Jasper City Council Plans for Major Updates

The agenda on Wednesday night’s Jasper City Council Meeting was focused on future growth, including major preventative maintenance projects, tourism goals, and annexing new areas into the city limits. 

Electric Utility Manager Stan Seifert provided a report to the Council that gave an overview of the many projects his department is currently working on. Seifert said that they are trying to move as many electric lines underground as possible. He said that damage from trees and squirrels are of particular concern, particularly in the Holy Family area, where the squirrels tend to chew on the wires. He also pointed out that there are 14 bad poles around town that need to be changed out in order to prevent power loss. The AMI metering project is reported to be at about 90% completion, with about 500 meters received last week and 500 still on order. The new metering system allows for real-time alerts when power is lost, when the system has been tampered with, or when a meter gets too hot and needs to be replaced, and is expected to contribute to much faster power restoration after power loss. 

The department is also running a new fiber line to all of the substations and the water tower. This will make it possible to monitor activities at those locations, which is an increased security measure. In a future project, Seibert said that the department will try to work to tie two circuits together with a loop system from Meridian Road and Wildcat to Meridian by 164. This is expected to result in a reduction of power loss events. In addition, a new substation is being planned at the northeast corner of St Charles and 36 th Street. 

In his report, Wastewater Manager Ed Hollinden said that unfortunately the Northside Wastewater project ranking was not high enough to receive the anticipated funding from the Indiana Finance Authority. The department is still looking to move forward with the project, especially with so many new developments on the north side. In a major project update, Hollinden said that the sludge heater and digester are being replaced, and the project is coming in significantly under budget. It is expected to take about 40 weeks to replace, so the project should be complete by this time next year. 

Visit Dubois County Executive Director Whitney Lubbers provided an update to the Council regarding the department’s 2022 Tourism report card. An 18.3% increase in revenue for the department was indicated, with a tourism spend increase of 16.4% overall. This translates to roughly $117 million in tourism for Dubois County. Lubbers said that things are “looking good for tourism,” and continued growth is expected. 

The Council approved Ordinance 2024-12, which transfers appropriations from various departments to fund the Community Crossings matching grants project. Resolution 2024-16 was also passed, authorizing the transfer of previously appropriated funds into the Community Crossings Fund. This will be used to match funds for the Milling and Paving project as well as the Street Project, both of which are Community Crossings projects. 

The Council approved Ordinance 2024-8 on its third and final reading, annexing and declaring the Northridge Subdivision as part of the City of Jasper, and assigning it to Jasper Common Council District 6N. Ordinance 2024-10 was passed on its first reading, annexing and declaring the TRS Subdivision as part of the City of Jasper, assigning it to Jasper Common Council District 4N. Resolution 2024-14 was also passed. This establishes and adopts a written fiscal plan and approves and establishes a policy for the provision of services to an annexed area, Timber Ridge Estates IV Subdivision. Ordinance 2024-11 was passed and adopted, approving and authorizing a loan between the Gas Department and the Water Department within Jasper Municipal Utilities. This loan will be used to fund the Backup Water Supply project and the Mill Street Water Main replacement. 

At the meeting’s conclusion, the Council was provided an update on the pending opioid litigation with Kroger, which has recently agreed to participate in a settlement. The Council was advised that beginning in May, any plaintiffs were asked to determine whether or not to opt in to the litigation. The Council was advised that the city’s attorneys are recommending that their clients opt in to the settlement. After a brief discussion, a motion was made and approved by the Council to authorize the mayor to sign the documents to opt in to the settlement against Kroger.


For more information on these and other updates, visit jasperindiana.gov or JasperGov-Indiana on Facebook.


- By Drew Hasselbring