The Pasta Bowl has seen a huge jump in the amount collected for area food pantries.  the total is 13,250 pounds, many times more than last year’s total.  Riverside Intermediate School took the honors for collecting the most Pasta.  The total was released at the final food collection at the Meier Store on 96th Street, a sponsor of the 2015 Pasta Bowl.

“This is the best budget in ten years.”  That’s what Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) Schools Chief Financial Officer Mike Reuter told the school board during a Tuesday morning work session.  The school administration is proposing a spending plan totaling $204.96 million for calendar year 2016.  The planned expenditures are roughly $2.4 million more than the projected revenues of $202.47 million, with the difference made up from the school system’s cash balance.  Even with that, Reuter projects the HSE Schools cash balance to be at $33.49 million at the end of calendar year 2016.

HSE Schools have been struggling financially ever since the Great Recession of 2008.  The changes in the state school funding formula in the last legislative session have helped the school corporation.  HSE finances have also been bolstered by higher assessed property valuations.  Another piece of good news is the rolling off of some of the debt incurred during the growth years of the school district due to building costs.  Reuter says he expects the school system will issue a general obligation bond in 2016 allowing the purchase of new computer equipment that is woefully outdated in many school buildings.  A number of HSE Schools employees are still using computer equipment utilizing floppy disk drives. Reuter says the bond can also be used to repair and maintain buildings.

Reuter projects the HSE Schools portion of the local property tax rate will decrease slightly in 2016 at $1.13 per $100 of assessed valuation, down 0.67% from 2015.  “When you look at our rates, this is the only thing, as a school corporation, we control is the tax rate,” Reuter said.  “We don’t decide who pays.  That’s a legislative decision and that’s a very confusing point for our community.”   According to Reuter, some residential property owners have seen their tax bills increase due to increased assessed valuations or because the “circuit-breaker” provision of state law applies in their case to go outside the property tax caps.  He also gave the example of a local business owner with no increases in assessed valuation since 2010, who is now paying less than 2%  more per $100 of assessed valuation in the school’s part of the property tax bill.

A public hearing will be held at the October 14th school board meeting on the budget proposal, with final approval expected at the October 28th session.

Reuter also provided preliminary enrollment figures for the 2015-2016 school year.  Based on those initial numbers, enrollment is up by 259 students, or a 1.26% increase over the previous school year.  Total enrollment is 20,832 for all grades.  Reuter says these numbers are not final, but should be very close to those figures when used by the state.

Mayor Scott Fadness provided details of his 2016 city budget proposal to the Fishers City Council Monday night.  The spending plan provides just over $69.1 million.  The city tax rate will rise slightly from last year, from about 62 cents per $100 of assessed property valuations, to just over 63 cents.  Fadness told the council this puts the rate back to where it was in 2014.  The 2015 rate dipped a bit because some bonds financing road projects were not issued in 2015 as originally planned, but will be issued in 2016.

During the public hearing on the budget, former Fishers Town Councilman Mike Colby asked how extra money provided by the state in added 911 fees on phones would be used by the city.  Mayor Fadness responded that Hamilton County has not seen any of that extra money yet, but the special census in Fishers and Westfield could up the county’s population enough to qualify for some of that added money to support 911 service.

Colby also asked about the sewer fees, and whether the city would look into changing that from a flat fee to one adjusted for the size of property, or usage fee.  Mayor Fadness responded that HSE Utilities, which services part of the city, and the City of Fishers. which handles the rest, each have different fee structures.  Fadness says talks are ongoing between the city and HSE Utilities over the fee issue.

Greg Purvis, Democrat candidate for city council at large, complained that the city’s debt load is too high and has been growing over the years.  Mayor Fadness responded that Fishers is growing and the Fishers City tax rate is the lowest of any city of similar or larger size in the state of Indiana.

The City Council is scheduled to take a final vote on the 2016 budget at the October 19th meeting.  The council has the option of scheduling  additional meetings for comment on the budget, but no such sessions have been scheduled.

The council did give final approval to the salary ordinance governing city employee pay for 2016.  No elected officials in Fishers will see a pay raise.  Most rank and file workers will see a 2% hike in salary.  Some positions will see a higher pay raise based on comparability market studies for their specific positions.  The 2016 budget will deal with solving pay “compression issues” for some police, fire and Department of Public Works employees.  Employee health insurance rates will remain the same for 2016, but the mayor said his staff is looking into savings in the system, and some of those changes could cost employees more out-of-pocket for health care costs.

