[0:02] You are watching Access LaPorte

[0:04] County, channel 97. Next up on

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[0:09] LaPorte County Redevelopment Commission meeting from

[0:10] September 30th. More

[0:11] information about this

[0:13] meeting can be

[0:14] found at

[0:16] www.accesslaportecounty.org.

[0:22] Good afternoon. Welcome

[0:24] to the

[0:27] La Porte County Redevelopment Commission meeting of

[0:29] September 30, 2026.

[0:30] Please mute

[0:31] your phones.

[0:32] Stand up for the oath.

[0:36] Mr. Parkman.

[0:37] I pledge

[0:38] allegiance to the

[0:40] flag of the United

[0:41] States of America and to

[0:42] the republic for which it

[0:44] stands, one nation

[0:45] under God,

[0:46] indivisible, with

[0:47] liberty and

[0:47] justice for

[0:49] all.

[0:51] I was surprised myself.

[0:52] I think I had a

[0:53] big

[0:54] flag behind me here.

[0:55] Yes. That's right.

[0:57] Is it possible to conduct a

[0:58] general check of

[0:59] those present?

[1:00] Adam Koronka.

[1:01] Present.

[1:02] Don Carr. Scott Cooley.

[1:06] Jennifer Geet.

[1:07] Present.

[1:08] Mark Parkman.

[1:09] Present.

[1:10] Connie Gramarossa.

[1:13] Brett Kessler.

[1:14] Here. Mr.

[1:14] Chairman, you have a

[1:16] quorum.

[1:16] Thank you. I am now

[1:18] ready to consider

[1:19] the proposals for the

[1:20] agenda.

[1:21] I propose to approve the

[1:22] agenda as

[1:23] presented

[1:24] .

[1:24] Second.

[1:25] Motion from Mr.

[1:26] Parkman, seconded by

[1:27] Ms. Geet. I ask everyone who is "in

[1:28] favor"

[1:28] to express themselves with the word "

[1:29] agree."

[1:31] Who is "against"? Thank you.

[1:34] Public comments.

[1:35] Since we have a lot of

[1:36] members of

[1:36] the public, does

[1:37] anyone want to speak?

[1:39] Good. The public comment period

[1:42] has ended.

[1:42] Approval

[1:43] of the protocol.

[1:45] I propose to approve.

[1:46] Second.

[1:47] Motion

[1:47] to approve from Mr.

[1:48] Kessler, seconded by

[1:50] Ms. Geeth. I ask everyone who is "in

[1:51] favor"

[1:51] to express themselves with the word "

[1:52] agree."

[1:54] Who is "against"? Thank you.

[1:59] Okay, let's move on to the

[2:00] treasurer's report and

[2:02] consideration of claims.

[2:04] Report after paying

[2:06] your claims today:

[2:09] US 421 distribution area

[2:12] one, $653,065. US 421

[2:16] distribution area two,

[2:18] negative balance $63,368

[2:21] . KIDC TIF, $234,542. 39 North TIF,

[2:31] nil. I-94 35, $10,436. And the

[2:39] loan balance

[2:42] is $434,960.

[2:48] End of

[2:48] Treasurer's Report.

[2:49] Good. Do

[2:51] we need to take any

[2:52] action to get

[2:54] US 421 zone two out of

[2:55] negative balance? And

[2:56] in the council we usually

[2:58] have to

[2:59] Uh, no. We will wait

[3:01] until the fall

[3:02] distribution.

[3:03] Good.

[3:03] And then we

[3:04] will balance the account

[3:05] by the end of the year.

[3:06] Good, very good.

[3:07] So, I am willing

[3:08] to consider any

[3:09] suggestions regarding the

[3:10] treasurer's report.

[3:11] I make this

[3:12] suggestion.

[3:13] I support.

[3:14] Motion by Ms.

[3:15] Geet, seconded by Mr.

[3:16] Kessler. All in favor?

[3:17] Agree.

[3:18] Who is "against"? Thank you.

[3:20] Now, looking at

[3:22] the claims, uh, for KIDC, I

[3:25] see $1,000 for

[3:26] professional services

[3:28] from MCR Partners, uh, $1,500 for

[3:30] legal services from

[3:32] Guy Astley DeMartino PC.

