NIPSCO Won't Close Offices This Year
PLYMOUTH � The local Northern Indiana Public Service Office will be open until late January thanks to a delay in the hearing dates on the issue.
The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission has agreed to delay the dates of a hearing that will determine the fate of five NIPSCO offices in northern Indiana.
The new hearing dates are Jan. 22 in Indianapolis, according to Larry Graham with NIPSCO.
�There will be ongoing discussions until then,� Graham said.
In January, NIPSCO announced plans to close five offices in order to consolidate services.
NIPSCO officials said they planned to close the office on Hoham Drive (7C Road), but would keep the hub office on Monroe and First streets open.
In addition to Plymouth, NIPSCO wanted to close offices in LaPorte, Hammond, Crown Point and LaGrange.
In March a lawsuit was filed against NIPSCO by officials in LaPorte and Lake counties.
The lawsuit expressed the same concerns Plymouth residents have regarding service if there is no longer a local office.
Marshall County and the Plymouth City Council has thrown its support behind the lawsuit, but has not filed any legal action against NIPSCO.
If NIPSCO is successful in closing the Plymouth office, some service employees will be left in the region while the remainder of the workers will be based in Goshen.
Plymouth residents are concerned that will take too long for NIPSCO workers to reach the area during power outages.
NIPSCO employees with the United Steelworkers of America Local 12775 agreed the changes will leave NIPSCO too short-handed.
In case of inclement weather such as a blizzard or ice storm, residents and union officials have said the on-call workers in the area will not be enough.
NIPSCO has never said how many on-call employees they will leave in the Plymouth area.
In April the IURC ruled the offices will remain open until a hearing is held to determine the fate of the offices.
The hearing was scheduled for July but the IURC agreed to reset the dates for January at the requests of all the parties involved.
�Our goal is to reach some sort of settlement prior to the hearing,� Graham added. �We want to find a plan that will work for everyone.�
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