Home Care In Nappanee, IN

NAPPANEE — Nappanee City officials gathered with family and friends for a swearing-in ceremony at city hall at noon on New Year’s Day. The mayor, clerk-treasurer, city judge and city council members were all sworn in, including new 2nd District council member, Austin Yoder.

Yoder is replacing Dana Hollar, who chose not to run for re-election. After the ceremony, Yoder spoke to The Goshen News about why he wanted to be on the council.

“As a lifelong resident of the city of Nappanee, I thought it was my duty to give back to the citizens of Nappanee and help make this already great community even better for the people and citizens of Nappanee in the future and being able to be a member of the council, I’d have a direct influence on that. That was my main motivation,” he said.

Yoder is a 2006 graduate of NorthWood High School, and he attended IUSB where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Secondary Education. He works as an engineer for Kountry Wood Products. He and his wife Teresa have two children — a 1 and a 3-year-old.

His children were also a driving force in his becoming involved in city government.

“Seeing these two little ones of mine and thinking about how the business we conduct in the city could affect them,” he said. “I was thinking about the great childhood I had growing up in Nappanee and I want to be able to provide the same for them.”

Yoder said he didn’t have any pet projects or focus starting out. “Just to continue to uphold the good standard we already have under the leadership of Mayor Jenkins,” he said.” Working to keep what we already have as a high standard in Nappanee and continue to be a great city in Elkhart County, Indiana.”

Fourth District council member Dustin Geyer was unable to attend. Council member at large, Kelbi Veenstra had an assist from her little girl, Charlotte, who held the Bible as she was sworn in.

Jane Leavitt, mother of 1st District council member Ben Leavitt held the Bible as he was sworn in for another term, and 3rd District council member Amy Rosa’s husband Bob did the honors for her.

Council members will got down to business right away as the first council meeting of the year was Tuesday. Council meetings are generally held the first and third Mondays of the month at 7 p.m. and are open to the public.

Just like their predecessors, Mike DeCola and Cami Mechling have big plans for the iconic big red barn located off County Road 26, near Indiana 19 and U.S. 20 in Elkhart.

Southgate, formerly known as the American Countryside Farmers Market, was recently purchased by DeCola and Mechling from Elm Properties, a subsidiary of the Borden Waste-Away company.

“(We) drove by all the time and noticed the potential,” DeCola said. “We can’t speak to how people did it before, but the opportunities are endless right here.”

The building has seen its fair share of hopes and dreams poured into it. The three-story, 51,000-square foot building cost more than $4 million to construct in 2006, with heavy timber beams and peg-reinforced joinery built by Amish craftsmen. It stands about 84 feet high, and more than 490 indoor and outdoor farmers market booth spaces filled the barn when it opened in 2007. Further plans for a nearby Caribbean-themed water park resort with villas, stores, restaurants and more were proposed a few years later.

But, in 2010, farmers market operations at the barn ceased, with the original operators saying in a news release that the economic environment “proved challenging to both start-up and established businesses alike.”

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In 2011, the Himes family who own Borden Waste-Away, successfully purchased the building and 275 adjacent acres for $3.78 million during an auction. Company president Chris Himes later told The Tribune then of plans to relocate headquarters to the building.

But, merely a year later, the building and 95-acres of land were listed for sale once again, this time for $3.9 million with Borden COO Ken Himes telling The Tribune, “the more time we’ve spent on our master plan, the more we figured we belong on a different section.”

No one stepped up to the plate in purchasing the building and, in recent years, the barn was renamed to Southgate Crossing and has been overseen by different management companies that turned the space into a retail mercantile area and space for auctions.

However, last spring, DeCola and Mechling reached out to the Himes family about purchasing the property for their own vision of turning it into a local artisan market and event space.

Ken Himes, who is listed as the registered agent for Elm Properties, did not respond for comment about the decision to sell.

Mechling, who currently serves as the executive director at Visit Nappanee, and DeCola, who was a local Realtor and former manager at Coppes Commons, both also operate the Nappanee Artisan Market. They plan to lean on their expertise and established community relationships to bring vendors and events to the space.

But will their vision actually stick?

“The reason why we think we can manage this is we also own the Nappanee Artisan Market, so it's right up our alley,” Mechling said. “We really have the background that is focused on this type of business.”

