There has been a great deal of commentary about the $50 parking fee charged nonresidents of Fishers during the summer months at the new Geist Waterfront Park.  Let’s just say it has not been a positive image for our city to those living outside our city limits.

This reminds me of the old saying, “no good deed goes unpunished.”

First, a little history.

Irving Materials Inc. (IMI) had a mining operation on Geist Lake near Olio Road for many years.  When the property was mined-out, there were rumors IMI and the other owner of the property, Marina Limited Partnership, were taking offers from developers for constructing high-priced homes on the property.

Seeing the first and only opportunity to preserve any public space on Gest Reservoir, the City of Fishers, in 2017, made it clear publicly, that it was the city’s intention to use condemnation, if necessary, to acquire the IMI property for a public park.

The haggling over the purchase price ended up in court, but a judge in 2018 ruled on the amount IMI would receive in the sale, $15.7 million.  The city began moving forward.  Constructing a park on a reservoir takes a long time, with many regulatory hurdles involved.

In November of 2022, Fishers invited people to come out and see the park, despite bone-chilling cold.  Hundreds braved the elements to check out the new park.

There was a ribbon-cutting ceremony in May and the new Geist Waterfront Park opened to the public May 27th for the Memorial holiday weekend.  I have asked the city for numbers on attendance at the park on that first weekend, but they were still working on that at last report.

This is a gorgeous park with a beach, swimming area and boats (non-motorized) available for rent.  A pirate-themed play area is there, along with a concession stand.

Another thing about Geist Waterfront Park – it is small.  There was only so much property available to the city once IMI moved out.  Mayor Scott Fadness asked the City Council to approve a $50 parking fee for those living outside Fishers during the summer months.

The mayor told the council this is the method he recommends to allow Fishers residents reasonable access to the park, since their tax dollars are paying for it.  Fadness also emphasized that controlling the number of people at the park is a safety issue.

The Council voted in favor of the $50 non-resident parking fee in April by a 7-2 vote, with Democrats Jocelyn Vare and Crystal Neumann casting the no votes.  Councilor Vare expressed concerns this is not a sign Fishers is a welcoming city.

I had a podcast recording session with the mayor May 24th.  Given the criticism the city has faced, I asked if the $50 nonresident parking fee will remain in place the 2023 summer season at Geist Waterfront Park and he replied it will.  I asked Mayor Fadness if his administration had looked into other alternatives to the $50 parking fee to allow city residents access to the park and control the crowd to handle safety concerns.  The mayor responded that there is no legal way to restrict access to this park for city residents only.  He explained a data calculation on how the city arrived at the $50 figure.

As someone that has been a resident of Fishers for 32 years, I am concerned about the image this parking fee has cast on our city.  I perfectly understand the mayor’s arguments into how and why the parking fee was imposed.  Some moments tend to define a city, like Carmel will forever be known for its roundabouts.

This will present a major challenge to the mayor and his staff.  If this is a short-term public relations hit that will go away in a few weeks, that is one thing.  I fear this controversy may be a long-term hit on the reputation of Fishers.  I hope I’m wrong.

But it all comes back to the mayor’s desire to have public space on Geist reservoir, rather than more million-dollar homes.  That is a noble goal and the park is a testament to that goal achieved.

It goes back to that old saying mentioned earlier in this commentary, “no good deed goes unpunished.”