COMPUTER PROBLEMS

I will not be posting a new article for a few days. We moved my computer to a different room and now we are having problems with the internet.

We decided to change our phone and internet to Insight. I will post my new email address as soon as it is created.

A TERRIBLE LOSS

I just read this on a blog called the Hoosierpundit.



Baron Hill's son in law, Josh Huddleston, has lost his long and painful battle with leukemia.



A group that I belong to, Hoosiers for a Commonsense Health Care Plan, met with Baron a few weeks ago to ask for his support for bill HR676. As we were discussing the problems with healthcare, Baron mentioned Josh. A few of us knew about Josh, but Baron went in to detail about his ordeal. He was scheduled for a bone marrow transplant. Unfortunately the procedure was unsuccessful.



Please pray for the Hill and Huddleston families.

COUNCIL MEETING 7/17/08

Sorry everyone. I was unable to attend last night's City Council meeting (no I was not in Evansville). I had a meeting at church.

When I arrived at the meeting room everyone was just getting ready to leave. I was able to corner a couple of councilmen and learned that the bill on redistricting failed and President Gahan will appoint a committee of some of the council members. That's all I learned.

If anyone wants to contribute, please do so.

Thanks

FINALLY, A WEST END NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

A group of west end citizens met last night to reorganize our neighborhood association. The correct name is the West End Community Council and we will be meeting monthly in the New Albany Library. I will be posting the next meeting date later.



Our first order of business will be a cleanup of our neighborhood tentatively set for Augt 2.



Our thanks to Carl Malysz and Matt Dennison for your participation.

RANDY & KAREN

I just want to add my best wishes to the Stumler family. This is a wonderful opportunity for Randy and everyone.

Although I will miss you I am glad that you will be able to pursue this dream. The pictures on the website for the Azores were really beautiful.

We will be patiently waiting for your return. You will have a million stories to tell and Randy will certainly be happy to tell them all.

Be safe, Stumler family and God Bless You.

Shirley

TOWN HALL MEETING 7/12/08 PART II

Continuing with the report from the Town Hall meeting:



Sewers and Sewer Billing: Mayor England is not happy with the city's contract with EMC. He is bringing the sewer billing back to City Hall. This should bring $5 to $10 Mil. back in fees. I agree with this decision, I thought the council should have opened the contract for bids instead of just signing with EMC. With sewer billing back in NA there may possibly be an added plus of additional job openings, this was not mentioned at the meeting.



The privatization of Sanitation: Another idea the Mayor disagrees with. He wants to re-negotiate the contract with the garbage company so they will pick up trash and yard waste in addition to garbage. The street dept. can't make needed repairs to our streets because they are running around picking up trash and yard waste. The lines in the streets need to be painted and the stop signs need to be replaced.



Jesse Ford spoke about the Tri County Health organization. He said AIDS and HIV infections are growing in the 50+ population. There will also be an AIDS walk on the last Sunday in September. Please contact Jesse Ford 945-7265 if you want to participate or volunteer.



Joe LaRocca, Executive director of YMCA of Sou. IN spoke also. He was asked how the low income families will be able to afford a membership in the "Y". He discussed the "Open Doors" financial assistance program. He said no one would be turned away regardless of income. There will also be a program for childcare and day camps. They will have day passes but Mr. LaRocca wants everyone to purchase a membership. I am glad that people will be able to buy a day pass if they want to. Sometimes it is hard to commit to a membership because it makes you think that you have to attend almost every day to make it worth it. It is also good for families who have visitors.

He went on to discuss the financing:

• $20,000,000 from Caesar's.
• $160,000 yearly from EDIT funds.
• A steering committee raised $7,300,000.
• A challenge grant from Kresge for $1,000,000 which was matched by 50% with private donations.

I was a supporter of the YMCA but not the $17,000,000 swimming pool. But it is done and we must move on. I hope the "Y" is a success and helps a lot of children have a place to play and learn. Our kids need someplace to go where they will be safe and have a good time.

We may not agree with everything this administration is doing but I appreciate the fact that all of these city officials took the time to attend this two-hour meeting and listen to us. The next meeting is scheduled for the fall. I will give everyone the details as soon as I learn them.

TOWN HALL MEETING 7/12/08 (PART I)

I am happy to report that the Jones Memorial Church hosted another Town Hall meeting yesterday. The meeting was presided over by their Pastor, Rev. Evans, and Mayor England.



I am also happy to report that many city officials were in attendance including 2 city councilmen, a county council representative,our Deputy Mayor, Chief of Police, Fire Chief, heads of Redevelopment and Community Housing.



The first order of business was to address concerns expressed by the residents present at the first town hall meeting:

• Streets torn up by utility companies: The Mayor reported that he always tries to work with utility companies and not surface a street only to have it torn for repairs of utility lines or pipes. He has a plan to resurface State St. from 265 to Arni's but the water company will be installing a 30in. pipe. So the resurfacing will have to wait. He also stated that the streets belong to the people not the city.