[3:35] Look, $207.57

[3:37] to the Herald Dispatch for

[3:38] lawsuits or, uh

[3:40] , legal publications

[3:42] , $87.50 to Senator

[3:44] Dalton for financial

[3:46] advisory

[3:47] services, and

[3:48] $113.60 to Keel

[3:50] Media for additional, uh,

[3:53] public hearing notices,

[3:55] which together makes a

[3:56] subtotal of

[3:58] $2,908.67.

[4:01] I propose to

[4:02] approve the

[4:04] KIDC requirements register.

[4:05] Second.

[4:05] The motion was approved by

[4:06] Mr. Parkman,

[4:07] seconded by Mr.

[4:08] Kessler. All those in

[4:09] favor, please

[4:09] say yes.

[4:11] Against? Good. And on 421

[4:14] number one, we have

[4:16] $5,000 for MCR partner, uh

[4:17] , partners for professional

[4:19] services and

[4:21] $87.50 for Senator

[4:23] Dalton for financial

[4:24] advisory

[4:26] services, making a grand

[4:28] total or

[4:29] subtotal of

[4:31] $5,087.50.

[4:33] I propose to approve

[4:34] the payment.

[4:36] The motion was approved by

[4:37] Mr. Sees,

[4:37] seconded by Mr.

[4:38] Parkman. Everyone who is "in

[4:39] favor" of US 421,

[4:41] please say "yes."

[4:42] Yes.

[4:43] Against? Thank you. Old

[4:46] questions.

[4:49] Matt's favorite part.

[4:50] Yes, sir.

[4:51] Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

[4:52] Update on 421 I-94

[4:55] TIP.

[4:56] Earlier this month,

[4:57] we had a meeting with a

[4:58] developer

[4:59] looking at a site

[5:00] that the commissioners may

[5:01] remember, or some of

[5:03] you may still have been in this

[5:04] position. It was, uh, a

[5:05] company from South

[5:06] Bend that was going to

[5:07] build a

[5:08] small warehouse

[5:09] distribution center there.

[5:10] It's about 22 acres

[5:11] right off

[5:13] Kiefer Road. And, uh, we had a

[5:15] meeting with them. Uh, I

[5:15] met with the

[5:16] road service and

[5:17] Mitch. And, uh, they

[5:18] want to do a

[5:19] pretty big

[5:20] project. I think the

[5:21] investment is

[5:22] , Carlton?

[5:25] 13.

[5:25] million, 65 new

[5:27] jobs. Uh, we

[5:29] were discussing the type of

[5:30] structure they

[5:31] want to build here.

[5:32] They, they

[5:33] lean more towards

[5:34] metal

[5:35] structures. It's

[5:36] quite close to a

[5:37] fairly expensive

[5:37] hospital and right next to an

[5:39] intersection. So, like,

[5:40] uh, during

[5:41] the negotiations with Great Lakes

[5:42] Capital, I assume it will be something like

[5:44] that.

[5:45] Hey, look, we

[5:46] probably want this to

[5:47] look a little

[5:48] different than what you

[5:49] guys are planning to

[5:50] do. Uh, in connection

[5:52] with this, they, uh,

[5:52] asked to consider

[5:54] the possibility of

[5:55] tax breaks. Uh,

[5:56] I said, "Sure,

[5:57] let's discuss

[5:58] it." Uh, so they

[6:00] actually filled out

[6:01] and, and, uh, to

[6:02] give this

[6:03] company credit, they

[6:04] filled out the

[6:06] benefits declaration paperwork correctly, which, uh, they

[6:07] must have someone who

[6:08] knows what they're doing. I was

[6:09] shocked. Uh, and

[6:11] they sent it to us.