Here’s a statistic for you.  One out of seven students in the local schools may struggle with food insecurities.  That’s according to the Hamilton Southeastern Schools Foundation.

The foundation has been at the forefront of collecting boxes of pasta the last few weeks for donations to local food banks.  It’s a project involving the HSE Schools foundation along with a number of others, and is tied to the annual Fishers High School vs. HSE High School rivalry football game played on September 11th.

The pasta haul this year is expected to be a big increase over last year’s drive.  The Fishers High School Lacrosse team spent several hours Saturday sorting and packaging pasta for distribution.

The final amount of pasta collected will be announced on September 24th.

I was at a long local meeting the other day.  There had been several events to cover that week.  I’m not as young as I used to be, so the energy level was beginning to run low.  I then mentally asked myself a question I had not considered for some time:  Why do I write this blog?

In order to answer that question, my mind went back to September 3rd, 2011. That was my last day on the job after 28 years working for the federal government.  Retirement was a feeling of liberation.  After working all my adult life, I was finally about to have the luxury of deciding how I would spend my time.

Some retirees go right back to work in another job.  I didn’t want to do that, at least not on a regular basis.  Many retirees volunteer their time to charitable or other endeavors.  I considered that too.  The rest of 2011 was taken up by handling some family issues.

Toward the end of 2011, I started thinking about something I had always considered.

I worked as a radio broadcast journalist before entering the civil service in 1983.  I had covered education, local government, the police beat and just about any other news assignment one could imagine.  Being a reporter was one of the most rewarding jobs I ever had (not financially, but in other ways).

I had watched the local news scene.  I’ve lived in Fishers since 1991 and always had an interest in following what was going on locally.  I discovered the Noblesville Daily Ledger, a newspaper that covered not only Noblesville and Hamilton County, but other area municipalities, including Fishers.  If I wanted to follow what was happening with the town council or the local school board, I could rely on the Ledger for all the information.

Then, after publishing for over 100 years, the Ledger suddenly went to publishing only two days a week.  I knew that was sadly the beginning of the end for the Daily Ledger.  It ceased publishing shortly thereafter.  Then another company started a daily newspaper in Noblesville, but it was hit hard by the 2008 Great Recession and had to close.

I began to wonder – I miss the daily local news coverage…does anyone else miss it?

So I got this crazy idea to go back to my reporter days.  I would figure out how to put some sort of Web site online and start writing about local events.  It all started in January, 2012. I just quietly sat in on the town council meetings, took notes, then wrote a story on my Web site about what I heard and saw in the meeting.

When LarryInFishers.com was up and running, I didn’t even know how many people (if any at all) were reading the stories I was publishing online.  I intentionally did not put any counters or analytics on the site.  If no one was reading, I didn’t want to get discouraged early and just give up.

My first clue that anyone was reading came from a couple of local elected officials who approached me and had clearly been reading my material.  I began to measure the traffic on the site and found there were other people interested on local news.

My approach has always been this in writing the blog…most people in Fishers are very busy with work and family life (just like I was before retirement) and do not have the time to attend local meetings.  I try to let people know what they would want to know if they were able to attend these local events.

I have been amazed at the number of people reading this blog the past 3 1/2 years.  I guess there is a demand for this type of reporting after all.

This continues to be a volunteer activity for me.  I have no advertisers.  I’m not saying I would turn down ads, but most local blogs don’t see much revenue from advertising anyway, so I plan to keep this a volunteer activity for now.

This blog has opened up other opportunities for me.  I am an occasional contributing columnist for the local weekly newspaper Current in Fishers.  I write political commentary for an opinion blog run by the Indianapolis Business Journal, Indiana Forefront.  I had the honor of moderating a Fishers mayoral election debate in 2014 sponsored by the Fishers Arts Council.

