June 20, 2011
Indiana

New railroad crossing being installed near Plymouth

By VIRGINIA RANSBOTTOM South Bend Tribune Staff Writer, www.wsbt.com 20 June 2011

PLYMOUTH – Muckshaw Road, south of Plymouth, is finally getting an upgraded railroad crossing with lights, gates and cantilevers. Installation will start Tuesday, weather permitting.

Residents had complained about the dangerous crossing, and an agreement was made between the Indiana Department of Transportation and CSX Railroad for completion by May 2010 using $320,000 in federal funds.

owever, a portion of the railroad line that included the crossing was leased to Elkhart Western, and the project had to be renegotiated.

Railroad pavement markings and signage must be supplied by Marshall County Highway Department.

Another project with delays reported to Marshall County commissioners today was the 13th Road bridge replacement over the Yellow River.

With a July 13 deadline for completion, DLZ project manager Jeff Million, who is overseeing construction by the Jack Isom Construction Co., said the project is not 40 percent complete.

While INDOT could give the company until August with a 14-day extension for weather-related issues, Million said the project was more likely to push into Labor Day. Million said anything after the extended deadline would cost the company $5,000 a day in penalties.

In other business, public hearings were held to tweak minor language in the Wind Energy Conversion System and Telecommunications Facilities Standard ordinances.

Culver resident Travis Dexter wanted to know how the county would regulate projects.

With NextEra Energy Resources in the early stages of developing a 40- to 70-turbine wind farm in southern Marshall County, Dexter was concerned about noise decibels, shadow flicker (from rotating blades) and property values.

Plan director Ralph Booker told Dexter that companies must adhere to the ordinances that protect the health, safety and welfare of the public. While the decibel level is laid out in the ordinance, a test meter would have to be bought if there was a complaint.

Any other concerns should be brought to the county’s attention during the planning stage when the planning commission and board of zoning appeals review standards for design and site plans in consideration of building permits, said county attorney Jim Clevenger.

As far as guaranteeing property values, commission president Kevin Overmyer said the county can’t give anybody a guarantee on what property values are going to do.