Blackford County meeting summaries, agendas, and minutes

Blackford County agendas: highway transfers, transfer station bids and five zoning appeals — with no outcomes yet on the record

Agendas for Blackford County meetings held Oct. 14 through Oct. 20 list proposed highway fund transfers, sealed bids for the transfer station, a decision on county farm bids, and five zoning appeals. Minutes for these meetings have not been published, so none of the items below is confirmed as decided. What follows is what the agendas scheduled, not what the boards did.

County Council: highway transfers on the table (Oct. 14)

The Blackford County Council agenda listed three transfers within the Highway budget (Highway 1176):

• $35,000 from Auto to Repair of Equipment
• $10,000 from Extra Help to Foreman
• $1,000 from CDL Training to Contract Services

The same agenda scheduled financial reports and two updates: an IRACS update from Keith Adams, and a Sigma Phi Gamma Park grant update from Dan Eckstein and Dustin George. The agenda does not describe what the IRACS update covers.

Commissioners: transfer station bids and county farm decision (Oct. 19)

The Board of Commissioners was set to open sealed bids for the Transfer Station and to make a decision on County Farm bids. Neither the bid amounts nor the decision appear in the materials available.

The agenda also listed discussion of a Junk Vehicles Ordinance with Dean Young and Terry Smith, and discussion regarding the Mohee Dam with Shawn Kleinpeter. Both are listed as discussions, not as votes.

Also on the agenda: approval of claims totaling $970,433.86 across Regular, Misc, and Payroll. That figure is the amount scheduled for approval, not a confirmed payment.

Board of Zoning Appeals: five appeals (Oct. 20)

The Board of Zoning Appeals scheduled an appeal hearing concerning the issuance of improvement location permits and the failure to cancel void permits, with presentations from petitioner and respondent representatives. Five appeals were listed, by address:

• George & Amber Horton, 2484 E State Road 18
• David Haisley, 5303 N 300 E
• Amber & Joe Reynard, 4751 N 425 E
• Chad Clark, 5142 N 300 E
• Kathy A. Garton, Andrew Langdon, and Ryan & Kathleen McCall

The agenda does not list an address for the fifth appeal. Two records of this meeting were provided; they describe the same hearing, one listing the appeals individually and one grouping them.

What the record does not show

No vote tallies, bid amounts, or outcomes are available for any of these meetings. The absence of minutes is not evidence that an item was approved, rejected, or tabled — it means the result has not been published in the materials reviewed here. Residents who want the outcome of a specific item, including the highway transfers and the claims total, will need the approved minutes or the boards' records.

Coming up

No upcoming meetings were listed for the next 14 days in the information provided. That does not mean none are scheduled; it means none appeared in this week's data. Check the Blackford County meeting calendar and posted agendas before attending.

All items above trace to the agendas supplied for the Oct. 14, Oct. 19, and Oct. 20 meetings. The official agendas and, when published, the minutes are the authoritative record.

County Farm bids, Axon contract and $970,433.86 in claims on Blackford County agendas

No minutes have been published yet for Blackford County's three October meetings, so the public record so far shows what was scheduled, not what was decided. The agendas point to land and money items: sealed bids for the County Farm, a proposed Axon contract for the sheriff's department, and claims totaling $970,433.86 on the next commissioners' agenda.

County Farm bids and Axon contract (Oct. 5)

The Board of Commissioners' meeting was set for Monday, Oct. 5, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. in the Commissioner/Council Office at the Blackford County Courthouse, 110 W. Washington St., Hartford City, with live streaming. The agenda listed opening sealed bids for the County Farm, a presentation on an Axon contract by Sheriff Jim Heflin, and a Teay's River road use and decommission agreement. Also listed was a Subzero Solutions estimate presented by Meagan Westfall.

Claims on that agenda were regular claims of $285,444.58, misc claims of $3,434.88 and payroll claims of $120,191.59, plus several payroll batches. The agenda does not state whether any of these were approved, and minutes have not been published.

Council: no action items listed, $46,000 in highway transfers

The County Council's regular meeting was set for Oct. 7, 2026, at 6 p.m. at the courthouse in Hartford City. The agenda listed no matters requested for Council action. Business listed included approving minutes from the Sept. 9 regular meeting, a Sept. 9 budget adoption meeting and a Sept. 28 special meeting; a non-action IRACS update from Keith Adams; a non-action Sigma Phi Gamma Park grant presentation from Dan Eckstein and Dustin George; and financial reports.

Highway (1176) transfers listed total $46,000: $35,000 from Auto to Repair of Equipment, $10,000 from Extra Help to Foreman and $1,000 from CDL Training to Contract Services.

The County General Fund showed an ending cash balance of $3,353,928.32 as of September 2026, with September expenditures of $443,842.20 and revenue of $466,384.76. No additional appropriations were listed.

A second Council meeting was listed for Oct. 14, with the same three highway transfers and the same IRACS and Sigma Phi Gamma Park updates on its agenda.

Coming up

Oct. 19 — Board of Commissioners. The agenda lists opening sealed bids for the Transfer Station and a decision on County Farm bids. Also listed: discussion of a junk vehicles ordinance with Dean Young and Terry Smith, and discussion regarding Mohee Dam with Shawn Kleinpeter. Claims totaling $970,433.86 (regular, misc and payroll) are listed for approval.

Oct. 20 — Board of Zoning Appeals. Appeal hearings on the issuance of improvement location permits and the failure to cancel void permits, with presentations from petitioner and respondent representatives. Appeals listed: George & Amber Horton (2484 E State Road 18), David Haisley (5303 N 300 E), Amber & Joe Reynard (4751 N 425 E), Chad Clark (5142 N 300 E), and Kathy A. Garton, Andrew Langdon, and Ryan & Kathleen McCall.

All four listings are agendas. Outcomes will be reported when minutes are published.

Blackford County officials weigh sheriff contract, 2027 budget in busy week

Blackford County government held three meetings over the past week, covering the 2027 budget, a sheriff contract, and routine claims. All meetings were agenda-only; minutes have not yet been published, so no final decisions are confirmed.

Commissioners consider claims, sheriff contract, road work

The Blackford County Commissioners met Aug. 3 to adopt minutes from July 20 and July 21 meetings and to consider departmental claims totaling $611,144.13. That figure includes regular claims of $545,324.93, miscellaneous claims of $929.74, and payroll claims of $64,889.46.

Department heads presented updates. Sheriff Jim Heflin presented a 2027 sheriff contract, and Highway Superintendent John Pluimer discussed a speed limit request on Teays River Road and bridge design updates. No votes were recorded in the agenda summary.

Council opens 2027 budget process

Also on Aug. 3, the Blackford County Council held its first 2027 budget workshop. The session was listed as a discussion and planning step ahead of subsequent workshops and public appeals. No specific figures or decisions were included in the agenda.

Council weighs security, tablets, workforce development

On Aug. 5, the council met for a regular session with several action items on the agenda. These included courthouse security (listed under Judge Bade), Orijin tablets for the sheriff's department, workforce development, and the 2027 sheriff contract. The council also considered a $1,400 transfer from the Superior Court's Maintenance Agreement line to Legal Research.

Committee reports were scheduled on community corrections, solid waste, and economic development. Financial reports presented at the meeting showed a general fund cash balance of $3,529,571.69, with July expenditures of $613,417.73 and revenue of $190,737.53.

All items remain pending until minutes are approved and published.

Coming up

No upcoming meetings are listed in the next 14 days. Residents should check the county's official agenda postings for any newly scheduled sessions.