Porter County Council

The Porter County Council is holding off on approving the county's ARPA spending plan. The county commissioners approved a plan for much of the county's $33 million share of federal American Rescue Plan money in early August, but it wasn't placed on last week's county council agenda.

Porter County is seeing a big increase in what it's spending on autopsies. Coroner Cyndi Dykes says the number of autopsies increased by 10 percent in the first six months of the year, followed by 23 autopsies in July and August.

A new wage study has found that many Porter County government employees are underpaid.

Tourism is booming in Porter County.

Porter County officials are gathering stakeholders to move forward with suicide prevention efforts. Jan Pyrce with Pyrce Healthcare Group says the county needs to look beyond behavioral health professionals to put together an integrated task force.

Porter County officials say they're making progress on code enforcement, but county council members say they aren't moving quickly enough.

The Porter County Council may be looking to boost road funding, amid rising costs and deteriorating streets. County Highway Supervisor Jim Polarek told council members last week that current funding levels aren't enough to keep up.

The Porter County Council wants to move ahead with the renovation and expansion of the Memorial Opera House. Representatives from Schmidt Associates and the Skillman Corporation detailed their $6.5 million plan during Tuesday's meeting.

The Porter County Council is considering its next steps, when it comes to addressing mental health issues in the county. The county commissioners recently hired an outside consultant to conduct a community assessment on suicide awareness and prevention.

The May 3 primary will be Porter County's first election using vote centers. That means voters will be able to cast their ballot at any one of 44 voting locations. Clerk Jessica Bailey says they'll also be able to go online and see which has the shortest line.