[6:12] So, we have a very

[6:12] good idea of

[6:13] what they want

[6:14] to do and when they

[6:15] want to do it. Uh

[6:16] , they have a preliminary

[6:17] plan of the site. So, I

[6:22] assume that this

[6:23] project will be at the

[6:24] council meeting,

[6:25] perhaps on the

[6:26] agenda for the 25th,

[6:27] to consider a

[6:28] declaratory

[6:29] resolution regarding this

[6:30] zone; since we

[6:31] separated the TIF, I'm not

[6:33] sure if

[6:34] we need permission

[6:35] from the

[6:36] bondholders, but I'll

[6:37] check with

[6:38] Sender to

[6:38] see if

[6:40] we need to get

[6:41] their consent. Again

[6:46] , this is now a

[6:47] piece of

[6:49] farmland right next to

[6:50] the interchange,

[6:50] located in an area where the

[6:52] county previously

[6:53] invested in

[6:55] sewer and

[6:55] water improvements. So that

[6:57] makes sense. Building

[6:59] water and sewage systems is

[7:00] already possible. They had a

[7:02] pretty tight

[7:03] deadline and

[7:04] wanted to get started

[7:05] . I don't know if

[7:06] they tried to

[7:07] make it this year,

[7:08] but it's a little late

[7:10] for that

[7:10] unless they have

[7:11] projects ready. And I'm

[7:13] not sure they

[7:14] are, but we'll find out.

[7:15] Here's the news regarding

[7:18] 421 and 94.

[7:19] Okay. Do you have any

[7:20] questions for Matt?

[7:22] OK. Update

[7:24] on KIP TIF.

[7:27] The technology park with an

[7:28] overlay

[7:29] zoning area was

[7:30] approved by the planning

[7:31] commission and

[7:32] commissioners. And what does

[7:34] this mean for us? This

[7:39] means that the zone

[7:40] within Kingsbury,

[7:41] category M2 (heavy

[7:42] industry),

[7:43] allows for the construction of

[7:47] digital

[7:48] infrastructure, which

[7:49] means data, energy

[7:50] and batteries, in accordance with the requirements of the zoning overlay. A battery project is currently

[7:57] underway in Kingsbury, near the First Line.

[8:01] They are currently in the

[8:02] design stage and I

[8:03] have met with the

[8:04] planning department before

[8:06] and they have the right to

[8:07] build

[8:08] as this

[8:08] area has already been

[8:10] zoned M2. There will be

[8:15] some activity happening in Kingsbury.

[8:18] In the coming weeks,

[8:19] some contracting

[8:20] companies

[8:21] will conduct

[8:22] due diligence there.

[8:23] So some equipment may appear in Kingsbury

[8:25] ; not that

[8:26] most people

[8:27] know where it is or

[8:28] can see what's

[8:29] inside, but there

[8:30] might be people there.

[8:32] was a lot of discussion

[8:34] about land sales,

[8:35] land transactions,

[8:36] etc. I think the fact that

[8:39] the county

[8:40] has clearly identified where exactly it

[8:41] wants to see

[8:42] digital

[8:43] infrastructure built is very

[8:44] beneficial for the market. It

[8:46] also effectively

[8:47] directs people to the

[8:49] Kingsbury Industrial Park, which

[8:51] I believe

[8:52] was

[8:53] the idea of most

[8:54] people involved in the

[8:55] development from the beginning. We can't do anything about

[8:57] people who don't

[8:58] want something, but there's a better

[8:59] way to do it—to

[9:00] direct

[9:01] investors to where they

[9:02] should be investing.

[9:03] I believe the district has

[9:04] achieved this. Whether

[9:06] anything worthwhile will come of this

[9:07] remains to be seen. The market

[9:10] exists, and we

[9:10] continue to

[9:11] work with

[9:12] any companies that

[9:13] contact us.

[9:17] OK. Have a question?

[9:21] Good. 35,194?

[9:25] Before we

[9:25] go on, you know,

[9:27] we're getting request after

[9:28] request about

[9:29] wildlife in Kingsbury

[9:30] because people think we're

[9:31] involved in that

[9:32] proposed

[9:33] land swap. So

[9:36] if anyone

[9:37] asks you a question,

[9:38] know this: we have nothing to do with

[9:39] it

[9:40] . This is not our

[9:41] land, this is state

[9:42] land, zone eight. We

[9:44] have nothing to do with this

[9:45] .

[9:46] No

[9:47] non-disclosure agreements,

[9:48] no agreements

[9:49] —nothing.

[9:50] Just so you all know

[9:51] .

[9:52] Of course.

[9:52] Yes.

[9:53] I think this is important.