“And we're going to be the ones here,” DeCola said. “We'll actually be operating it — we're not hiring other people to do it and (we're) ready to do some work.”

According to property records from the Elkhart County auditor's office, the property at 27751 County Road 26 sold to CMD Property, a company for which DeCola is listed as the registered agent, for $2.1 million earlier this month. DeCola and Mechling, an engaged couple, say they also purchased about 20 acres of land in addition to the building and soon announced online that Southgate was under new ownership.

Commenters began voicing their own ideas for the space, some suggesting it open a rock wall and others saying it should revert back to a traditional farmers market model.

“Everyone has got their own opinion,” DeCola said. “Obviously there's a lot of things we want to do, but everything comes at a price.”

But, for now, the couple are sticking with what they know works.

With plans to open a second location for Nappanee Artisan Market inside Southgate, the new owners also plan for the eastern wing on the first floor to become an antique market and the second floor to highlight handcrafted items from local vendors. Several food vendors also have signed on, with options like soul food, hamburgers and barbecue to be served, while other kitchens will also be converted into commissary areas for local bakers or food trucks who may want to utilize the space in preparing their food.

On the western portion of the second floor, space will be available and reserved for private events such as weddings, where, Mechling said, they’ve already hosted some since taking over ownership.

DeCola estimates about 100 vendors could fill the space, and they currently have 40 vendors who have already signed on, most of whom are within a 30 mile radius from the barn. But there's room for more.

“Artisan (items) have to be handcrafted,” DeCola said. “We want tenants, but also people who want to use this space and run their own business.”

In addition to the artisan market and event space, they plan to host festivals, outdoor events and bring back an outdoor farmers market in the spring and summer. Southgate will host its first event under the new ownership, It’s A Wonderful Market, this Friday and Saturday, Dec. 3 and 4. There, about 50 local artisans will highlight items for gifts this holiday season and provide an inkling of what’s to come for the space.

“I think everyone is noticing the past couple of years that artisan markets are popping up everywhere, so it just shows that there's a market for them,” DeCola said.

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DeCola and Mechling anticipate most vendors will be in place by Jan. 1, and Southgate currently is open now, Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The owners plan to extend hours in the summertime.

“We're going to do what we know how to do and do it well,” DeCola said. “We're going to focus on our core and, years down the road, maybe try something else. … No one goes into business thinking they're going to fail.”

Contact Mary Shown at 574-235-6244 and [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter: @maryshownSBT and @marketbasketSBT.

South Bend Tribune

NAPPANEE — Amish Acres will close on Jan. 1, after 50 years in business.

Richard "Dick" Pletcher, owner and founder of the family business, confirmed the closing to The Goshen News Friday afternoon, calling it a "retirement."

“It’s been 50 years, so it’s a retirement,” Pletcher told the newspaper. “It will be closing after the fireworks on Dec. 31 and will be auctioned in the spring.”

The farm, which includes the Round Barn Theatre, has been a major tourist attraction for Nappanee and Elkhart County.

Jeff Kitson, executive director of the Nappanee Chamber of Commerce, said Amish Acres has hosted more than 5 million people over its 50 years, citing a letter he had from Pletcher. In that time, it has also employed more than 11,000 people.

The Amish Acres campus sits just north of U.S. 6, on the west side of the city. It includes a bakery, meat and cheese shop, arts and crafts boutiques, an inn with 62 guest rooms and Threshers Diner, which features traditional Amish cooking. Amish Acres also hosts wine tastings and is a popular venue for weddings, receptions and conferences.

The Round Barn Theatre is home to a professional acting company that has produced more than 100 Broadway musicals over the past two decades. Its final scheduled performance will be "Beauty and the Beast" on New Year's Eve.

Kitson said the family would like to find a buyer for some of the property.

"This is going to leave a big hole in the city of Nappanee," Kitson said. "But we are thankful for all the Pletcher family has done."

While the fate of some of the farm is unknown, the original farmstead was bought by Nappanee Power from the Past, a community organization that preserves historic pieces. The farmstead is the only Amish farm listed in the National Register of Historic Places, according to the Amish Acres website.

"It was a shock, but we'll pick up the pieces and move forward," Kitson said.