• Police cars should be parked in high density neighborhoods when the officers are writing their reports: Chief Applegate replied to this issue. He asked everyone to report sightings of police cars which are on duty but are sitting in parks. He went on to say that our police force is down to 54 offices with 5 in the Academy and 2 serving in Iraq. With 3 shifts that only leaves 4 or 5 officers on the street at one time. He also went on to say that 85% of the city's budget goes for public safety. They also rely heavily on block watch groups and neighborhood associations. He asked everyone to watch for cars that are not normally in the neighborhood. Yes, everyone has guests but look for unusual activity.


• Flooding in neighborhoods: This is the responsibility of our Storm Water board. They are trying to clear the creeks of debris so the water can flow to the river. Their number is 948-5320 ext. 26 if anyone wants to report any problems.


• Trash on Hwy 64 in view of West St.: This falls under the responsibility of INDOT and they have been contacted.


• Repairs to Spring St. Hill: Scheduled for August.


• Code Enforcement: A new person will be hired to help Pam Badger. They intend to make a sweep of the entire city and address all of our problems.

Mr. Bob Lane from the Housing Authority spoke at length giving a profile of the average resident of public housing. He said that 57% of residents are on Social Security or SSI and the average rental rate is $158.00 per mo. He went on to say that 45% of the residents are very young mothers aged 17 and under. The residents also must pass both a criminal background check and credit check. He went on to answer several questions.

Q. Are people coming to New Albany from other cities and moving into our public housing?

A. Although it is illegal to discriminate, preference is given to Floyd County residents. Also many people are losing their homes and forced to move into public housing for the first time.

Q. Aren't a lot of people just spending a short time in our projects? And don't their children spend a short time in our schools?

A. This is true, some residents are transients.

Q. Louisville has a plan to convert their public housing to single family homes or duplexes, can we do that here?

A. There is no federal money to do this, it would require a huge investment from the city.

Q. Do we have off duty police officers to guard the streets? People are afraid to let their children play outside.

A. Although some police officers do act as security for the Housing Authority, they are already stretched so thin that they don't have the time. Surprisingly the worst time in the day for crime is 2:00PM to 10:00PM.

This covers about the first hour of the meeting. If I continue this article will be way too long.

All in all it seemed to be a productive meeting. I think people appreciate that our city officials are taking the time to listen to our concerns. I know that I did. The heavy presence of city officials showed that they are interested, and this is not even an election year!

Part II will be posted in a couple of days. Thanks for taking the time to visit.

APPLES, ORANGES, ETC.

My husband, Jim, wrote the following article and asked me to post this for him since his typing skills leave a lot to be desired. Since I wanted to post this article in this decade I typed it myself, but the words are his.


To Mr. Apples & Oranges,


To separate them, you need to know which is which. But in your case, I don't think you do. But we will let the people decide.


You use words so unusual that someone must have to tell you what they mean.


You talk about being physically fit but since you own a hot dog and pizza stand, I don't see how you can eat this food and stay fit.


I don't know if the city gives you a tax break, but the regular people in New Albany don't get one. But the taxes paid by the people of New Albany are what keeps Community Park going, not the taxes paid by people from Louisville.


If you were going to a picnic at Community Park you would probably stop on Grantline Rd. to buy everything you need, but me, I'm not stupid, I would bring everything I need from home.


Your friend,


Jim Baird
(HA HA)


Jim didn't mention this, but he did tell me July 4th that if Community Park collected just one dollar from every out of town visitor we would have the funds to pave our streets and do everything else we need to do. I must agree. A water park paid for by the kind citizens of Louisville, what a concept.


BTW I pay taxes for the privilege of working in Louisville.

Shirley

4TH OF JULY ALL OVER AGAIN

If you were looking for excitement and continuing fireworks last night's City Council meeting did not disappoint.



There was a capacity crowd, some probably remained after the smoking ban meeting, but that is a different story. The residents and some of the council members had a lot to say and did not hold anything back.



The first speakers were residents who had taken part in the redistricting committee. One resident was offended by an article he read in the Courier Journal in which a council member was concerned that he was being forced out of office because part of his district had been merged with another council member's district. This resulted in two council members living in the same district. Of course they will have to face each other in the next election or flip a coin to see who will run "at large". As it turned out, this happened in another district also. So there will be four council members living in two districts. The 2011 race could be quite interesting.



The general consensus was that the proposed redistricting plan is perfectly fair as far as the population per district but splits precincts and disrupts neighborhoods. In general it leaves people without a sense of community.



This theme was repeated when the west end residents spoke about the Lopp Real Estate company who are trying to develop the west end. Some of the residents were afraid that they would be forced to sell their property at a loss. Several council members assured them that no one can force a homeowner to sell. It is totally up to them to take or reject any offers. It was brought up that some of the residents are being offered an incentive to talk their neighbors into selling their property. This is has the effect of pitting friend against friend and neighbor against neighbor. One resident spoke eloquently about older people who had lived in the same house for decades and were confused about all of the talk. She asked for the same respect as would be given to a homeowner in a more affluent neighborhood.