[9:54] Of course. There are

[9:55] no non-disclosure agreements

[9:56] .

[9:56] There are no non-disclosure agreements

[9:57] .

[9:58] Certainly.

[9:58] We do not own or

[9:59] control this

[10:00] territory. It's not that

[10:03] the county hasn't tried

[10:04] to get this land

[10:05] before, because we have

[10:06] . But

[10:08] nothing just

[10:09] happened. And again

[10:12] , there are many requests, but

[10:14] we don't have any agreements

[10:15] . When you do everything

[10:18] right, there really is

[10:19] nothing to hide.

[10:20] This is our position

[10:22] . I

[10:23] completely agree,

[10:24] thanks for the clarification.

[10:25] Okay, now

[10:27] let's move on to 3594.

[10:31] Things aren't going so well for us, for us, for us there.

[10:33] Not as much

[10:34] progress as in other

[10:35] areas.

[10:36] Not as much progress as I would like to

[10:37] see.

[10:39] We need a project of the

[10:41] appropriate

[10:42] scale, as we

[10:43] proposed for that

[10:44] corner, to attract

[10:45] TIF funds and encourage

[10:46] Michigan City to

[10:47] participate financially.

[10:50] Yes.

[10:51] And until that

[10:52] happens, we will be where

[10:54] most communities are:

[10:55] if communications are not brought to the site

[10:57] , people will

[10:58] not go there. So

[11:00] she'll just

[11:01] play around and play

[11:01] around. So,

[11:03] you know, we keep our

[11:04] ears open. I

[11:06] know that...Yes, to be honest

[11:10] , I have nothing

[11:11] . You know, that

[11:13] small

[11:14] hotel owner is starting

[11:15] to realize that the overall

[11:16] cost of

[11:16] maintaining

[11:17] the project is unprofitable.

[11:19] Right.

[11:20] And I think the engineer

[11:21] finally understood

[11:23] why the county's position was to

[11:24] take a holistic

[11:25] approach: to provide

[11:26] enough capacity

[11:28] for the interchange so that

[11:29] not one

[11:31] project could be implemented, but more, and it

[11:32] would pay off. I think

[11:33] they're just now

[11:34] realizing it, but

[11:35] sometimes you have to

[11:36] let the private

[11:37] sector figure it out on its

[11:38] own.

[11:38] I think they've arrived.

[11:40] So that's all I have

[11:41] .

[11:41] Perfectly. So, we have an

[11:43] item in the "New

[11:44] Cases" section. Is there?

[11:47] No.

[11:48] New cases?

[11:49] This was

[11:51] Campion's property.

[11:51] Yes. That...Yes, in a

[11:56] closed meeting

[11:57] we discussed

[11:58] real estate. I

[12:00] will contact the company

[12:01] that made

[12:02] the offer. This gentleman

[12:04] was here today. I

[12:05] explained

[12:06] the situation to him and said that

[12:07] we had ideas, which was

[12:08] entirely permissible under the

[12:09] statute. I just

[12:10] want to make sure

[12:12] everyone knows about it.

[12:13] Yes.

[12:13] This is part of our

[12:15] process for what is allowed for

[12:16] real estate.

[12:17] So, the reconstruction commission

[12:19] went through the

[12:20] proposal submission procedure.

[12:21] No proposal

[12:22] was accepted. This gives

[12:23] you the right to

[12:24] negotiate. Going forward,

[12:25] we have one

[12:26] interested party.

[12:27] We will continue

[12:28] negotiations on

[12:29] this. And when an

[12:32] acceptable

[12:33] solution appears, we will present

[12:35] it to the council

[12:36] at a meeting.

[12:39] Perfectly.

[12:40] OK.

[12:41] Good. Thank you.

[12:42] Do any board members have any questions or

[12:43] comments

[12:46] ? None.

[12:48] Thank you.

[12:49] OK. If there is nothing else

[12:51] ,

[12:52] I propose to adjourn the

[12:54] meeting. I

[12:54] support.

[12:55] The meeting is closed.

[12:57] Those who are "in favor", please

[12:57] vote by

[12:58] saying "yes".

[12:59] Yes.

LaPorte County Redevelopment Commission September 30, 2026

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