I do want to emphasize there are some very good reporters doing work in and around Fishers other than I.  James Feichtner does great work as the editor of Current in Fishers. Lindsey Erdody covers Fishers for the Indianapolis Business Journal.  Chris Sikich occasionally covers Fishers for the Indianapolis Star.  But all these reporters have other duties.  James has not only Fishers but a Geist edition to edit and partially write.  Lindsey and Chris each cover the northern Indy suburbs, so only part of their attention can be focused on Fishers.

What I try to do now is what I have always attempted to do – fill a news void for those living in Fishers and interested in what is happening here.  I do the best I can as just one guy, who does have some other things to do, even in retirement.

That brings me back to my initial question to myself.  Why do I write this blog?  I have only one answer.  I write this blog because people like you take the time to read it.  As long as my health is good and I’m not overwhelmed with other pressing duties, I plan to continue with this blog.

I want to thank all of you for reading.  It’s the only reason I can come up with to answer the question as to why I continue to write this blog.  It’s because of you.           

If you have driven on Lantern Road near the Target Shopping Center and City Hall, you have seen the major improvements in place.  First, the railroad tracks have an automatic warning signal and no stop sign.  Some motorists are stopping there just out of habit, but it is no longer required.  That alone will help move traffic along that busy thoroughfare.  Also, the traffic signal has been installed on Commercial Drive just south of the tracks, another major improvement along Lantern Road.  Note there will be a closure of Lantern Road scheduled to complete the construction project.

Below you will find the road construction schedule for Fishers as we begin the work week on Money, September 21st:

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CYNTHEANNE ROAD

Continuing the week of September 21st, Cyntheanne Road could see shoulder work for construction of the acceleration and deceleration lane and passing blister at Oakhurt subdivision south of 104^th Street. This project is dependent on the timing of utility work.

LANTERN AND COMMERCIAL INTERSECTION

Lantern Road will remain closed the week of September 21 from Commercial Drive to North Street.

106^th STREET

106^th Street between Allisonville Road and Hague Road is scheduled to open on Monday, September 21.

106^th STREET & ELLER ROAD

Construction on the 106^th Street and Eller Road turn lane will begin the week of September 21st. During construction period lane restrictions will be implemented between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Lane restrictions will continue through mid-October.

116^th STREET

Continuing the week of September 21st there will be periodic lane restrictions along 116^th Street in the westbound lane from the railroad tracks to Municipal Drive. Restrictions will be implemented outside of peak traffic hours.

131^st STREET

We appreciate your patience as shoulder work continues along Parkside and Cumberland Road. Please use caution when traveling through the area.

136^th STREET

136^th Street will have restrictions west of Cyntheanne Road for shoulder work, asphalt milling and resurface work through the week of September 21.  Cyntheanne Road, south of 136^th Street, may see shoulder work for asphalt milling and resurface.

Mayor Scott Fadness plans to present his 2016 budget proposal to the City Council at the September 21st meeting (7pm).  After the mayor finishes, the public will be given an opportunity to comment in a public hearing.  The spending plan calls for just under $70 million of expenditures next year.

You can access the budget document at this link.

Fadness asked his department heads to keep their personnel at current levels for 2016. However, the mayor decided two additional police officers will be added in June of 2016, as well as one more full-time position in the police intelligence unit.  He also is recommending adding one Parks Department laborer to help deal with added parks that will be ready soon, including the massive Flat Fork Creek facility now under construction near 101st Street and Florida Road.

According to the mayor, the city’s part of the property tax rate in 2016 will be just over 63 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, up from last year’s 62 cents, but the same as the 2014 rate.  The 2015 rate dipped only because debt scheduled to come online in 2015 was delayed, resulting in the slightly lower rate this year.  The city’s assessed valuation rose by 3.2%, according to city figures.  Fadness says one of his priorities is to “mitigate the tax risk” for city residents.

The city plans to make some purchases next year from the capital account.  All city ambulances will have new cardiac units installed, featuring real-time telemetry allowing hospital staff to see patient data as soon as paramedics arrive on the scene, at a cost of $400,000.   The mayor says there will be two new fire engines as part of next year’s budget.

The mayor expects city employee health insurance rates to remain the same, but out-of-pocket deductible costs may rise in 2016.

The mayor says this is a balanced budget with $300,000 in cash reserves.

The city has a transportation plan 3 pages long with several areas set for work next year. The listing begins on Page 80 of the budget document at this link.  $1 million is earmarked for road maintenance, which the mayor says is not nearly enough.  He plans to be studying how to better fund this need with his staff and members of the city council.

