When I read Ann Marie Shambaugh’s story on the Current Publishing Web site about the League of Women Voters (LVW) candidate forum in Carmel, the main story was the fact that no Republicans chose to appear.  So, I wondered, what would happen at the Noblesville LVW forum two days later?

So, I went.  Turns out I was mixed-up on the start time, arrived late and entered in the wrong door.  That was bad enough.

But once again, only Democrats were there as candidates, once again no Republican candidates were there.  Why did the local GOP decide to stay away from these forums?

According to Ms. Shambaugh’s story for Current, this was no scheduling conflict.  Republican County Chair Mario Massillamany says he told the candidates not to attend.  Massillamany is quoted in the story as asserting GOP candidates have been attacked at these events and he does not believe the League is as neutral as it claims.

So, the Thursday night forum in Noblesville had the following in attendance – Jessica Paxson, Hamilton County Prosecutor – Jocelyn Vare, Senate District 31 – Tami Dixon-Tatum, Senate Distric 25 – Donna Griffin, House District 88.

Ms. Paxson says her decision to run for Prosecutor was tied to Greg Garrison winning the GOP primary.  She made clear that she would not be running if incumbent Lee Buckingham had won the May primary.

The hopefuls for seats in the General Assembly handled a number of issues, including abortion, education, the economy and their priorities if elected.

A reminder that the deadline to register to vote is October 11.  You can check on your registration, and get other voting information, at the LWV election Web site vote411.com

The Fishers City Council set aside an entire meeting to conduct a public hearing on a proposed 1% Food and Beverage Tax levied on restaurant meals.  Deputy Mayor Elliott Hultgren reviewed how the tax would work and projected the estimated $3.2 million in annual revenue would be utilized to partially finance a new Events Center as part of the expanded Fishers District development.

Former Town Council member Mike Colby asked about the possibility of inserting a sunset provision in the law, so it would expire after a specific number of years.  He also asked whether the upcoming council vote will be the final vote approving the tax.

Jack Russell of One Zone Chamber of Commerce expressed the Chamber’s support for the tax.

Brenda Myers from Hamilton County Tourism cited data supporting the idea of the Events Center and supports the tax.

Fishers resident Charles Dresser was the final speaker and he clearly opposes the tax.  He listed all the taxes he currently pays to federal, state and county governments.  He told the council he is “taxed enough.”

The City Council will vote on the Food and Beverage Tax at the October 10 meeting, 7pm, at the Launch Fishers Huston Theatre.

Applications for police officer jobs may be on a downward trajectory nation-wide, but Fishers Police Chief Ed Gebhart says his department continues to see a good amount of applicants for uniformed officer positions, compared to neighboring departments.

In a Thursday morning meeting with the Police Merit Commission, Gebhart says the most recent crop of applicants started at 217, with 120 on hand for the written and physical testing.  The Chief says there are now 32 “strong candidates” that will proceed to the background check phase.  Fishers continues to receive a number of lateral applicants from other police departments.

The department is also seeing a trend where officers are retiring after 22-28 years of service and starting new careers, largely because they have remained healthy during their time in uniform.

Chief Gebhart and his Assistant Chiefs, Luke Gannon and Mike Taylor, briefed Commission members on programs aimed at the physical and mental health of officers, changing tactics on setting up perimeters in search of a suspect, using drones and the role of Rapid DNA in investigations.  The Fishers Police Department is the only one in the state currently utilizing Rapid DNA.

The Fishers City Council is preparing to take final action on the 2023 budget and a decision on whether to approve a food and beverage tax (a 1% levy on restaurant meals).  The Finance Committee will recommend approval of those items and others at the next regular Council session October 10.  The regular council session is being conducted earlier than normal in the month due to HSE Schools being on Fall Break the following week.

Mayor Scott Fadness told committee members the budget presented at last month’s council session will be the same spending plan he will ask the council members to give final approval October 10.

Committee member Jocelyn Vare asked for more details on plans for the cash reserves.  The mayor responded this is a timing issue, based on needs for a new community center that will be revealed in coming weeks.  Also, the agreement with Carmel to share income tax proceeds will expire after 2023.

Committee Chairman John Weingardt sounded a note of caution in handling cash reserves.

