Big Week Coming Up for Council As Democrats Try to Modify Ballard's Budget

The budget is different this year.  With divided government, the Democrats are reworking Mayor Ballard's budget so that their priorities are imprinted on 2013.  The full Council must adopt a final budget at their October 15 meeting - so next week is it for all of the budget segments to get out of committee.

At this point, all of the municipal corporation budgets are out except for the 2013 CIB budget. [edited to add: the CIB budget will be taken up on Thursday evening, 5:30 pm, in room 107 of the city-county building]   A special meeting of that committee will be called, but so far no notice has been sent out.  The Parks budget passed out of committee last night.  All the rest remain.

Here is the schedule as of right now:

Monday, October 8 - Metropolitan & Economic Development committee
budgets for Dept. Metropolitan Development and for Dept. Code Enforcement
also on the agenda are Prop 274 (urges the Metropolitan Development Commission to adopt the recommendations of the Council's Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Study Commission), Prop 275 (urges the Indiana General Assembly to adopt certain recommendations of the Council's Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Study Commission), and Prop 347 (which would approve $20 million of bonds from the downtown TIF to 'assist in the financing of the One America Garage')

Tuesday, October 9 - Admin & Finance committee
budgets for Office of Mayor, Office of Finance & Management, Office of Corporation Counsel, Office of Minority & Women Business Devel, Office of Audit & Performance, Election Board, Voter Registration, County Recorder, County Surveyor, Council, County Assessor, County Treasurer, Coutny Auditor, Noble of IN, MC Fair Board, MC Cooperative Extension, Regional Health & Mental Health Centers, WCTY, and Information Services Agency
also on the agenda is Prop 287 (to eliminate the local homestead credit from property tax bills)

Wednesday, October 10 - Public Safety & Criminal Justice committee
budgets for MC Prosecutor, MC Public Defender, Community Corrections, Circuit & Superior Court, County Clerk,  County Sheriff, County Coroner, Forensic Services Agency, Dept of Public Safety (homeland security, animal care, impd, ifd, iems)

Thursday, October 11 - Public Works committee
budget for the Dept Public Works
also on the agenda is Prop 315 (amends the Code to limit the number of citations for exceeding the

to deny a violation and request an administrative hearing by electronic mail or United State mail)

 

All of these meetings begin at 5:30 and are held in room 260 of the city-county building.

edited to add:
Thursday, October 11 - Muni Corps committee
budget for the CIB

this meeting will be at 5:30 and held in room 107 of the city-county building

Russ McQuaid Reports : "Neighbors Claim Airport is a "Bully" with Deep Pockets

Fox 59 investigative reporter, Russ McQuaid filed this yesterday:

Muni Corps Committee Trims Airport Budget

As I mentioned in my last blog entry, this phase of the budget season is usually dry and boring.  What with split government this year, we are seeing an attempt by the Democrats to change Mayor Ballard's introduced budget in significant ways.  But, still I was expecting the Muni Corps committee meeting to be dry and perfunctory.  Figuring I'd save myself a needless trip and parking fee, I emailed Chairman Monroe Gray and asked if there were going to be any amendments introduced.  Yes, he thought Councillor Lutz would be putting forth something.

Councillor Bob Lutz is a Republican, so what's up?  Could he be fiddling with the Airport's budget?  The airport got an earful from the public and a polite note of disagreement from the Councillors when they presented their budget in committee last week.  A key spark was the fact that the Airport Board had just decided to begin an appeal of Judge Keele's ruling against them in their lawsuit that tried to stop a Fast Park facility from being built in Ameriplex.

Well, they got more than that this time.

Lutz offered an amendment to cut their budget by $100,000; the cost of the appeal.  In a $161 million budget, they won't be left wounded or anything.   Through this cut, the Council would be sending a message that the continuation of this lawsuit is frowned upon.

Lutz and Councillor Jason Holliday share the airport in their districts.  Lutz on the Wayne side and Holliday on the Decatur.