Pletcher told The Goshen News he would issue a news release about the closing soon.

“I think 50 years is a good run," Pletcher said. "We’ve had fun."

News Release

NAPPANEE — The annual “Countryside Nite Out will take place throughout rural Nappanee from 2 p.m. to midnight Friday, Dec. 8.

Everyone is invited to collect stamps at each retailer they visit that day. Those who collect seven or more stamps from the participating stores will be eligible to win one of the five $300 Countryside Cash prizes. Details and maps will be available at each participating business.

During the event, a variety of local businesses will offer extended shopping hours and holiday specials available only one night each year.

Participating businesses in Countryside Nite Out include: Alpha Building Center, Nappanee; Burkholder Country Store, Nappanee; Country Home Furniture, Nappanee; Countryside Vendors, Nappanee; Creative Cards, Nappanee; Daily Bread Market, Bremen; Diamond Harness and Sales, Nappanee; Heritage Fabrics and General Store, Nappanee; John’s Bargain Barn, Nappanee; L&J Cycle, Nappanee; Little Nook Bookstore, Nappanee; Once Upon a Person, Nappanee; Pine Valley Feeds, New Paris; Ruth’s Library and Tri-County Electric, Nappanee; Trainview Window and Door, Nappanee; Triple Oak Sales, Nappanee; Union Center Store, Nappanee; UNL Trading Co., Nappanee; Weaver Furniture, Nappanee; and Weaver’s Dutch Country Surplus, New Paris.

By David Slone Times-Union

WARSAW — Public Works Superintendent Dustin Dillon requested the Warsaw Board of Public Works and Safety approve the curbside recycling contract Friday, Dec. 1, for 2024-28 with Borden Waste-Away Services.

Borden was the only bidder on the city’s recycling services when bids were opened Nov. 17 and they were awarded the bid at that day’s Board of Works meeting.

“Street pick-up for 2024 will be $3.93 per month per unit with a monthly price of $13,755 for 2024,” he said.

The current per-unit price the city is paying is $3.85 per month per unit. Mayor Joe Thallemer asked if there were “built-in escalators” in the contract. Dillon said that was correct. The price for 2024 will be $165,060; 2025, $170,520; 2026, $176,820; 2027, $182,700; and for 2028 the price will be $189,000.

In other business, the board:

• Approved the 2024 stormwater utility and wastewater treatment utility budget guidelines as presented by Superintendent Brian Davison. The budget for the stormwater is $1.3 million, while the wastewater budget is $8,925,259.

“Just as a reminder, as a separate utility, the utility manager is responsible to present these budgets to the Board of Works. It’s not in our municipal budget. (They’re) separate budgets, and don’t really go before the council, they just come here for acknowledgement,” Thallemer said, though the city council is kept abreast of the utilities.

• Approved a change order from SiteWorx Services for the sidewalk improvement projects on Center and Bronson streets, as presented by Dillon. The change order increased the Center Street project cost by $823.72 for some additional necessary work, and the Bronson Street project by $11,406.28. He said the increases were for “increased quantities” on both projects.

The board also approved the pay application from SiteWorx for a total of $97,211, which includes the change order increases.

Dillon said the work turned out great and he was pleased with the projects.

• Approved Main Street Warsaw’s road closure request for 3:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Dec. 15 for the Third Friday Christmas Celebration. The actual time of the event is from 5 to 8 p.m. Roads to be closed are Center Street between Lake and Indiana streets and Buffalo Street between Main and Market streets.

Main Street Warsaw Member Relations Manager Scott Wiley said the Twinkle Light Parade and a visit from Santa Claus will take place during the Third Friday event.

• Approved pay application No. 3 for $194,135.35 to R. Yoder Construction Inc. for work completed on the Center Lake Recreational Trail construction through Nov. 16.

City engineer Aaron Ott said the project is complete except the deck on the pump house. They are waiting on materials for it, which are scheduled to arrive next week.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the trail is scheduled for noon Dec. 11. Thallemer said he was “very proud” of the project and everyone’s done a “great job” on it. “I’m very pleased with that project.”

• Approved all the wage increases for all city employees for 2024, as presented by Human Resource Director Denny Harlan.

