The new Pulaski Online compares favorably to the websites of Miami-Dade County, Fla., and Alameda County, Calif., in both design and usability of features. Crane + Grey drew inspiration from the incredibly successful Pure Michigan campaign in their design of the new website.

PCED director Nathan Origer reports the design is very pleasing to the eye, with beautiful pictures of sites around Pulaski County in the headers. It is based on the WordPress multisite platform, which allows the Pulaski County site to separate into several different sub-sites under the same domain name. This allows the site to be more specialized to what a particular user actually cares about, without making him sort through extraneous information.

Crane + Grey uses eye-tracking algorithms to create a design that emphasizes readability and efficiency. Maule and Oestreich took PCED through a detailed virtual tour of the microsites, highlighting various features, e.g., the downloads page, where all county downloads will be aggregated and tagged so the user can easily search for a specific document, or browse all available items.

After the presentation, the designers responded to questions from the board. The launch date of the website is expected yet this autumn.

In other business:

PC-CARE engineering study: Territorial Engineering (TE) is making progress on the third site, with which the engineers have expressed pleasure. Origer asked if it would be beneficial to have another presentation on those findings, or if the report and a brief explanation provided by him would suffice. The board consensus was that, after seeing the first presentation, asking TE to return would be unnecessary.

Pulaski County Young Professionals Network: Work on the YPN has been superseded by other projects since the last meeting, but Origer still hopes to pitch the idea to various organizations around the county. The goal as of now is to have a core group of members invested in the project by the end of the year. Origer also raised the possibility of receiving funding for the project from a new Community Foundation grant application with the Lilly Foundation. Board member Dave Zeltwanger expressed his encouragement for the project and urged Origer to continue pushing for interest in the community. Board member Larry Brady also shared a personal anecdote about the passion of the youth he has observed while substitute teaching.

2014 Summit: The Business Ownership Basics workshop presented by the ISBDC and PCED attracted a lot of interest and 15-20 attendees were expected at the Sept. 16 session at the library in Winamac. The non-profits summit is scheduled for Oct. 22. The speaker/facilitator, location, and caterer have all been secured. On Sept. 23, Origer attended a meeting at the Center of Workforce Innovations to learn more about its programs such as “READY NWI,” which is targeted at getting into the schools and making sure students are ready to enter the workforce. They also promoted their Manufacturing Day programming. On Oct. 2, Origer and Brady will attend a regional conference in Valparaiso, put on by OCRA, to learn more about the programs that the organization offers that might benefit Pulaski County.

Blight Elimination Program grant application: Having received a letter of support from PCED for its application for the Blight Elimination Program grant, the Department of Building and Zoning request that PCED with local-match funding for the project. Several members expressed reluctance given that none of the properties under consideration would offer economic-development potential. No action was taken.

Additional appropriation for zoning ordinance: The director presented a proposal from RATIO Architects for the updating of the county’s zoning ordinance, the transfer of funds necessary for said project having been approved. Origer said he was looking forward to working with the firm, and board president Bill Champion said he had reviewed the proposal and had no concerns. Origer asked that the proposal be approved before he presented it to the Advisory Plan Commission. The board voted 7-2 in approval, with Zeltwanger and Derrick Stalbaum opposed.

Also in other business:

Business Plan Competition: Zeltwanger asked for an update. Now in its third year at Winamac Community High School, the competition currently features six teams. On his next visit to the school, Origer will be accompanied by Brad Conn, who will discuss ways to market small businesses with the students.

Solar Park: Board member John Plowman reported that the Winamac Town Council has discussed with Origer, in his role as a member of the Pulaski County Advisory Commission on Industrial Affairs, the possibility of developing an Indiana Municipal Power Agency solar park in Pulaski County in the next several years.

In “Community Reports” from the board members, highlights included:

• The Star City Regional Sewer District is struggling to collect past-due payments from residents. Solutions are currently being considered, but there is no word on what the answer may be.
• Medaryville received a Community Focus Fund grant from the Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA) for its wastewater lagoon project, but has run into some difficulties that are being addressed. The Town Council was advised to seek SRF funding for the local match, but OCRA was under the impression that the Town would sell bonds. The Town is still in the process of purchasing land from the American Legion in order to maintain the baseball field for youth teams.
• The county commissioners are constantly addressing new issues as they crop up. At the moment, their focus is on purchasing a replacement ambulance while trying to recoup as much money as possible from the insurance on the previous ambulance. In October, Commissioner Brady will lead an entrepreneurship workshop for disabled veterans at Purdue through a program titled “The New Greatest Generation.”
• The Winamac Town Council approved a project to rebuild the electric infrastructure to the west of town. The project will replace all the poles and lines, cost about $500,000 per phase, and take place in four phases over four years, with the Town replacing 100 poles each year. The Town did not approve pool renovation, but is looking into constructing a splash pad either at Rhinehart Park or as part of the Winamac Parkway.