Between them they laid out some of the history of the airport/Ameriplex/Fast Park story that I had not heard discussed in public before.  And it is telling.  Both the developer and Ameriplex approached the airport as soon as they thought there might be a good match in locating a Fast Park facility within the industrial park.  They wouldn't go any further if the airport had a problem with it.  The airport didn't have a problem.  The Mayor's office didn't have a problem.

Fast forward to  when plans were coming to fruition.  Indy Park Ride & Fly - an off airport parking facility that moved out of Marion County and into Plainfield when the new terminal opened - had hired an attorney who went door to door in the abutting neighborhood.  That attorney is now representing the airport in its lawsuit.

Lets face it, this lawsuit doesn't have merit.  Never did.  The airport is simply using its deep pockets to make it too expensive and too prolonged for Fast Park and Ameriplex to continue.  They want to drive a legitimate business out of Decatur Township.  They don't want the competition.  This governmental entity wants to kill off competitors in a free market.

Long story short,  the committee voted 4-3 to amend the airport's budget by $100,000.  Voting with the Decatur community were Councillors Lutz, Holiday, Cardwell, and Mahern.  Voting against were Councillors Gray, Talley, and Osili.

They also voted to send it to the full Council with a do-pass recommendation.  I could see Gray vote no, but could not tell who else may have joined him.

This is an important vote for Decatur Township.  We overwhelmingly want the Fast Park to be built.  It is not your granddad's parking facility; rather it is so green that it can teach the airport a thing or two about being environmentally responsible.  It would be located outside the TIF and bring much needed tax dollars to our schools and help move us toward a more balanced tax base.  It will spark the development of much need commercial property that will benefit the community at large and help Ameriplex attract more high salary tenants to the Purdue Research Park.

I want to thank Councillors Bob Lutz, Jason Holliday, Jeff Cardwell, and Brian Mahern for standing up with us and standing up for us.  Your support means a lot to us.

For those who are interested, I've embedded that part of the committee meeting from the WCTY archives below - it runs almost half an hour:



Budget Season Getting Really Interesting - CIB Budget Delayed

Usually this part of budget season is dull and boring.  We're in the wrap-up phase after all the departments and agencies responsibilities and budget numbers have been discussed and after the big public hearing before the full Council.  About now, in the old days, there would be technical amendments to fix transposed numbers and whatnot - sometimes undoing the consumption of one group by another - but normally routine passage of the introduced budgets by the committees.

This year, due expressly to split government, we have real review of the budget and the Democrats are reworking the budget in significant ways.  They made it clear over the last month or so of committee hearings, that they would try to reinstate IMPD and IFD contractual raises and recruit classes. 

I have heard discomfort from Councillors on both sides of the aisle about Mayor Ballard's request that the homestead credit be eliminated - which sounds like, and is, a tax increase to many.  Plus its elimination actually causes a $3.5 million loss in revenue to Marion County schools.  So, the Ds are trying to dredge up an additional $8 million to substitute.  Heads of the municipal corporations have reported to the Council that the Mayor will be offering a deal to them to soften the blow from the homestead credit elimination, but so far no such deal has been revealed to the public.

With that back drop, I still wasn't expecting for something to be afoot with the CIB budget, but it is.  At their budget hearing in committee, they were chastised for not stepping in to aid the City in its time of need, when the City had stepped up when they needed a helping hand.

In the CIBs budget there was a golden egg for the ICVA.  DMD is in the process of selling a building next to the old Conseco Fieldhouse (someone please remind me of the new name) and the proceeds will go to the ICVA.  Something like $4.6 million is expected.  This is over and above the $9 million they get annually from the CIB.  The lion's share of the CIB revenue is from taxes of one kind or another.

The CIB is done with its $10 million a year 'loan' to the Pacers, so that's freeing up some cash.

