Worthington Council hears good news from attendees

One person is interested in donating a piece of land to the town for a small pocket park. A group of downtown business people is planning a special spring event to bring more people into town. The fire department is expecting delivery of a new truck this spring and the water utility company is thinking about erecting a new water tower to serve Worthington.

David Carter attended the meeting and told the Council he's interested in giving a piece of property to the town for a possible park.

Carter's father, Bob Carter, owned and operated Carter Oil from the 1930s until it closed up shop in 1985.

The property where the Carter Oil service station once stood is located adjacent to, and south of, the MainSource Bank's ATM location at State Road 67 and Terre Haute Road. It also borders on some residential property.

Carter, who estimated the property dimensions to be approximately 97 feet by 50 feet, said there are six underground tanks which once held fuel products but he believes they are in good shape and have not been leaking. Nevertheless, he said the property needs to be checked for any possible contamination that might need to be cleaned.

Carter was accompanied by Beth Grigsby, a geologist who is the brownfield program manager for an Indianapolis engineering firm, ATC Associates.

Grigsby told the Council a 100 percent grant might be available from the state's Trails and Parks Initiative to pay for the cost of a study of the property. The cost of a study was estimated at $15-20,000.

Grigsby said the Town can apply for the grant if they say they have the intent to turn the area into a greenspace at some point in the future.

Councilman Malcolm Stahl wondered about stipulations and asked if the Town accepted the gift, would they be able to instead sell the property.

Other questions were asked if grants were available to clean the property if the study showed contamination.

No decision was made -- Councilman Gregg Roudebush said he wanted to look over the whole proposal before any action was taken and the item was tabled until the next meeting.

A representative from about 10 downtown businesses was also present and asked the Council for their support and permission to close one street for an old-fashioned day scheduled on May 1. The Council approved -- Washington Street will be closed on that day from Main Street to Union Street.

Kenny McIntosh of Eastern Heights Utilities also attended and told the Council the water utility company is interested in erecting a new water tower to serve the town.

McIntosh said highly competitive grants are available but the utility company itself is not eligible. However, he said the Town could apply and if granted, the tower would be located on the west end of town and would serve residents in Worthington.

McIntosh said if the grant was approved, Eastern Heights would handle all of the administration and oversee the construction.

The Council approved unanimously and voted to apply for the grant.

The Council also held a hearing on an additional appropriation for the Fire Territory. The appropriation does not involve any new tax levy but is money deposited into town accounts from the town and the trustees to pay for operating expenses and a new truck.

Stahl, the town's representative on the fire territory board, said the department is expecting a new truck to be delivered in late April.