• Approved pay application No. 38 for $5,509 from American Structurepoint for design work for the Anchorage Road project. The city will be reimbursed 80% from the Indiana Department of Transportation, according to Warsaw Community Economic Development Director Jeremy Skinner.

He said the project will bid sometime after July 2024, but he didn’t know if any construction would start in 2024. Utility work will probably start early next year.

• Approved pay application No. 5 for $21,352.97 from The Troyer Group for construction inspection services for the Lincoln Neighborhood Sidewalk Project, as requested by City Planner Justin Taylor. INDOT will reimburse 80% of the project’s costs.

He said the project is winding down for the winter season, but will gear back up in the spring.

• Accepted a $3,000 grant from the Kosciusko County Convention Recreation and Visitors Commission for the Warsaw Public Arts Commission’s Creative Convergence Project, as presented by Taylor. “This will go to the Creative Convergence efforts that the Warsaw Public Arts Commission is currently undertaking. They’re fundraising for a community collaboration art project that will involve a national call for an artist to create a permanent installation,” he said.

Thallemer said he was “really excited about it” and it was a “great opportunity” for the community.

• Appointed Juergen Voss to the nine-member Warsaw Plan Commission as the Board of Work’s representative. Voss ran unopposed as a city councilman this year and his four-year term begins in January. Voss replaces Councilman Jeff Grose on the Plan Commission as Grose ran unopposed to become Warsaw’s next mayor.

WARSAW — As 2023 begins to wrap up, the Warsaw Board of Public Works and Safety on Friday, Dec. 1 approved several agreement renewals with slight price increases.

The first contract renewal was with BIT Computers Inc. for $10,500 per month, or $126,000 total, for 2024 as presented by Staci Young, assistant to the mayor who also is a member of the city’s IT Governance Committee.

“They’ve been our IT contracted provider for a very long time. We’ve been under this annual type of contract with them for a few years now and we’d like to continue that. They’re providing awesome services to the city. They know the city really well, so we’d like to continue working with them,” she said, adding that BIT did request a small increase for cost of living. “This is the first time they requested an increase when we’ve worked with them.”

The increase is 5%, which Young said was in line with what the city was seeing with all of its other vendors and less than what it was seeing with some vendors.

The board approved the contract renewal.

Young then presented a six-month contract renewal with Language Matters for $11,760 for 2024. She said the contract with Language Matters was up for renewal and was for the city’s call services that it has.

“We decided that with the timing of a new mayor (Jeff Grose) coming in, it would make sense to continue this for a period of time so that we engage the new mayor, have discussions on how we want to continue or expand this without being rushed to do so. It’s working well as is, so we’d like to continue that between now and June for six months, which will give us time then to re-evaluate and determine if we want to make changes, expand things, etc. for the remainder of the year,” she stated.

Current Mayor Joe Thallemer said they sat down with Language Matters co-founder and CEO Lucas Fonseca and looked at the progress and challenges of the call center. He said they’re hoping that another six months of data for the call center will be helpful to make a better decision going forward.

He said originally the call center was set up “as a prototype program, if you will, and we’ve been really pleased with how it’s improved our accessibility from a language standpoint.” He also said it would be helpful to understand whether the call center needs to be expanded in any way or contracted.

The board approved the six-month services agreement with Language Matters.

Another agreement presented to the board was with CivicPlus for annual recurring services for the city’s website. The amount is $11,547.99 for 2024 and $14,319.51 for 2025.

Young said CivicPlus reached out to all of their customers to let them know that they were going to end all the renewal contracts that were in place – “which is what we’ve been under for years” – and start a new contract and CivicPlus was increasing their prices.

She talked to the city’s CivicPlus representative and told the person that an increase would be difficult for the city because the budgeting process for 2024 was finished. CivicPlus agreed to hold Warsaw’s price for 2024 and then increase it for 2025 so the city could budget the increase, Young explained.

“I feel like the increase is fair. They’ve been expanding what they offer with their services and expanding the services that are provided for our website and the different tools and modules associated with that, so they’ve seen a lot of growth. It’s just that it was bad timing for us on the part of the budget,” Young said.

Thallemer said, “I’m very satisfied with their work.”

The board approved the contract renewal for 2024 and 2025.