Last night the Municipal Corporations committee of the Council met to make any final tweaks to the muni corp budgets.  But Chairman Monroe Gray announced that the CIB budget would not be discussed.  They are working on the numbers and they will call another committee meeting, hopefully by Wednesday or Thursday of next week.  The entire budget must pass out of committee in time for the October 15 meeting of the full Council.

What's brewing with the CIB budget?  Nobody is telling me anything.  But something interesting is going on.  Stay tuned.

Councillors Mahern and Adamson Stand Up for What is Right

Yesterday was a bad day for sense and sensibility in Indy government.  The Council voted 25 to 2 to pass Prop 15, which expands the consolidated downtown TIF by more than a square mile.

The only two who had the strength of their convictions were Councillors Brian Mahern and Zach Adamson.  Angela Mansfield appeared to be absent and Vernon Brown was excused from voting due to a conflict of interest. 

By my count, at least 7 Councillors, bent their principles and voted in favor. (Others were always going to vote the party line, the public interest be damned.)  Sure, their vote would not defeat the measure, but it would have sent a message that the ongoing community discussion on TIFs is necessary.  That conversation will continue.

Councillor Vop Osili made promises to folks living in the Riverside and UNWA neighborhoods.  The language he negotiated and inserted into Prop 15 fails to target those promises to those neighborhoods. 

Councillor Joe Simpson refused to amend the Mass Ave portion of the TIF to exclude 2 of the several parcels that are already slated for private investment.  This extension of the consolidated downtown TIF is merely being created as a slush fund for the Ballard administration, and Simpson is fine with that.  He and they are stealing revenue that would have gone to help teach the children of IPS, stealing revenue that would have gone to deliver poor relief in Center Township, stealing revenue that would have gone to IMPD, IFD, IndyGo, Health & Hospitals, Parks, and the libraries - and spending it on development that could and would have happened without the TIF.

I sincerely hope that a dye was not cast last night.  I hope we merely walked down the wrong path on a course that we can change before it is too late.  TIFs have consequences.  They are not free money.  At some point, we will cross a line that harms Indy's economy and the services we pay taxes for.

Councillors will feel the urge to get in line to get a TIF for their area, too.  By my count, the two that passed last night are just the first of 8.  I don't know where the line of economic harm is.  Perhaps it isn't even a bright line, but rather a gradual loss of services and quality of life for most of Indy's residents until drastic cuts in public safety and education become routine, and we do the best we can to wait out the 25 year lifespan of the TIFs.

The issue of TIFs is a hard one.  I have been happy to see the community trying to get on top of it, digest it, and decide upon it.  The conversation began in earnest about a year ago as key people in key groups began to understand there is no free ride with TIFs.  And the conversation will continue. 

Today I want to thank Councillors Mahern and Adamson for standing up for Indy, even when the powers that be tried to make them bow.  We need elected officials with spines and principles and who will fight for what is right and best for Indianapolis and its people.

The public good suffered a blow last night, but the fight continues.

The Case Against Prop 15

Tonight the Indianapolis-Marion County City-County Council is poised to vote on Prop 15 - which would expand the consolidated downtown TIF district in two directions for a total addition of 1.1 square miles.

There are three components :

A) 112 acre easterly expansion, less than half of which runs along Mass Ave (see "What's Wrong With This Picture - The Proposed Mass Ave TIF" for maps of the proposed TIF) all supposedly needed for the development of 0.8 acres.

B) 604 acre westerly expansion (see "Proposed Bush Stadium TIF - Google Aerial View" for maps of the proposed TIF) all supposedly needed for the development of a couple of block area.

C) Also pasted on top of the expansion TIFs are three programs - a $2 million microloan, a $10 million microloan, and a $1.5 million job training program - to be funded by the TIFs.  It must be noted here that TIF funds may only legally be spent on projects within the TIF boundaries and these programs run significantly beyond boundaries.

These are the reason that come readily to mind as to why Prop 15 should be defeated.

