Kiwanis President, Rev. Ray Parnell, introduced Kiwanis Past- President Steve Curtis, who introduced John Dennis, Mayor of West Lafayette, today's speaker. Mayor Dennis was born in Japan and moved to West Lafayette as a young child. He attended Cumberland Elementary, Kingston Jr. High and West Lafayette High School. After college he lived a few years in California and Ireland, but has since called West Lafayette home.
Mayor Dennis spoke about seeing "signs, barrels, and police" as we drove on Salisbury Street, where construction was recently completed. The Mayor thanked everyone for their patience during this process. Salisbury Street used to be a cow path. The Mayor also spoke of road construction on Sycamore Lane, Yeager Road, Happy Hollow Road, and Cumberland Road from US52 to Yeager Road. The Mayor spoke of the various processes involved in road work from making sure the City owns the land, funding, and good weather. Cumberland Avenue will be done in 3 phases, with a roundabout at Cumberland and Kent. Installing roundabouts and removing traffic signals saves the City money. The new plan for Lindberg Road is to construct a bridge over the bog. The road is good until you get to the bog. Building a bridge will be a permanent solution for traversing over the wetlands. The Lindberg Bridge will be two lanes with a ten foot multi-use path and a decorative railing. The $7 million cost will be paid by the Tippecanoe County Bridge Fund that we have been contributing to through our taxes. While the bridge construction is occurring, the City will continue to provide services to move people efficiently. The Wabash Volunteer Fire Department as agreed to work with the City, should the need arise. Construction will start in 2011 and the completion date is 2012. The Mayor mentioned the Safe Routes to School program, which is 90% funded by the feds; 10% by the City. The Mayor also spoke about our Waste Water Treatment Utility (WWTU) which now uses methane gases generated by "product" i.e., waste, to fuel the utility. Purdue delivers 30,000 tons per month of food waste to our WWTU. Since the digesters have been up and running, the WWTU has reduced its electric bill by 25%. The WWTU will also accept FOG (fats, oil, and grease) to generate electricity. We will charge tipping fees at one- half the cost of Indianapolis, which is the nearest facility in our area.
This will also save the City money. The Mayor is all for saving our tax dollars or spending them wisely.
