GOSHEN — Property and traffic flow changes at the Goshen post office, located at Pike and First streets, were approved by the Goshen Board of Works Monday after being outlined by City Engineer Mary Cripe.

An alley on the east side of the post office will be rebuilt into a city street north to Wilkinson Street to provide an exit for delivery trucks, patrons and post office employees. A chain-link fence will be moved and a storage building will be replaced by city officials for the postal service.

A warranty deed was approved for the property changes. The postal service and the Elkhart County Commissioners are donating land for the new street right of way, Cripe said.

Traffic changes at the post office will include additional angle parking spaces on First Street right of way for patrons and residents, the board was told.

Cripe told the board that negotiations have been going on since October. The board approved the documents.

The board also approved closing the Cottage Avenue bridge over Rock Run Creek on June 4 for milling and then around June 18 for re-surfacing. Elkhart County officials will coordinate this repair with the resurfacing of the Wilden Avenue bridge, engineer Cripe said.

Goshen will pay DLZ Indiana engineers $695 for special inspection of the Madison Street bridge over the Millrace as that bridge was repaired by Northern Indiana Construction. DLZ also completes biennial inspections and completed the design work for the recent repairs.

As replacements of sewer pipes between First and Eighth streets are planned, Goshen officials will hire Symbiont Inc. to complete a three-month study of the flow. This study will be compared to a 2005 study. Symbiont will be paid a few of not-to-exceed $41,000 for the work.

At the request of the city utilities department, Wightman Petrie Inc. will be hired to perform ground penetrating radar services at three water department properties, searching for underground storage facilities. The study is required by Indiana Department of Environmental Management because fuel tanks existed at the sites in the past. The study will be completed for $3,442.50.

Bids were received from three local firms for paving the Shanklin Park Drive. Bidders and their bids include Niblock Excavating, Bristol, $38,870; Phend and Brown, Milford, $42,233; and Rieth-Riley Construction, Goshen, $47,816. The bids were referred to the engineering department for study.



Street and sidewalk closings

Street and an alley closings were approved by two organizations during First Friday, starting this Friday.

• Jason Oswald, owner of Constant Spring, asked to close the east-west alley next to his bar on First Fridays May through October to serve food and drink. The board approved the closure of the alley from noon to midnight on those Fridays.

• The Rev. Steve Norton of the Goshen City Church of the Brethren asked for permission for his church to close part of Clinton Street from Fifth Street west to the north-south alley this Friday to provide space for a performance of the Goshen Middle School Band. The event is set from 6 to 7 p.m., Norton said. The board approved the Clinton Street closure this week.

• Officials of LaCasa received approval for the closure of the sidewalk at 707 N. Fifth St., as LaCasa is replacing this house this spring. A new sidewalk will be installed as the house is completed this summer, according to Alan Greaser, vice president of real estate. This new walkway will connect to 705, which LaCasa recently built, and then LaCasa will begin work on another property just north at 709, he told the board.



Variance request

Tim Scott of A Roofing Specialist and Home Improvement appeared before the board on behalf of resident Lewis Sonnenberg, 117 Crescent St., asking for a variance to allow a carport that was built at the Sonnenberg home in March. The carport is built over the driveway at the home and not attached to the home. But it extends to the sidewalk along Crescent, and is seven feet into the city right-of-way, the board was told.

Mayor Allan Kauffman said he would prefer the issue be reviewed by city Board of Zoning Appeals members before the Board of Works takes final action. He said he did not want the board of works approval of the issue to make it appear that the BZA should also approve it.

So Board of Works members made a conditional approval of the issue, but sent the matter to the city BZA for review.



In other business

• The conditional hiring of two probationary police officers was approved. At the request of Chief Wade Branson, Joseph Leach and Mark Clere will join the force this summer. They replace Brandalee Glowac, who resigned recently, and Ron Troyer, who will retire this summer.

• Brads-Ko Engineering will conduct a survey and provide a legal description of the city-owned pond property at Waterford Crossing, south of Kercher Road. The firm’s fee is not to exceed $2,125 for the work, which will be performed before the city donates the site to Waterford Crossing.

• A contract was approved with Martin Miller & Sons to clean, strip and seal the tile floors in the city police building, 111 E. Jefferson St. The work will be completed by June 1.

• A copying machine will be purchased from Techknowledgey Inc. for $1,198 and a service contract approved for $25 per month for the city’s legal department. The mayor was authorized to enter into the agreement.

• Dennis Long, street commissioner, announced that during Beautify Goshen Week the street department will be offering disposal services to help residents. Residents may deliver items to 475 Steury Ave. Saturdays from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Monday through Friday, May 11, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Long said the department will accept tires, appliances and trash, but not hazardous waste.

• Penny Pierce, an employee at Kroger Co., asked for permission to place “boot drivers” or fundraisers at Greene and Bashor roads June 2 and 3 and at Plymouth Avenue and Eighth Street Aug. 11 and 12. The board approved the fundraiser, which raises funds for breast cancer research.

• Members of the Northside Neighborhood Association asked for waiver of the street department truck fee this weekend, during the citywide Beautify Goshen events. The board approved the fee waiver for the weekend cleanup.

• City fleet manager Carl Gaines asked the board to move assistant fleet manager Roger Lisenko to manager duties while Gaines is on medical leave for the next four to six weeks. The change was approved.

• An ordinance updating the city bicycle licensing procedures was approved by the board of works. Registration may take place at city police office on weekdays, on Saturdays at city fire stations, the city parks office and at Lincoln Avenue Cycle & Fitness during business hours. The regular fee is $5 for residents and $10 for non-residents.

The fee will be waived during special events, such as Municipal Government week May 14-19, the Kids & Teens Try-Athlon July 14 and on First Fridays if city officials conduct the service during the next year.



Hearings

The board held a hearing after the regular meeting on two properties that may violate the city’s Neighborhood Preservation Ordinance. The properties, owned by Jared Yoder of J & N Investments, are at 111 S. Eighth St. and 121 W. Washington St. Repairs requested include brick tuckpointing and exterior painting.

The owner was not represented at the hearing. The board found that the buildings are in violation of the ordinance and gave the owner another 30 days to comply.