1) Prop 15 is dead --- Council rules require that any proposal that is tabled for more than 6 months be removed from the list of pending proposals.  This is exactly what happened to Prop 16, another TIF proposal, which had been introduced and tabled on exactly the same dates as Prop 15.

2) There is a lawsuit pending against the Council for taking any action on Prop 15 because it is dead.  It should give any member of the public pause as to why the Council did not simply follow its own rules and reintroduce the proposal under a new number.  It would only be two weeks from now, before it would be back to the full Council.  Likely, they did not want the TIF Study Commission recommendations (Prop 316) to beat it into law.  This brings me to 3)....

3) The TIF Study Commission recommendations (Prop 316) (see "Finally, TIF Study Commission Recommendations At Committee"), which would require full disclosure of the underlying finances of the proposed projects and the abilty of the TIF to generate adequate revenue to make payments on any debt incurred.  The way I have been framing the need for information is so that the Council and the public could see for themselves - Why a TIF?  Why this location?  Why this project? Why this footprint?  Clearly, the rush on Prop 15 is because there is a concerted effort to avoid full disclosure.

4) The Mass Ave area is thriving, if not downright booming, and has at least 3 large projects already slated for 2013 and 2014 - needing no public dollars.  (Well, suddenly the developers are supposedly telling Deron Kintner, deputy mayor for economic development and director of the bond bank, they think they might need public dollars after all.  Believe him if it makes you feel better.  Many Councillors, who know for a fact that Kintner has previously lied to the Council and to the press, will be citing his words when these TIFs don't work out well.  But, I digress.)  Creating a TIF here is ass backwards from how TIFs are supposed to be created.  The intent is to create a TIF to fund a project to spark development with private dollars.  Instead, the Mass Ave TIF is being created to cannibalize tax revenues from development made with private dollars.  By all rights those tax revenues should be flowing to the schools, library, IndyGo, etc, instead of to a TIF fund.  This is how you set up a thriving slush fund - not a beneficial TIF.

5) The Mass Ave TIF contains three 'nodes' - two along Mass Ave and one abutting the current consolidated downtown TIF.  At least half of the 112 acres is contained in this mystery node.  I have only heard one question asked in a public venue about this huge footprint.  Councillor Zach Adamson (who ultimately was the lone, brave, vote against Prop 15 in committee) asked why that node was needed.  Kintner's answer was that he could not divulge that information at this time.

6) One of the bids responding to the RFP put out by the City to solicite plans to relocate the Mass Ave fire station, actually offered $2 million to the City to buy the property and did not request any public dollars. This proposal was rejected.  The three proposals still in the running curiously all ask for a TIF to be established and for public dollars to be invested in the project.  Now, why would a developer care where public dollars came from?  Really !  This is an example of exactly how stupid and gullible Kintner and the Vaughn/Grand/Ballard administration think the public and the Councillors are.

7) I have not heard one question asked as to why there must be 604 acres of TIF to support a couple of blocks of infrastructure improvements in the Bush Stadium area.  This is the only project publicly acknowledged by the administration.  Obviously, the Councillors have no answer to why this footprint is necessary and wise.  Instead, they focused their attention on getting residents of the area to speak in favor of the TIF because their neighborhoods need help.  Mark Fisher of Develop Indy worked to turn out the residents.  While any caring human being wants to help, we have no gauge for whether or not this TIF is the answer, whether or not other public funds can address the issues, and where this area lands on a prioritized list of neighborhoods in need.

8) The language added to Prop 15 to satisfy some of the neighborhood leaders' interest in tearing down the old Bryant Heating & Cooling facility, is slipshod and may not be enforceable. Lets see if anyone introduces an amendment tonight to clear up the language, or if the Councillors are content to leave it in doubt.

9) There has been no financial data or analyses introduced that would justify why a TIF, why this location (although some need was demonstrated), what project much less why that project, and why this footprint for the proposed Bush Stadium area TIF.