Another resident said that he was offered $18,000 less than his property appraised for twelve years ago. He too was assured that he is not obligated to accept any offers. One of the council members asked if the rezoning would help or hurt his property value. The gentleman did not know the answer but said that if his property value stayed the same as it was 12 years ago he would be OK with that.



This resolution passed after a little tweaking from a few council members with a vote of 7-1, one member was absent.



The sparks really started flying when it was time for the city officials to speak. As I said earlier a few of the council members were not happy with the proposed redistricting plan. One member said that per state law the council is responsible for drawing the district lines. Another said that the city was obligated to do something quickly because of the law suit which was filed earlier. All three of the council members who were members of the committee agreed that there was no regard to politics and that the decisions were solely based on population numbers from the 2002 Census.



Between the council members trying to out talk each other and comments from the crowd it was hard to keep up with what was happening. But the final vote was 4-4 on the first reading. Certainly more to come at the next two readings.



I am sorry to admit that I left at 9:30 so I did not hear the votes on the other Ordinances which included additional funds to hire more police officers. This is a very important issue but I just could not stay any later.



My feeling about the redistricting is this: yes the numbers are as fair as possible but there are other things to consider. People do consider themselves part of a neighborhood. If they have a problem they want to be able to rely on their council representive. It makes it difficult when the precints are split and some residents don't feel that they are part of their own neighborhood. It will also be very confusing at election time when people are told to vote elsewhere. Some may even be given the wrong information and refuse to vote out of general disgust.



I also think that the council members should have been considered in this plan. If the people of a certain district vote for a council rep they want that person to represent them. Council reps should not be pitted against each other as they try to work together. Objectivity is fine but some things are subjective and should be considered.

WE NEED OUR THREE MILLION DOLLARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There was an interesting comment posted July 3 in regard to a previous posting. It gave the entire explanation to the debt owed to the EDIT fund from TIF.


I wish to thank the person who contributed this valuable information.


"Minutes from New Albany Redevelopment Commission, dated November 12, 2001 (page 2) states, IN PART.


The Director (Carl Malysz) brought attention to the State Street Parking Garage and stated general concerns regarding the Bonds. One concern the Director stated was that the bond payments are accelerating and becoming substantial. The Director explained that there will be a greater implication on EDIT funds. The Director also stated certain complications with TIF and EDIT revenues, as follows:

1. The Parking Garage finished a year or two prior to the bank building. The TIF proceeds started later than anticipated in the underwriting. From '98 thru '01 there was an accumulated TIF shortage of $256,000.


2. The bank was originally to have five floors completed and occupied. There are two floors that were left unfinished so that the assessed value (av) of the building is less than what was estimated, resulting in less TIF funds. (BTW, sure looks as if they finished those two top floors now; as they being taxed now?)


3. The original assessed value included a bank drive-through, but the site could not accommodate it. The New Albany Redevelopment Commission should add the drive-through to the TIF district to capture additional TIF proceeds.


4. EDIT funds are budgeted to be payable for a particular year. The Director suggested that the city budget the EDIT funds and have them available to Redevelopment Commission before the payments are due. This gives the resources available on time without scrambling around for the funds to make the payments. In order to get on a valid schedule, an appeal has to be made to the Council and the Controller to receive the EDIT funds available not to be current with the payment.


5. A lease Rental Reserve was required in the bond agreement. This costs around $40,000 a year for five years or $200,000.

The Director noted that in order to be current by the end of this year, there needs to be approximately $580,000 or EDIT funds allocated to the Redevelopment Commission. The Director also stated that by the time the project is paid off, WE WILL PAY APPROXIMATELY $3,696,350 OF EDIT INTO THE PARKING GARAGE PROJECT. The Director stated that once the bonds were paid off, THEN TIF FUNDS CAN BE COLLECTED TO REFUND THE CITY THE EDIT CONTRIBUTED, IN RETURN, "THE CITY CAN USE THOSE FUNDS FOR OTHER CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS".

Other documentation includes a document dated 8/21/07 from Cyndi Kraus, Financial/Compliance Manager and John Rosenbarger, Director of NARC to the CITY COUNCIL stating IN PART:

Per your request received August 17, 2007 I'm providing the following State Street Garage Operating and TIF information.

1. State Street Parking Garage Operating Fund

Year 2005 Receipts $82,874.65 Expenses $69,118.24

Year 2006 Receipts $76,772.71 Expenses $54,306.52

Year 2007 (thru 7/07) Receipts $32,828.40 Expenses $22,651.74

2. Total TIF captured between 1999 and 2006 is $1,004,949.31

3. Total Debt Service paid with EDIT is $3,613,698.46

Please pay the monies back of England can have some money to work with Redevelopment. PLEASE?"

I must add an additional "PLEASE" to this request. There are so many important projects in the works and the $3M+ is desperately needed.

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY

TODAY IS JULY 4TH. HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY TO EVERYONE.