Bids for 8 FEMA projects awarded

The Whitley County Fiscal Court awarded eight bids for FEMA projects at its monthly meeting on March 16.

King-Crete Drilling and Hinkle Environmental were the only two companies to submit bids which were opened on March 15.

The bids were for slide repair projects that happened during the flooding event in February 2020.

King-Crete received seven of the eight bids. Those bids included Tackett Creek, Ryan’s Creek, Maple Creek and Campbell Hill Road. The bids totaled $302,366.29.

Hinkle Environmental received the Bray’s Chapel Road bid for $143,609.

The fiscal court unanimously chose the lowest bid for each of the locations.

Whitley County Judge-Executive Pat White said, if they are awarded the grants, which they have been for most of the projects, more than 80 percent of the project will be grant funded.

In addition to awarding the bids, the fiscal court voted unanimously to approve declared surplus property for the Whitley County Sheriff. The property included old vehicles that were of no use to the department. White said the sheriff’s office had already taken some parts of the vehicles.

The vehicles will either be scrapped or bid, said White. The proceeds will go back to the sheriff’s department.

The fiscal court unanimously approved all of the other items on the agenda, including the first reading of an ordinance for an amendment to the 2020-2021 budget. The amendment changes the amount of funds by $1,974,652.67 to include unbudgeted receipts. Some of the largest receipts included $194,817, $551,978 and $418.188.50 for various reimbursements, such as the Federal reimbursement form CARES.