply for about $41,000 in American Rescue Plan Act money administered by the state for lead testing for kids.
• Approved contracting with Securus Technologies for communications for Kosciusko County Jail prisoners. Kosciusko County Sheriff Jim Smith said inmates can use secured tablets to video chat with family and friends, view their mail and see commissary and educational information among other things. He noted each inmate will get one free 20-minute video visit a week.
• Allowed the Kosciusko Area Bus Service to return more than $323,000 in Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act monies that it was unable to use to the Indiana Department of Transportation.
• Approved acquiring right of way for two properties near a bridge near Hand Avenue as the bridge will be reconstructed over Walnut Creek.
• Approved a request from Kosciusko County Administrator Marsha McSherry to apply for $77,790 in grant money for “energy-related projects.”
• Approved a quote from MacAllister for maintaining generators at the county’s public communications safety towers for $5,823 for three years.

Commissioners’ next meeting is 9 a.m. Tuesday, April 25, in the Kosciusko County Courthouse’s Old Courtroom.