Town Administrator May 16, 2019

Wise Farm Purchase. On Tuesday night the Board of Trustees approved an ordinance authorizing the purchase of the 169 acre Wise Farm property, which is located at the SW corner of Jasper Road and 119^th Street. The Town has a 45-day period to conduct due diligence on the transaction details and expects to close the sale by the end of June. Of the $7.2 million purchase price, $6.7 million will come from the Trails and Natural Areas Fund (TANAF) and $500,000 from the Parks & Improvement Impact Fund.

Lafayette IGA. Erie and Lafayette staff continue to work on final details of the proposed IGA to resolve the Nine Mile and other disputes. I expect that IGA to be ready for consideration by the Board of Trustees on May 28^th and by the Urban Renewal Authority on June 4^th.

Facility Rentals and Campaigning at Town of Erie Facilities Policy. Many questions and comments are circulating regarding the Town’s current policies on facility rentals and campaigning at Town facilities. The Town’s current “Campaigning at Town Facilities Policy” states, in part, “Use of any Town facility…in support of any issue or candidate”, and, “Campaigning for any issue or candidate at Town facilities” is “not permitted”. Consistent with this policy, Town staff recently revoked a rental application after learning that the group intended to solicit petition signatures at the event in the Erie Community Center (ECC).

There are both legal and operational issues to consider regarding this policy. For instance, one issue is whether patrons of the ECC or other Town facilities should be able to use the facilities without being interrupted by others asking them to sign petitions. There are other issues involving security and who bears the cost of providing adequate security. Some issues on all sides of the political spectrum provoke reactions that may create security risks for proponents, opponents and bystanders. Handling those security issues is complex and can be costly.

Because of these issues, and because the legal case law associated with such issues is evolving, and because the Town’s existing policy was last reviewed in 2016, I have scheduled this matter for discussion at the Board of Trustees’ May 28^th regular meeting for Board consideration of any policy clarifications or changes the Board may wish to adopt.

Public Works

Erie Parkway Bridge progress continues. Currently, SEMA Construction is working on the decking. Later this month the deck will be poured, this will be a major event as the entire deck will need to be poured in one day.

Seismic geological testing throughout Town began Saturday the 4th and should be complete by May 11th. The Town is working with the testing company to obtain seismic data for the first thousand feet, which could be helpful in understanding aquifer conditions as well as undermining throughout Town if the data is of sufficient resolution.

Police

Erie PD Officers have been providing extra patrols to all of the schools in Erie and will continue to do so through May 23.

Two of the new police hires, Matthew Flessner and Conner Willyard, graduated from Aims Law Enforcement Academy on Saturday evening, May 11. They will begin their new policing career on May 20, 2019.

Economic Development

You're invited to view the May Economic Indicators for the metro area.

Finance

Water consumption is increasing due to the start of irrigation season. Postcards containing lawn and landscaping tips are being sent to owners of new construction homes. These cards provide information to promote water conservation, especially in regards to new lawns and irrigation.

Town facilities were appraised this week for insurance purposes.

Parks and Recreation

Check out the congratulations messages to graduating high school seniors in the Community Center. We wish all of our part-time staff the best in the future!

Staff potted more than 500 tree seedlings collected from acorns from three different trees that have desirable growth traits to be planted in the future in Town.