“I’m going to be very, very careful with those reserves,” said Weingardt.  “With our economy going the way it’s going, where we’re heading as a country.”

Weingardt voiced concern about what a downturn in the economy would do for the city’s AAA bond rating.

Councilor David Giffel is not a member of the Finance Committee, but attended Wednesday’s meeting and asked the mayor about city funding for the arena planned as part of the Fishers District expansion.

Fadness responded the city is going into this process with “eyes wide open,” with the financing of this center not burdening the property tax rate for the city.  The city plans to dip into the Cumulative Capital Development Fund (CCD) first so that remaining money can be used for other capital projects.

The mayor is proposing a 1% Food & Beverage Tax as part of the funding package for the arena.  The latest data on how much that tax would generate in Fishers is $3.2 million per year.  The City Council is holding a public hearing on the Food & Beverage Tax proposal October 6, 5pm, at the Police Department Training Room.  The council is to vote on the tax October 10.

When asked about road projects to be funded next year, Fadness said the biggest one in 2023  would be on Cumberland Road, between 106th & 116th Streets

The Fishers City Council will be conducting a public hearing on a food & beverage tax at a special meeting Thursday, October 6, 5:00pm.  Both the start time and the location are a bit unusual.

First, the 5:00pm start time is not a common start time for any council session.  However, this public hearing on this tax is the only item on the agenda.

The location is also not a common one.  This hearing will be held at the Fishers Police Department Training Room.  If you wish to attend this meeting, enter at the main entrance to the Police Department, check out the elevator to your right.  There should be a sign directing you to the proper floor.

With City Hall set for the wrecking ball, city meetings are being conducted at various locations, such as the City Services Building and Launch Fishers.

Fishers last considered a food & beverage tax in 2013 when state lawmakers provided a one-year window to enact the levy.  There were limitations on how the money generated by the tax could be used, mostly for economic development.  There was no pending project at that time, so the town council decided to table the tax issue and never brought it back as the deadline expired.

The 1% levy on restaurant meals is being proposed by Mayor Scott Fadness as part of a package to finance a new events center as part of the Fishers District expansion.  The proposed arena could hold as many as 8,500 people, about 6,500 for hockey and basketball games.

Fadness has said he could finance this project, plus a new community center, without an increase in the city’s property tax rate.  He has, however, resurrected the food & beverage tax as part of the events center financing.

The purpose of the hearing is to allow the public time to comment on the tax proposal.  The council will then schedule a vote on the tax.

So far, council members have supported the tax proposal.  Councilor Jocelyn Vare said at the last council session she is not prepared to take a position on the tax until she has more time to study the proposal.

Six of the Ten Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) School Board candidates accepted the invitation to attend a candidate Town Hall Tuesday night, Sponsored by the Hamilton Southeastern Education Association.  The Event, held at the Launch Fishers Huston Theatre, was moderated by Fall Creek Junior High Science Teacher John Cappello.

The moderator wrote the first and last questions for the candidates, the rest were gleaned from questions submitted by the large audience on hand.  Some of the questions from those at the Town Hall included targeting and bullying messages victimizing students, teachers & staff….whether school board elections should remain nonpartisan in Indiana…how to lessen the divisions in the community….and what does academic excellence mean.

I have about 15 pages of notes on all the candidate responses, so there is no way to summarize it all.  So, here is a snapshot of what the candidates had to say.

DISTRICT 1

Jackie Howell  She is a mental health counselor with 15 years in the local community. Her family, she says, moved to the Fishers area because of the highly-rated school system.  Teachers should be treated as professionals.  She is a big believer in utilizing data before making major decisions.

Brad Boyer He is completing his first 4-year term as a board member and seeking re-election.  He believes educators should concentrate more on the core subjects and not so much on other activities during the school day.  He does not think it is a good idea for school board members to be interacting on social media, admitting some may disagree.  The COVID pandemic caused some setbacks for the board, for obvious reasons.

DISTRICT 2

Janet Pritchett She is also finishing up her first 4-year term and is running for re-election. She moved to Fishers 18 years ago.  She has been active in PTO leadership positions.  She also believes many board initiatives were derailed by the COVID pandemic.  Being supportive of teachers is something she has always emphasized and strongly believes in getting staff input on decisions.

