Archive for the “City & County Government” Category
Current structure delays progress, costs too much and is difficult to understand, McGauley says
County Government structure is outdated and expensive and should be replaced with one that is leaner, less burdensome to taxpayers and simpler to navigate, said John McGauley, Republican candidate for Allen County Commissioner.
But current county structure should only give way to an organizational chart that preserves the ability of citizens to choose their representatives, while at the same time building a government more suited to meeting the demands of the 21st Century, McGauley added.
“Every discussion of government reorganization tends to take an all-or-nothing approach to the problem,” McGauley said. “Solutions either leave county government the way it is or take from citizens most of the important choices they get to make in who their leaders are. I believe it’s possible to modernize local government while still preserving the role voters have in shaping their community.” Read the rest of this entry »
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By Jim Sack
 I will not hedge on this commentary: Mark Becker will be great for Fort Wayne. I would add that Mayor Henry is hit one out of the park. Opening day for the Tin Caps pass on tossing in the first pitch, but take a swing for the fences to show his stuff. Gold star on his report card. Pat on the back. Two atta boys and a hip hip hurrah. I have known Mark Becker for some twenty or more years. We spent some time sniffing around Germany together years ago admiring Giant Schnauzer pups. I watched him during his years number two-ing for Graham Richard and his first few months as deputy mayor for Tom Henry. He simply does a great job.
Mark is a friend of business, a champion of stream lining government, a man who has an open ear and a ready smile for everyone. He is also very smart, gracious and kind. As a friend in Republican leadership told me today he is about the best choice Mayor Henry could possibly have made. that came from a rock-ribbed Republican!
As mentioned, Mr. Becker has worked in the highest levels of government before. He will have only the shallowest of learning curves in assuming leadership. He has, also, worked in private business and recently for the quasi-governmental Partnership in bringing jobs to the area. He has been a success and a motivator at every step in his career of public service.
My Republican friend also said something else that was telling – it is impossible from speaking with Mark Becker to find a political bias. Mr. Becker plays it down the middle giving everyone the same kind attention and respect. Your ideas count with Mark. He will search for the essence and use it in policy making.
So, I have nothing but praise for the appointment and feel fully assured this number two would serve us well in the mayor’s absence, as number twos often are called upon to do.
At the news conference, Mayor Henry seemed like a major league manager who had just landed the best player in the league. He and his staff were all smiles and barely containing the urge to high-five. For Mayor Henry it means more freedom to turn the nuts and bolts over to his number two and get out among the citizens, something Mayor Henry does with relish and skill. Mayor Henry should feel confident that in Mr. Becker he has a strong leader and a skilled executive.
So, it is a good day for Fort Wayne, as well as for this mayor who has had more than a few challenges, and for the employees of the city who will be working now for one of the most supportive and constructive people I have ever known. This sounds like the makings of that Franz Lehar operetta.
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At the 11am press conference in the Mayor’s office tomorrow, Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry will announce Mark Becker as the new Fort Wayne Deputy Mayor. For those of you that may recall, Becker was appointed deputy mayor under Graham Richard, but resigned to take a position at the Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership as Director of Regional Development and Executive Director of the Northeast Indiana Foundation. Becker served in four mayoral administrations, including Moses, Helmke, Richard and Henry. He resigned effective May 31, 2008 under Henry’s administration.
It should be noted that Matt Bell, who was CEO of Regional Chamber of Northeast Indiana also recently left to take the position of president of Ivy Tech Corporate College. Now Becker is fleeing a similar organization, the Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership, which worked hand-hand with the Regional Chamber of Northeast Indiana. Interesting.
Co-writer on this blog Jim Sack stated:
I love Mark. He has been a friend since I first met him. He and I went to Germany together on a sister city trip and spent hours over beer and fondly giant schnauzers, one of our mutual loves. He is a positive, upbeat, can-do manager. Certainly, those who do not get from him what they want or who oppose what he has been deputized to accomplish have bones to pick with him, but I love the guy personally and admire him professionally. We were on the opposite sides of the Calhoun redo and he was most polite, but I know he worked quietly to wrangle votes against me. Polite, professional, effective and always upbeat. He works with everyone, no one on council speaks ill of him. He does not burn bridges.
Something old, something new? And your opinion?
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By Jim Sack
 We all knew how the request for the City Utilities bond was going to turn out. Think of it this way, the pipes in your house are leaking. Every day another leak spurts. Your plumber is soldering away, but falling woefully behind. The drywall is crumbling, the floor is buckling and mold is sprouting mushrooms. So, of course, the answer is to bring in a second or a third or a fourth plumber to regain control. Trouble is the old wallet is thin and the plumber costs a fair farthing. Time to step back. The water meter is running fast, your bill is going up, leaks are expensive. So, fix it now with borrowed money, or fall to your soggy knees in prayer that somehow the whole problem might resolve itself. Council decided last night to borrow money and get out ahead of the problem.
They asked many questions of the City Utilities controller, a calm and forthright man, Len Poehler, who explained, among other things, that the state does not allow City Utilities to amass savings to deal with such contingencies and that it will take lots of time before revenue from the recently passed rate increase will be available to buy solder and pay the plumber. In the meantime, as it was previously noted, almost 25 percent of the water treated and then pumped forth from the water filtration plant never makes it to your faucet, it leaks into the ground and is lost, at considerable cost to us all. Read the rest of this entry »
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By Jim Sack
How to characterize the council meeting last night? Short? It certainly was that. About an hour, including formalities, presentation of the colors, a moment of silences and Marty Bender’s announcement that he hasn’t been to a barber in 14 years. Calm? Certainly that. Not the first eyebrow was raised. Workmanlike? Yep. Bills were read, hearings held without input, every ordinance was dispatched with a 7-0 vote. It reminded me a tape from 1933 BBC radio when the announcer in his droll, upper-class English accent introduced the program. “Now, news from the BBC in London. (pause) There is no news.”
So it was last night, bills came and went. Mr. Councilman Harper carefully amended a section of city code to protect city finances. Nods of approval from everyone at the table, as well as city employees who had stayed late to collaborate on the matter. Zorab Tazian was there. He came to shepherd a petition through council that amounted to voluntary annexation of a parcel of his land to the north of the city into the city. He sees access to city services – our tasty water, police and fire protection – as big pluses when he puts sub-divided lots crowned with McMansions up for sale. Mr. Tazian, for those who don’t know, is in a class by himself when it comes to business acumen. Read the rest of this entry »
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By Jim Sack
There will be the water rate increase the Henry Administration wanted and it will be mercifully spread out over three years. There will not quite yet be a revision of a taxing structure that Councilman Mitch Harper wanted, but tune back in in two weeks. There will be., to the chagrin of the administration, a new face at council table. And there was a smart, but indecisive debate over the fate of our sewers and how to fund repair of cascading main breaks.
First, the new face: council attorney Joe Bonahoom introduced his new understudy, Jim Howard, the former purchasing director for the City of Fort Wayne who was just recently fired by the administration to the disgust of some and the head-scratching of many. Why ever he was fired we probably will never quite know, but now he will have a seat at the city council replacing the able Mr. Bonahoom when other duties call. There is some irony in this turn of events and it will be interesting to see how the old “friends” comport themselves when a matter of courtly etiquette falls to Mr. Howard to decide. Read the rest of this entry »
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