{"id":34973,"date":"2026-03-30T12:26:53","date_gmt":"2026-03-30T16:26:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/munciepostdemocrat.com\/?p=34973"},"modified":"2026-04-01T11:42:56","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T15:42:56","slug":"drone-base-agreement-bypasses-council-county-commissioners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/munciepostdemocrat.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/30\/drone-base-agreement-bypasses-council-county-commissioners\/","title":{"rendered":"Drone Base Agreement Bypasses Council, County Commissioners"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"34973\" class=\"elementor elementor-34973\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-da1f691 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"da1f691\" data-element_type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f5d723c e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"f5d723c\" data-element_type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e6b3606 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"e6b3606\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\"><h2 style=\"font-style: normal\"><font color=\"#000000\" face=\"Times New Roman, serif\"><span style=\"font-size: 40px;font-weight: 400\">Drone Base Agreement Bypasses Council, County Commissioners\n\n<\/span><\/font><span style=\"color: var(--ast-global-color-2);font-size: 2.625rem;font-style: inherit\"><\/span><\/h2><\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7ff41b2 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"7ff41b2\" data-element_type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3ece12b elementor-widget__width-initial elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"3ece12b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><u>3.30.2026 \/ News \/ Daisy Dale<\/u><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6001ea5 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"6001ea5\" data-element_type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-71e5f5a elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"71e5f5a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/munciepostdemocrat.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Screenshot-214-1024x576.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-35043\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/munciepostdemocrat.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Screenshot-214-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/munciepostdemocrat.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Screenshot-214-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/munciepostdemocrat.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Screenshot-214-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/munciepostdemocrat.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Screenshot-214-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/munciepostdemocrat.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Screenshot-214.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-dca9815 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"dca9815\" data-element_type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-80a7c4c elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"80a7c4c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; color: #000000; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large;\">MUNCIE, Ind. \u2014<\/span><span style=\"font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; color: #000000; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large;\">&nbsp;On Wednesday March 25,&nbsp;<\/span><span style=\"font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; color: #000000; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large;\">an interlocal drone base agreement previously introduced to Muncie City Council appeared before Muncie Board of Works.&nbsp;<\/span><span style=\"font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; color: #000000; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large;\">The agreement was only listed on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.muncie.in.gov\/egov\/documents\/1774377095_5022.pdf\"><span style=\"color: #339966;\">meeting agenda<\/span><\/a> as&nbsp;<\/span><span style=\"font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; color: #000000; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large;\">&#8220;City of Muncie Lease Agreement with Delaware County&#8221; and was approved by a voice vote.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; color: #000000; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large;\">Prior to this meeting, it appeared as a resolution for city council that was tabled by a 6-3 vote, with council-members Dale Basham, Jerry Dishman, and Jeff Green voting against the decision.&nbsp;<\/span><span style=\"color: #000000; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large;\"><a style=\"color: #14261c;\" href=\"https:\/\/mcclibraryfunctions.azurewebsites.us\/api\/munidocDownload\/31152\/8d7bfed37027f\/pdf\"><span style=\"color: #339966;\">Resolution 4-26<\/span><\/a>&nbsp;stated that the agreement was a five-year agreement with Muncie and&nbsp;<\/span><span style=\"font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; color: #000000; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large;\">Delaware County, the latter would would have \u201cno financial obligation\u201d for the county while&nbsp;<\/span><span style=\"font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; color: #000000; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large;\">Muncie would be responsible for all costs as well as future legal liabilities. Delaware County according to the tabled agreement \u201cshall retain the right to review and approve all proposed mounting designs.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit;\">The agreement was also <\/span><a style=\"font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; background-color: #fefdc6;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=cMC3KG7OwHA\"><span style=\"color: #339966;\">voted down<\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit;\"> at the March 16 Delaware County Commissioners&#8217; meeting after being tabled previously.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit; color: #000000; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=m6FRVbl9YxA\"><span style=\"color: #339966;\">Audio from the eight-minute Board of Works livestreamed meeting<\/span><\/a> is unavailable, and the agenda for the morning meeting contained no mention of the agreement having to do with the drone base proposed to the city and county.&nbsp;<\/span><span style=\"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit;\">The agreement that was voted on Wednesday has a two-year term and the city would still be covering pertinent costs.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: large; font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit;\">The decision also comes after a recent &#8220;State of Our Community&#8221; event held on March 5, where Delaware County Commissioner Stephen Brand told the crowd that Indiana is one of two states that federal officials want to use as testing grounds for drone usage. Brand also said he would like to see drones manufactured in the county.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-81fcef2 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"81fcef2\" data-element_type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-80cf04c elementor-widget-divider--view-line elementor-widget elementor-widget-divider\" data-id=\"80cf04c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"divider.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-divider\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-divider-separator\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-379e995 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"379e995\" data-element_type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element 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25,&nbsp;an interlocal drone base agreement previously introduced to Muncie City Council appeared [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"elementor_header_footer","format":"standard","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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