Indiana County Officials Face Questions Over 5 Million Dollar Highway Garage Project

Indiana County Officials Face Questions Over 5 Million Dollar Highway Garage Project

Public officials in Washington County, Indiana, held a meeting to address community concerns over a $5 million highway garage project that has been controversial since 2023. Allegations of inappropriate payments to a contractor have led to disagreements about funding and quality. Two councilors are calling for an outside audit, while commissioners support the project, stating cost increases were necessary and not nefarious. The state found the county paid $113,000 for an HVAC system that the contractor should have covered, but the contractor claims credit was given. The community remains divided, with some residents demanding transparency.
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Southern Indiana officials discuss highway garage project. | Transcript:

tell you about in our focus team investigation we first reported right here. Today public officials in Washington County, Indiana meeting to try and answer all of the community's questions about a controversial $5 million project. The highway garage project has been underway since 2023 and there's been several allegations of alleged inappropriate payments to the contractor. Our focus investigative reporter Travis Breeze is there to tell us if community members feel they got any answers. Just the numbers I dug out we was already 1.2 over with the extras about the god added in. I got the numbers and I done proved that right once.

No, you're not proving anything. I did too. Disagreements continued Wednesday about the funding and quality of work for the Washington County highway garage project. A $4.8 million project where the scope of work and cost changed after its initial vote in 2023. Two councilors have called for an outside audit to look further into the project. Commissioners Todd Owen and Philip Marshall fully support the project. They say there was a cost increase of $277,000 but it was necessary and not nefarious at all. I'm not going to sit here and tell everybody and pretend that we're perfect and that we did not make a few [clears throat] mistakes but they certainly were not of a criminal nature.

A state audit in May found the county paid $113,000 for an HVAC system at the garage that the contractor Temple and Temple should have paid for. Ken Temple, president of the company, says he gave the county a credit towards the project final bill so it was not paid twice. Every dollar is accounted for. Every dollar showing exactly where it went. Well, I think he said what he had to say. But that's why we need this audit. Is to show whether that's true or not. Harold Gamble was pleased to see the County Council reaffirm its decision to spend $37,500 for another audit. In Salem, Travis Breeze, WHAS 11 on your side.

Now, the attorney for the County Council says even though the Council approved funding to hire an outside attorney to look further into the project, the actual hiring agreement may need to be approved by the Commissioners.

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