DISTRICT 3

Carla Cork Dr. Cork is a trained physician and best-selling author.  She believes the school district should be focused on the future of its students, saying she wants children to be successful.  She has seen the best-laid teacher lesson plans go sideways when things do not go as planned.  She emphasized the level of respect the staff deserves.

DISTRICT 4

Julie Chambers The current board president is seeking a second 4-year term.  She is a former deputy prosecuting attorney and now runs her own law practice.  She says she has loved being on the board during this first term and is running for re-election.  She is working toward spreading the good news about the HSE schools.  Visiting classrooms and speaking with building principals is something she believes in doing regularly.

Harry Delks After 21 years as head of facilities for the HSE School District, he is running for the board.  He says he can offer a perspective of a school administrator when making decisions, as someone that has experience working on the inside.  When designing the new school buildings constructed by HSE Schools during his tenure, he has always had teachers in mind on what they want in the building.

Four candidates were not in attendance Tuesday night – Tiffany Pascoe, Dawn Lang, Juanita Albright and Ben Orr.  Edward Gedeon’s name will be on the ballot, but is no longer campaigning in District 1 and supports Jackie Howell.

Once again, I have only scratched the surface on what was discussed at the Town Hall.  The event was live streamed on video.  HSEA says a video recording of the event will be available soon.

In January of 2023, I will have completed 11 years of writing this local Fishers news blog.  It started out fairly simple and straight-forward:  I would show up at local meetings and write about what happened.

It has morphed into much more than that.  I started producing podcasts over 6 years ago.  Most focus on Fishers, some on entertainment.  It has been quite a journey.

I tried to quit the blog twice and circumstances have brought me back.  I wish I had a nickel for every instance when a local person comes up to me and thanks me for doing what I do.  That’s the reason I couldn’t quit and why the blog continues.

But I have a confession to make.  I am not getting any younger.  I turned 71 years of age about a month ago and see signs of slowing down a bit.  I experienced 2 health scares in the last 2 years, but can honestly say my health is not bad right now for a guy my age.

I started thinking a day or so ago that I am not covering everything I once made a point of covering.  Here are just a few examples.

When Governor Eric Holcomb chooses to attend an event in Fishers, that is always worth covering.  I had even signed-up to be part of the media scrum covering the governor for the ribbon cutting at Genezen, a tech firm expanding in Fishers.  I was busy with other things and could not make it.

The Fishers Police Department sponsors a Night Out each year and invites the community to be part of it.  I had another meeting to cover and knew I could not do both, so I missed an event I almost always find a way to attend.

Then there was the Keep Fishers Beautiful day October 1st.  Normally, I take some photos and publicize the event.  This year, I had too many other things to do and could not cover it.

You get the picture.  An aging guy trying to cover a growing city and a large school district as one person on a volunteer news blog.

I am not complaining, just explaining that one person cannot cover what’s happening in a place like Fishers these days, particularly someone like me, about 11 years older from the time the blog started.

But let’s look at this another way.  Living in a city that is moving forward all the time is a good thing, even if it keeps the senior citizen blogger busier than ever.

The local school district also provides plenty to cover, including a school board election that will elect 4 of the 7 members of the board.  Fishers city elections will be on the ballot in 2023.

My point is this – I may not be able to cover everything.  There are other local news sources you can turn to if there are stories I don’t get to, but this blog will keep going.  Saying the blog will end has not turned out to be correct in the past, so why do it now.

The only reason this blog continues is because of the many comments I receive from you, the readers and the listeners of my podcasts.  The number of people reading and listening is amazing to me.  Thank you.  Let’s see what comes next in Fishers.  As long as my health holds out, I expect to cover it right here.

It is once again school board election time for HSE Schools.  This time around, I invited all three candidates in District 1 to appear on a podcast.  So far, two have accepted.

I asked two students, Kate Lantzer, a senior from HSE High School…and Casey Alexander, a junior from Fishers High School, to do most of the questioning of the candidates.  Both were recommended by their respective principals.

Below you will find links to candidate podcasts with Jackie Howell and Brad Boyer.  There will be more candidate podcasts coming, from the candidates choosing to accept the invitation.