The Porter Town Council voted to maintain independent 911 dispatch operations at its Tuesday night meeting.
The 911 dispatch functions of the Chesterton and Porter police departments were merged in late 2014 to form the Duneland Regional Emergency Dispatch Operations Center. At that time, Porter and Chesterton opted to merge with each other rather than join Porter County E911.
County public-safety and E911 officials again proposed consolidating dispatch operations earlier in 2018.
The Porter Town Council then joined the Town of Chesterton and the local police commission in formally opposing a merger. The council’s vote was unanimous.
Public comment
Two Porter residents asked about the status of the Wabash TIF resolution, which proposed forming an economic-development area and tax-increment-financing district in Porter Beach. The resolution had passed at the previous plan commission meeting.
At the time of the report, the council was expected to consider the measure at its next meeting. It would then return to the redevelopment commission for a public hearing.
Tax increment financing, commonly called TIF, uses the growth in property-tax revenue within an established district to support eligible development purposes. The report noted that the increment was calculated from the difference between taxes based on a designated base-year value and taxes collected from the district’s later assessed value.
One resident opposed establishing the district, arguing that it could affect the amount of tax growth available to schools over the long term.
Emergency access
The fire department reported an increase in calls involving residents who used personal emergency-response systems. Responders sometimes encountered delays when a residence’s keyholder was unavailable or too far away to provide access.
The department had acquired code-operated lockboxes that could hold a key for emergency entry. Residents using a personal alert system could arrange to place one at their door, allowing responders to enter without damaging the property.
The report emphasized the importance of ensuring that emergency personnel could quickly obtain a key when someone living alone might need urgent assistance.
Streetlight update
Public works reported securing a utility streetlight grant. The archived plan called for 147 town streetlights to be replaced with LED fixtures at no cost to the town, with intermittent temporary lane closures expected during installation.