HOPE — Tying up loose ends and making choices for the future dominated the final meeting of 2019 for the Hope Town Council.
Democrat Jerry Bragg was chosen Tuesday to succeed Ohmer Miller as council president.
Bragg, 53, was first appointed to the council in Feb., 2014 to fill out the unexpired term of Shawn Lange. He retained the at-large seat nine months later by receiving 38% of the votes in a three-person race.
Last year during the 2018 election, Bragg received the highest number of votes among four at-large candidates. Republican Clyde Compton, who received the second-highest number, was unanimously chosen Tuesday as council vice-president for 2020.
The council also agreed to a one-year contract extension for Hope Building and Zoning Administrator Matt Galbraith. Although the position is part-time, the council agreed Galbraith will receive a 2% raise raise next year — the same as all full-time employees.
In order to better prepare for unexpected expenses, the council transferred $35,000 of unspent money from various accounts into the town’s Rainy Day fund. Although an exact figure was not available, financial consultant Trena Carter estimated the town will have nearly $120,000 in reserves at the start of the new year.
While these council actions are not unusual for December, the topic that dominated much of Tuesday’s meeting was considering recommendations for Hope’s long-awaited downtown revitalization project.
In order to begin requesting bids by their Jan. 28th deadline, the council had to make several practical and aesthetic decisions Tuesday that must be submitted to the state next month, Main Street of Hope executive director Susan Thayer Fye said.
A number of recommendations have already been approved by the Historic Preservation and Archaeology division of the Indiana Dept. of Natural Resources, and will automatically be placed on the list of recommendations, Fye said.
Within the town square, improvements include streetlights with black posts and globe lights that utilize LED lights that will replace 43 existing streetlights. Upgrades in the business areas that have already received state approval include rectangular concrete banners, historic black metal metal benches with wood slats, and heavy-duty metal trash receptacles with attached cigarette-butt holders.
On Tuesday, the council took the time to make practical and aesthetic choices regarding recommendations from Hope’s Main Street committee.
While the council agreed to installing several ground floor interceptor electrical outlets at various locations, they voted against a committee recommendation to add arms to the new streetlight poles for holding banners and planters.
Instead, the council approved placing wayfaring signs on streetlights located on each corner of the town square. Popular in places such as amusement parks, wayfaring signs guide the public to civic, cultural, visitor and recreational destinations.
Up to 16 small cast-iron wayfaring signs (four on each streetlight) will be obtained. With white lettering on a black background, these signs will guide visitors to such locations as the Yellow Trail Museum, the Hope branch of the Bartholomew County Library, and the joint Hope Town Hall/Police Dept. building.
While council members said they are willing to temporarily put up wayfaring signs for public restrooms during special events, there was a consensus expressed Tuesday that restroom signs will not be displayed permanently.
Bids on the downtown revitalization work will be opened on Feb. 18, and could be awarded as early as March 2, according to timelines outlined to the council.
Finally, the Main Street committee is working with the Indiana Dept. of Transportation (INDOT) to erect signs along State Road 9 (Main Street) to let visitors know they are entering the “Hope Historic District.” To the south, that district begins from the north side of the Flat Rock-Hawcreek school campus, and continues north to the city limits.
At the request of Compton, the council agreed these signs should inform visitors the year that Hope was founded (1830), rather than the year the historic district was officially declared (1992).
But since they will be placed along a state highway, INDOT will determine the size, dimensions and color of these signs, Fye said.
