JEFFERSONVILLE: Future funds and the Big Four

JEFFERSONVILLE — If the city moves forward on its plan to demolish several homes in the path of the proposed Big Four Station, it could lose out on future attempts to secure federal funds.

Greg Sekula, director of Indiana Landmark’s Southern Regional Office, addressed the Jeffersonville City Council on Monday night and said that because federal funds were part of money to convert the former Big Four railroad bridge into a crossing for pedestrians and bicyclists, the associated project — Big Four Station — would also be tied to federal regulations.

He explained that Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act would apply, and it is necessary to clarify the scope of the project and its anticipated adverse impact on historic resources within the area of potential effect for this project.

During an interview Tuesday Jeffersonville Mayor Mike Moore said the city’s attorneys disagree.

“They do not feel there is an obligation to save those properties,” he said.

The area, and properties in question, includes six properties along Pearl, Market and Chestnut streets. While none of the properties are individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Sekula said they are part of a neighborhood that is listed as a historic district and were constructed between 1880-1920.

“We’re obviously concerned about the loss of these contributing properties in the historic district,” Sekula said. “We believe because federal funding was used for the Big Four Bridge ramp project, that requires oversight of any changes that would involve potential demolition of any historic property. And particularly, we’re concerned that if the city were to pursue federal funding for any portion of the remainder of this Big Four Bridge ramp project, Big Four Station, that you could potentially jeopardize that federal funding by virtue of the fact that you’re adversely impacting historic properties.”

He asked the city to halt demolition of any home and re-initiate consultation of Section 106.

The city council asked Sekula to present his position to the redevelopment commission.

Among the homes in the area is the Reuben Wells home that has been the potential recipient of city funding. Jeffersonville’s Redevelopment Commission agreed to pay $25,000 toward the relocation of the home.

The city council turned down a request at a previous meeting to pay the remaining $25,000 to relocate the house, but the potential purchasers, the Carricos are expected to make a request to have the redevelopment commission cover the remaining costs at its next meeting.

While one potential homeowner has offered to purchase the Wells home, no other interested buyers have come forward for the other properties.

But to Sekula it’s the whole that matters.

“Collectively, it’s the street scape that’s important and the character of the historic district,” he said. “There’s been a lot of changes in the neighborhood. All we’re asking for is for the city to respect the character of this district.”

Moore again disagreed and added, other than the Wells home there is no obligation for the city to save the homes in the area.

“I don’t think they add to the historic dignity of downtown Jeffersonville,” he said.

Moore added he has offered an opportunity to save the homes and it remains on the table.

The city previously committed to pay private investors or purchasers $10,000 to help relocate the homes in the Big Four Landing area.

“If you offer somebody $10,000 to move these homes and nobody comes forward, maybe they’re not worth saving,” he said.

Sekula pointed to the initial plans that included possible mixed-use residences with condominiums alone Market and Pearl streets and asked instead of future development why can’t historic buildings remain instead of new construction?

“I would like to be in a position to keep the homes on-site ... or incorporate them into the Big Four Station project,” he said.

Animal shelter gets financial gift

While future funds were called into question in relation to the Big Four Station project, another city entity received some welcome financial news.

Jeffersonville Corporation Attorney Tom Lowe said at Monday’s council meeting that the J.B. Ogle Animal Shelter is set to receive $52,165. The money was a bequest from the estate of Stella Bello and was a 10 percent share of what was split between a number of charitable organizations.

The money will be placed in the animal shelter’s donation fund.

The donation to the shelter comes on the heels of an announcement by Shelter Director Sarah Green that it was entering a partnership with No Kill Louisville, to become a no-kill animal shelter. She said the animal shelter is already meeting the requirement for dogs, but is looking to reach the goals for cats.

Despite the funding Green said she plans to ask for additional funding in the 2013 budget.

“Any time an animal is ill, we spend money out of the donation fund,” she said.

She added that the money in the donation fund has been used for vaccinations and neutering, because none of the expenditures were included in the shelter’s budget before.

“I’m asking for those things in my budget for [2013],” Green said.

If the costs are included in next year’s budget Green offered that the animal shelter may be able to move forward on a long-desired project to construct a quarantine area for sick animals. She said there is no estimate for what the project would cost.

“I’d like to have that done before next summer,” she said. “If they don’t approve it then it’s going to set me back on any projects that I want to do.”

Another issue still lingering for J.B. Ogle Animal Shelter is money that is owed by Clark County. The county is three years behind in payments to the shelter at a total of $198,450.

“Every budget was assuming that’s going to be paid,” Green said. “I think it’s important that we get these interlocal agreements nailed down.”

There has not been an interlocal agreement in place between the county and the city since 1999. Clark County Commissioners have stated that a new deal needs to be worked out in light of Jeffersonville’s annexations and that city property that is being housed in the county building needs to be negotiated into the payments owed.

Lowe addressed Clark County Commissioners Attorney Greg Fifer, who was in attendance on another matter, and said the city has been working on a proposal for a new interlocal agreement between the city and the county.

Fifer said the agreement needs to go to the Clark County Council Attorney Scott Lewis, who is also the Jeffersonville City Council Attorney, to be included in the 2013 budget for the county council.

“The council has included prior appropriations in the budget,” Lewis said in response.

The county council included a line-item for the animal shelter in the 2012 budget, but the commissioners pointed to cuts of $1.2 million to their budget as a reason for not having made the payment yet.

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