Developing: Navistar just told its Fort Wayne employees screw you, we’re leaving over the next 24- 36 months. 1100 Navistar jobs gone. So, screw you UAW.
Update: From Jim Sack – roving reporter.
Mayor Tom Henry has just announced a planned phase down in Fort Wayne over the next two to three years. He adds the city is “fighting” to save jobs at the test track. Nine hundred to 1,000 jobs will be lost. Henry added that he had spoken with the governor and he “is 100% behind our efforts,” whatever that means.
The voice of the Indiana Pacers, Mark Boyle, joins The Gary Snyder Show on FM 100.1 Talks tonight from 6-7 p.m. Mark will let us know about an upcoming charity event and we’ll talk a little Pacers. Bob Morris, newly elected State Representative, District 84 joins us to talk District 84 politics and his priorities if elected in November; Kevin Patrick, President of the Huntington County Community School Corporation Board of Trustees (school board) will give us a call and let us know what’s happening in the Huntington Schools; and finally, Laura Horacek from Metro Mortgage and Insurance Solutions will give us an update on interest rates in the area. All this and a chance to get registered to shoot automatic weapons at the upcoming Steve Ochs for Sheriff fundraiser.
Where politics and sports collide in Northeast Indiana!
The Wall Street Journal lists us, Fort Wayne, as one of the top gainers in the nation when it comes to home price increases. A 9.2 percent jump. Just a bit less than LA at 9.3 percent and a bit more than Honolulu at 9.1. South Bend also made the list with an 8.9 percent jump. Akron was tops, despite the loss of LeBron, at 36 percent.
It was the type of city council meeting that Mitch Harper should like: short, concise, low-keyed.
On the committee session agenda were two, just two measures to consider: declaration of an economic revitalization area, and a “prior-approval” to get work started early on street repairs in Crestwood Colony. Council members seemed to struggle to find questions to ask on both matters. Both matters whizzed to votes and acceptance.
It was a marathon session last night at city council. I will try to be brief.
First up, James Sturgio, the gentleman who watches over the city’s 20-year old self-insurance program. Good news almost top to bottom. “You have saved millions over the years” through being self insured, the corpulent New Yorker chirped. Fort Wayne has some of the lowest claims rates of cities of comparable size in the county, he boasted. Mr. Sturgio, who reports annually to council, lauded city hall insurance officials for resolving claims very quickly so that legal fees did not mount, as well as for strong risk management programs. “Absolutely spectacular” came out of his mouth once, “just spectacular” another time. He did, however, suggest an increase in the amount of money council sets aside to cover claims. “Every five, six, seven years” you have a bad year he warned. “Just being conservative.”
It was a full night at council and could have gone much longer, in fact, toward the end of the session it seemed like I was in the middle of a long, uncomfortable trans-Atlantic flight.
K-2, another tax abatement, comedic backfilling over the new mayor’s office, a request to vacate a street where high on council’s agenda, all interesting, but mere backdrop for the looming battle between council and the mayor over their balance of power.
The Redmond Rule. You might remember the grizzled old veteran who had a chat with council one night, something highly unusual in the sense that citizens never “chat” when council is in session, we just stand at a lectern and speak to a stony-faced semi-circle of silent elders who allow the words to drop, like so many mute stones, without comment. The city clerk quite visibly starts a timer to make sure our comments end within a three minute deadline.
The Downtown Improvement District is essentially the neighborhood association for the downtown. They have meetings, by-laws and events not unlike my little neighborhood association, only their challenges are significantly greater, their budget considerable, their organization much more powerful and their effect on our community could be profound.
Almost every month at council, economic development official Elissa McGauley comes down to the council table to testify as to why a certain given tax abatement is good for Fort Wayne. Last night she defended two and got a bit of push-back from council. The abatements in question were for IOM (Lutheran Hospital) and Midtowne Realty. Lutheran wants to add a floor to one of their buildings on west, west, West Jefferson and Midtowne wants an abatement to rehab the old Bonsib Building at Washington and Harrison.
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