An agreement with Orange Marketing Group for 2024 social media management and boosting was approved at $1,300 per month, or $15,600 annual. Young said the contract was a continuation of the city’s agreement with the company formerly known as 212 Media.

“They help us with our management and also the boosting of our posts so that we can keep a consistent message on social media from the city,” Young said.

She said Orange Marketing Group did ask for a “small increase” for next year just because their costs are increasing with staffing, etc. “This is the first time they’ve asked for an increase as well.”

Thallemer said the city was really “blessed” to have Orange Marketing and that they did a “great job.” He said a lot of people use the city’s social media site for their information.

Whitney Olson, administrative assistant for the mayor, presented the annual maintenance agreement with CORE Mechanical for 2024-26. The cost is $5,900 per year.

She said there was a “slight” increase for cost of living and materials. “It’s not much though.”

“They’re here when we need them,” Thallemer stated.

Dining A La King

Tribune Columnist

NAPPANEE -- It’s been almost 15 years since Main Street Coffee House brought coffee culture to the heart of downtown. Soon it will have even more to offer.

Marcus and Debra Miller opened the coffee shop in December 2003 when he was a farmer who needed more to do in the winter. What started as a side business has become a thriving enterprise that is expanding.

In June, the business will close briefly so that part of a brick wall can be removed. On the other side of the wall from the current cafe space, construction is underway to create more seating, two upstairs meeting rooms and a catwalk to an open second-story loft on the front of the building.

The expansion will essentially double the seating from the last expansion in 2006.

The building wasn’t even the first choice when they opened the coffee shop at the corner of Main and Market streets, the busiest intersection in this small city. It’s grown and evolved, becoming an indispensable meeting spot. Business meetings, casual conversations and Bible studies all happen here.

The food offerings are interesting. The baked goods are made from scratch and big slabs of cake or pastry are sold for bargain prices.

The Millers wanted to create a place where young people could hang out in a positive atmosphere.

“We felt like there was a need here in Nappanee,” he said.

They didn’t expect it to become what it has, to evolve the way it has.

They started using coffee from Blue Lion Roasters in Warsaw, but in 2006, the Millers added a roaster in the building next to the main cafe. He had been playing around with roasting at home and bought a commercial roaster in Florida. Classes and a lot of trial and error helped him create coffees that aren’t aggressive, but bring out the flavor from the beans that arrive from coffee-growing regions around the world.

“People seem to like it,” he said.

He roasts for a coffee shop in Middlebury and bulk food stores, including some accounts in Ohio. He flavors coffee, which accounts for about half of the sales. Jamaican Me Crazy is the most popular flavor. While they don’t use fair trade or direct trade beans, they do donate $1 for every bag of coffee sold from El Salvador to a children’s home there.

A year ago, Main Street purchased a larger roaster that combines both drum and hot air methods to roast the beans. The roaster can handle up to 60 pounds in a batch rather than the 20 of the previous machine located next to the cafe.

“We outgrew it and we kept doing it there for a number of years,” he said.

When they purchased the new machine, it was installed in a storefront at 158 E. Market St., a few doors down the street from the cafe. The business office went there as well. That created space for the cafe expansion.

Not everything has gone according to plan over the years. A South Bend location closed in 2015 after nearly five years there.

“It just couldn’t support itself,” he said, noting that it was difficult to manage two locations. “It was tough and was somewhat of a defeat.”

Since that time, business has grown in Nappanee and they added wholesaling. The shop is full at lunch and it’s easy to imagine how well the new space will be received.

“We’ve been blessed. It’s kind of evolved,” he said, adding that they had no idea it would become this.

It’s not novel for a city of 6,000 to have a thriving coffee shop, as it once would have been. It takes someone like the Millers to work hard, to look for ways to grow the business, in order for a place to keep going and growing. Nappanee will soon have a larger Main Street Coffee and that’s a good thing. Someday, it may even be possible to sit on a rooftop with a cup of Main Street coffee overlooking Main Street.

“We hope that’s down the road,” he said of what could be the next expansion.

I’m hungry. Let’s eat.

105 N. Main St., Nappanee

mainstreetroasters.com

Hours: 6:30 to 10 p.m. weekdays and 8 to 8 Saturday