10) The $2 million microloan and the $1.5 million job training programs would be made available to anyone within a 2 mile perimeter of the outline of the two-way expanded consolidated downtown TIF. The language is so poorly written that the recipients may not have to be low income, and/or may not have to have a business located in a low income neighborhood.  Promises have been made to nearby neighborhoods and the Indianapolis religious community at large, that these programs are to help the residents within or abutting the TIF area.  These promises are false promises - if you go by the agreement that has actually been reduced to writing.

11) Expending TIF funds, or swapping TIF dollars for other City dollars, to pay for the $2 million microloan and $1.5 million job training programs outside of the footprint of the TIF would be illegal.

12) The $10 million microloan program has no details except it would be funded by the TIF and spent throughout Indianapolis.  Expending TIF funds, or swapping TIF dollars for other City dollars, to pay for the $10 million microloan program outside of the footprint of the TIF would be illegal.  The City could use $10 million to fund raises for IMPD and IFD, and/or a recruit class for IMPD and IFD.  Money the administration insists is not available.  What will be sacrificed for this microloan program, if the law is actually followed and TIF funds are not used for the program?

13) There has been no consideration given to the question, how many TIFs are too many TIFs for Indianapolis and Marion County.  Already 11% of all taxable property is contained in a Marion County TIF, 33% of all taxable property is contained in a Center Township TIF, and 22% of all taxable property is contained in an IPS district TIF.  Prop 15 seeks to add another square mile of TIF to each of those jurisdictions.  Prop 15 will cannibalize taxes that would have flown to the schools, library, IndyGo, Health & Hospitals, Townships, Fire, IMPD, Parks, as well as the City and County government.  Prop 15 will decrease the tax revenues that flow to these units, as well.

For completeness sake, I recommend the following blog entries as well -- "TIF Fact #1 -- We've Been Bailing Out TIFs for Years", "TIF Fact #2 -- $490 million of property value was transferred from the base to the increment this year", "TIF Fact #3 -- TIFs Cause Higher Property Taxes For Everyone and  Cause 41% of Circuit Breaker Penalties To The Taxing Units", "TIF Fact #4 -- TIFs Comprise 11% of All Taxable Property In Marion County - How Much More is Prudent?",   "TIF Fact #5 -- 16 of 40 Marion County TIFs Have Seen Their Base Driven to Zero Value",  "TIF Fact #6 -- 5 of 6 TIFs Comprising the Consolidated Downtown TIF Have Seen Their Base Driven to Zero Value", "TIF Fact #7 -- 33.3% of All Taxable Property in Center Township is Contained Within a TIF -- How Much is Prudent?", "TIF Fact #8 -- 20% of IPS Taxing District Contained Within a TIF -- How Much is Prudent?", "TIF Fact #9 -- Most TIF Districts Underperform County as a Whole" )

There are many excellent reasons for Prop 15 to be voted down tonight.  But, instead, what we will witness is greed, ambition, threats of retaliation, blackmail, and willful ignorance drive the Council to pass this retched dreck.

Prop 15 - A Nightmarish Mess

The tortuous life of Prop 15 through the Indianapolis-Marion County City-County Council is not the Council's finest hour by any stretch of the imagination.

The ridiculoucity continued this past week with two evenings of meetings of the Metropolitan & Economic Development committee.

Even before Monday night's meeting began, the committee knew it would be recessing that night without passing Prop 15 due to a disagreement with the Ballard administration over a proposed amendment that sought to add language guaranteeing two microloan programs and one job training program.  Councillor Vop Osili had a memo from Deron Kintner to the effect that the City agreed to those programs, but wanted it written into the proposal.  I uploaded to Google Docs the disputed, and never introduced, amendment.  What you'll notice is it's clarity of language.  The header suggests this amendment was intended to be voted on at the full Council meeting where, instead, the Council decided to send Prop 15 back to committee.

