City honors 'Mr. Radio' Dave Keister by naming new street after him
MARTINSVILLE — A portion of a new roadway in Martinsville has been named after "Mr. Radio" Dave Keister, the longtime owner of local country music radio station WCBK who died nearly two years ago.
A new section of West Southview Drive, from the Ind. 39 bypass to Burton Lane, will be called Keister Way in honor of the late radio station owner.
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Keister is the founder of Mid-America Radio Group, which at one time owned 32 different signals throughout Indiana, Ohio, Michigan and Illinois.
In 1967, he launched WCBK, which he named after his father, Clemence Bruce Keister. The country music station still broadcasts out of Martinsville.
Police station
City officials appear poised to move forward with plans to build a new police station and city office building in downtown Martinsville.
Representatives from Fishers-based engineering firm RQAW presented the city with a proposed $30,000 design contract during a Common Council public workshop session Monday.
The city is looking to tear down the former Chrysler building at 110 W. Morgan St. and build a new police station in its place. The current structure houses several city offices, including the clerk-treasurer's office, the building inspector's office and the Martinsville Police Department's evidence room.
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Employees in the clerk-treasurer's office will be temporarily relocated to the wastewater treatment plant offices on Rogers Road. The police evidence room will also be moved.
The city is also looking to build a separate structure, approximately 15,000 square feet in size, behind city hall which would house several departments.
RQAW designed the latest police station for the city of Franklin, a 17,000-square-foot building at a cost of around $4.3 million, according to Pete Peterson, the firm's division director of sales and marketing.
Peterson recommended the city pursue the projects while interest rates remain low.
"You have good credit here in Martinsville," Peterson said. "I suggest you leverage as much as possible before the feds raise interest rates."
How will the city pay for it?
If it wants to take on a $4 million project, the city will have to do it under a lease rental agreement, Jeff Peters, the city's financial advisors, told councilmembers.
That would involve the city setting up a building corporation which would issue the bonds, with the city making payments with money collected from property taxpayers.
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"If you were to do a $4 million debt service and amortized it across 10 years at 2.75%, that would be about $465,000 per year," he said.
The city also has about $965,000 in debt service payments going into 2023 it can allocate to different projects, Peters said.
Costin addresses utility bills
Many residents have been caught off-guard after receiving two utility bills in the mail this month.
Martinsville Mayor Kenny Costin addressed those concerns during Monday's Common Council meeting, assuring residents they are not being double billed.
In January, the city switched to quadrant billing, which was designed to spread out the workload for city employees, Costin said.
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The switch means residents are receiving two bills this month, but it's the second bill you'll want to pay, as it includes the balance from the first bill, he said. Residents who paid both bills will be credited, he added.
January will be the only month where residents receive two bills.
Council appointments
Phil Deckard II was unanimously reappointed to serve as Council President Pro Tempore.
Councilwoman Ann Miller was reappointed to the city plan commission, while Phil Deckard I was reappointed to the redevelopment commission.
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The next regular meeting of Martinsville Common Council is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Feb. 14 at Martinsville City Hall, 59 S. Jefferson St.
Board of Works & Safety
The Martinsville Board of Works & Safety approved change orders for two projects during its meeting Monday night.
Indianapolis-based Odle McGuire Shook architects requested an additional $45,285 to prepare drawings for a project involving the removal of a vacant structure at 56 E. Morgan St. and replacing it with a larger building.
That amount is in addition to a $55,000 contract the city signed with the architecture firm for the work in December.
The firm said the additional funding was needed to prepare additional design and construction drawings.
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The Martinsville Redevelopment Commission purchased the building in May 2021 for $190,000 with the intention of turning it into a welcome center with public restrooms. When the city put the project out for bid several months later, the offers came in higher than expected, prompting city officials to look into tearing down the building and razing a new structure to accommodate the project.
The board also approved a separate funding request from the firm for $2,875 to prepare drawings for four electric vehicle charging stations to be located in the planned 24-space parking lot behind the East Morgan Street building.
In other business:
The board approved a one-year employment contract in the amount of $89,250 for legal services with city attorney Dale Coffey, of the Boren, Oliver & Coffey law firm.
The board approved a one-year contract in the amount of $12,000 with contract attorney Louis E. Ransdell to prosecute ordinance violations in Martinsville City Court.
The board referred a tort claim in the amount of $2,100 to the city's insurance provider.
The board approved a request from the Artesian Little League to hold its annual parade from Jimmy Nash Park to the baseball diamonds. The parade will be held on Saturday, April 9. No streets will be closed, but a police escort will be provided.
The board gave authorization to city attorney Dale Coffey to send a letter to Miller Pipeline on behalf of a property owner at 110 E. Morgan St. The company admitted to inadvertently damaging the property during a water project but has not made repairs, Coffey said.
Sewer adjustments were approved for five properties.
The next regular meeting of the Martinsville Board of Works & Safety is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 14 at Martinsville City Hall, 59 S. Jefferson St.
Contact reporter Peter Blanchard at 765-346-2942 or pblanchard@reporter-times.com. Follow him on Twitter @peterlblanchard.
This article originally appeared on The Reporter Times: Late WCBK owner Dave Keister gets honor from Martinsville
