SILVER LAKE — The town of Silver Lake will soon be the newest location of a prescription drug drop box for Kosciusko County. This news was discussed during the Silver Lake Town Council meeting held last night, June 6.

Chief Deputy Marshal Cody Mangun announced that the police department would like to place a prescription drug drop box for residents in the southern part of the county. Currently, Kosciusko County has drop box locations at the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department in Warsaw and the Syracuse Police Department.

The drop box would be located on the north side of the town offices building, 609 N. Jefferson St. The police department already has a camera facing the future location of the box for surveillance purposes. The Kosciusko County Prosecutor’s Office would cover the costs associated with the drop box.

The council approved allowing Silver Lake to be a drop box location.

Silver Lake Fire Chief John Conley brought quotes associated with installing solar panels on the roof of the fire station. He received three different quotes with options for varying panel amounts. Conley stated the bare minimum bid from Advanced Solar, Leesburg, would cost $11,000 and includes 8 panels.

Two quotes were received for 100 percent installation. Advanced Solar also gave a quote of $48,754 for 82 modules. Collier’s, Warsaw, quoted $97,000 for 128 modules.

Conley reported that since the beginning of 2016, the fire department used $18,521.60 worth of electricity. This means that if the town pursued the Advanced Solar option for 82 modules, the panels could pay for themselves in four to five years.

“I think in the long run, it will save the town money on the fire station expenses,” said Conley. “You’ll save money if you do it all at once … If you plan on doing it all eventually it’ll be cheaper in the long run.”

If an order is placed by the end of 2019, these rates will be locked in. It was noted that this large of a purchase could use all of the cash reserves. Silver Lake Council Treasurer Tonya Conley reported that she would run some numbers to figure out if this option was possible. No official decision was made.

In other news:

• The council approved accepting OCRA and SRF grant invoices.
• Salary ordinance 06-01-18 was approved on second reading. This ordinance approves hiring a second deputy at $13 per hour for 15.5 hours a week and a clerk at $10.50 per hour for 15.5 hours a week.
• Tonya Conley reported that she has met with department heads and is starting to work on the 2019 budget. A budget workshop will occur sometime in July. The council approved allowing a 2-4 percent salary increase to match the rise in standard of living if needed.
• Mangun also announced that the police department has been working on renumbering town addresses. The current town addresses make it difficult for emergency responders to find the correct residence. Public meetings will be held in the future for more information on the changes.
• J.T. Prater, street and sewer superintendent, provided quotes for the public access pier. Mohawk Pier, North Webster, quoted $4,815 for a wooden pier and $8,025 for a vinyl pier. Based on the company’s recommendation, the council approved the wooden pier. It was noted that the new pier would be wider and stretch further into the lake than the old pier.
• Prater also presented a quote to finish crack sealing various roads for $22,500 from Pavement Solutions. The council approved this quote.
• Run For The Fallen will travel through Silver Lake around 8 a.m. on Friday, June 22. A rotating team of runners will travel over 6,000 miles over five months, stopping every mile to ceremoniously call out the names of individual fallen military members. The public is invited to come out and wave provided flags to support the event.
• Silver Lake Day will take place on Saturday, June 16. A schedule of events can be found here.