What was introduced Friday night, after they had four full days and nights to come to an agreement, was a mess - tortuous language construction, dubious protections for the intended beneficiaries of the programs, and massive loopholes.  Not to mention the misspelling of the word "Councillor" - which is defined in Council rules, by the way.  Plus you'd think commas were an endangered species that had to be included sparingly.  This amendment passed by a vote of 6 to 1, with Councillor Zach Adamson providing the sole no vote.  I have uploaded my copy of this amendment, as the Council website has not yet updated their version of Prop 15.  Sorry for the scribbling, I wasn't thinking I'd be sharing it with everyone.

From the header one might think this amendment would be introduced at the full Council.  The meeting Friday night did start 5 minutes late and the amendment was not available until seconds beforehand.  So, it may be the negotiations were deemed done enough and this messy amendment was introduced at the committee instead.

Here are some attributes of the amendment that catch my eye:

The $10 million microloan program will require "the leveraging of current resources" which usually means floating bonds to be repaid with some revenue stream.  There aren't many details provided on this proposed program.  One thing that is stated is that it would be a county wide program.  It would be a violation of state law for the funds to come from the downtown TIF.

I looked through google street maps and the Marion County Assessor's interactive map to try to locate the "Bryant Heating & Cooling Facility located at 21st and Montcalm".  All parcels at that intersection are owned by private entities, none of which are Bryant.  To the west, however, at 1100 W. 21st Street, there is a large parcel with large buildings that appear abandoned, which is owned by DMD.  Why the lack of specificity when an address or parcel number is three mouse clicks away?  This is important because there is an attempt to require the demolition of this facility.

In multiple places the phrase "the area" is used.  From context it seems like it refers to possibly different boundaries at times - but the phrase is never clearly defined, which results in little to no protection of the residents of the Bush Stadium area that any of the promises made to them will actually be fulfilled - or even be required to be fulfilled.

The $2 million microloan program can be awarded to any business within a two mile radius of the enlarged downtown consolidated TIF.  The language is poor, again a comma or two might clarify, but it is either attempting to say the business must be located in a lower income area (median household income 75% or less of the median income in the County) or that the 2 mile perimeter must be centered on a low income area.  Just by the way, the median household income in the County is $40,421.  But a two mile radius?  How does that adequately target the Riverside or UNWA residents who came out to say they needed help?  Looking at maps, this perimeter could reach the Speedway to the west, Garfield Park to the south, Butler University to the north, and nearly Emerson Avenue to the east.  The intent is to take the funds from the TIF.  But TIF revenues must be spent within the TIF.  These requirements are a clear attempt to circumvent the state laws regarding the expenditure of TIF revenues, and it does not target the folks who live in the Bush Stadium area.

The exact same thing can be said of the $1.5 million job training program as was just stated for the $2 million microloan program.

And the last I'll mention is the really botched attempt to get work for the TIF district residents.  The language seems to say that any business receiving TIF money, should they require new hiring, would have to ensure that 40% of those hired lived in the TIF district.  The business could get out of this by filling out a form that indicated why it tried but failed to get to the 40% figure.  Or, they could bring in all their additional help from out of state, since those folks will not be counted.

Osili has been all over town touting the targeted benefits he personally negotiated for the residents and businesses of the Bush Stadium expansion area.  But, he is not delivering on that promise with this language.  Someone is being scammed - its either Osili or the residents.

Prop 15, that twice beaten dead horse now burdened with the worst amendment in the history of amendments, was voted on twice by the committee Friday night.  The first time the phrasing of the motion left off the key part where it would be sent back to the full Council with a do-pass recommendation.  On the advice of Council counsel, they did a do-over with the correct motion.

Both times the vote was 6 yeas and 1 nay.  Councillor Zach Adamson was the lone no vote both times.  The yeas were Councillors Robinson, Talley, Adams, Osili, Miller and Cardwell.  The last two are Republicans and the rest are Democrats. 

Prop 15, that raggedy, tattered zombie that it is, returns to the full Council Monday night.