The mayor said the sewer fees paid by city residents are much lower than any nearby community.  The rate has not changed in 20 years.  Fadness expects to begin the process soon to request a $5 increase in that fee.  This is not part of the budget process, but is another procedure prescribed by state law, which will include a public hearing.  There is a need to upgrade the waste water treatment plant and the pipes going in and out of the facility.

There is a deficit in the stormwater fund, mainly due to about 20% of the fees not being collected.  The mayor does not foresee an increase in this fee now, but plans to watch the budget and work on collecting money owed to the fund.

The salary ordinance will also be a part of the budget up for consideration, and City Council Vice President John Weingardt says there will be no pay increase next year for any elected officials.

The Fishers Chamber of Commerce has had a long tradition of inviting the Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) School Superintendent to provide an annual “State of the Schools” speech at a chamber luncheon meeting.  With the merger of the Carmel and Fishers Chambers of Commerce into one organization labeled “OneZone,” the question was raised about how to handle the annual “state of the city” and “state of the school” events.  We now have our answers.

Mayor Jim Brainard will have his State of the City address to the chamber membership in October.  Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness will deliver his State of the City speech early next year, most likely in February.

The State of the Schools event was a combined one, held at the Oak Hill Mansion, as a luncheon event on September 16th.  Carmel Superintendent Nicholas Wahl and HSE Superintendent Allen Bourff presented a joint program, with each of them taking turns, speaking about education.

Since this news blog is aimed at Fishers, I will concentrate on Dr. Bourff’s part.  He began by talking about the College and Career Academies now in operation this school year at each high school.  He called the academies a “game changer” in instruction and learning. After only a few weeks of opening, Bourff said they have changed the way students and teachers approach education.

The connection with Launch Fishers is one Dr. Bourff highlighted.  A “boot camp” was held for high school students by Launch, and several students changed their plans for what they plan to do after school as a result of that experience.

“Just like Carmel….we provide a community for our students very supportive of education,” Dr. Bourff said.  “It’s probably one of the richest education environments that you will find across the nation.”

Bourff thanked Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness for his support, as well as local members of the Indiana General Assembly, in passing a budget increasing per pupil state funding for HSE School students.  However, even with the increase, Bourff says HSE Schools per pupil funding is still below the state average.  “We narrowed it, but there’s still a gap,” said Bourff.

The HSE superintendent cited a recent poll taken in the Fishers area showing support for local schools.  “Good schools are important for good economies,” Bourff said.

Allen Bourff was introduced by Fishers Junior High student Ray Gao, who won a national competition to meet with famed investor Warren Buffet.

On any given weekday morning, most of the Indianapolis TV stations have their helicopters in the air, mostly for live video of traffic tie-ups.  But on the morning of Wednesday, September 16th, the TV news choppers were focused on a manhunt in the Fishers Sandstone neighborhood, near 116th Street and Brook School Road.

Police say a foot pursuit nabbed the first suspect and the second was found hiding in bushes.  Both face felony theft charges related to reported vehicle break-ins.

Under arrest is Trevon Jarrett, 19, from Indianapolis, and Edward Williams, also 19, and also from Indianapolis.  Both have been charged and are in the Hamilton County Jail.

It is clear that alert neighbors were a big help to police in making these arrests.  The slogan you hear often from Fishers Police officials, “If you see something, say something,” was followed in this case by people living in the Sandstone area.

Some speed limits will be lowered in Fishers, particularly in the downtown Nickel Plate District.  The Fishers Board of Works and Safety approved the traffic schedule changes at the September 14th meeting.  For a list of all the changes, use this link.

The board approved curb cuts for 126th Street for the Turnberry residential development and 126th Street for the Reserve at Lantern residential development.  The board sent back another request for more staff work on 116th Street at the Community Lutheran Church near Olio Road.  Members of the board voiced concern about the amount of the current median that would be removed as a result of that curb cut plan.

A sidewalk project was approved for the Sunblest neighborhood.  It is designed to  address Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) sidewalk improvements which includes removing and replacing raised and/or uneven panels with a trip hazard of 1 inch or greater. R.A.Myers was the low bidder in the amount of $71,694.