Subscribe
Jobs
Cars
Real Estate
Apts
Classifieds
Shop
Leo-Cedarville officials have agreed to let the county maintain the town’s bridges.
The Allen County commissioners Friday signed an agreement with the town that calls for Leo-Cedarville to cede a portion of its license plate tax revenue to the county. The county will use the money to maintain bridges countywide.
The county this year entered into similar agreements with the other local cities and towns. The County Council then agreed to increase the local wheel tax and surtax on vehicle license plates.
The two higher taxes are expected to double the revenue generated, and a portion of the new funding will pay for bridge upkeep.
The cities and towns will keep about 35 percent of any new revenue generated from the fee increase to pay for roadwork. The remainder goes to the county for bridge upkeep. The deal lasts through 2017.
But the Leo-Cedarville Town Council voted against the deal because members felt the two fees were increasing more than necessary. By approving the increase, the County Council voided their concerns, Leo-Cedarville Town Councilman John Eastes said.
“In this case, we are not taking a position to increase the tax. We recognize that it’s a reality,” Eastes said.
The Leo-Cedarville council has since approved the deal with the county, which requires the town to provide about $17,000 for bridge repairs and allow it to keep about $9,000 a year for roadwork.
The higher license plate fees begin in January.
The commissioners signed a contract with Harvey Auctions to auction off surplus road equipment plus property seized by the sheriff’s department this month.
But the auction will have a twist this year. Items up for auction include two historic homes that the county built in 1934 to serve physicians working at the Irene Byron Sanatorium, said Dan Freck, the county’s superintendent of buildings and grounds.
The homes sit on the west side of Lima Road, north of the current-day Byron Health Center. One is a brick Tudor style and the other a brick Colonial revival. They are both listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
And the county wants them moved.
This summer, the county offered to give away the houses for free if someone were willing to pay to have them relocated.
Staff placed signs outside the homes that read “Free – You Move,” and Freck gave tours of the homes to 24 people, he said.
But some weren’t willing to pay to move the houses; others just wanted the land, which isn’t for sale. And the commissioners weren’t sure how to determine who got the houses for free, Freck said.
The commissioners decided to add them to the auction to give potential takers a fair shot at ownership, Freck said.
County officials intend to turn the homes over to someone willing to move them, fix them up and use them. The houses have sat empty for years, and the county has no use for them, he said.
The auction is set for Sept. 26 with a preview day Sept. 25 at the county’s power plant, 2115 Carroll Road. Go to www.harveyauctions.com to see a preview list that includes the historic houses.
