Posts Tagged “John Shoaff”

By Jim Sack

No one as so much as raised an eye brow when Tom Smith read the I&M-City deal into the record in preparation for the final vote, well, penultimate vote, last night. Some eyes darted from colleague to colleague, there was a careful smile, but no objections, no points made, no fingers thrust into the air, no beating of the chest over an arcane principle. Mr. Smith brought the matter to the table then Council President Marty Bender called for ayes and nays. It passed 9 to zero. Tim Haffner, the city corporate counsel sitting in row three, could have stayed at home and watch from his couch. Angela Boerger, the message mother for the city, could have enjoyed another hour of Wagner. Nobody on either side of the shifting aisle of local politics wanted to rock the boat, everybody is happy with this deal. Now, one more step at the state level and then it will be official. In fact, council members, members of the Henry Administration and some citizens are already conjuring up uses for the funds. Read the rest of this entry »

By Jim Sack

Glynn Hines woke everyone up at the end of a moribund council meeting: net year is election year and we may want to move the budget process up. Read the rest of this entry »

By Jim Sack

Fire Hydrants? $2,9 million? Well, that’s what Mitch Harper wanted to cut last night from the city budget and it passed, to almost everybody’s surprise, even for Mitch a bit.

More than four hours after a rejuvenated Marty Bender gaveled down the meeting and turned the budget hearings and process over to Finance Chairman Tom Smith the process of cutting the mayor’s budget was still ambling along. Council members, the media, guests, citizens, employees were all a bit slap happy when it came to the matter of Fire Hydrants. It was one of 24 proposed budget cuts voted on in last night’s Marathon session. Read the rest of this entry »

By Jim Sack

Jam packed with interesting moments was last night’s council meeting and it will only continue Thursday night when budget hearings resume.

Last night there was an embarrassing absence, a prominent citizen blasted the administration during the barely announced public hearing, the renovation of the new city hall was put on hold, the park director sided with a strong critic of the administration, Sandy Kennedy and Liz Brown spared, and Tim Pape added to his credentials as the administration’s only true and dear friend on council, and volleys fired from table toward the Journal Gazette. Read the rest of this entry »

By Jim Sack

Budget time at city council. The budget is the blueprint by which policy is made. Dollars are allocated to programs and projects that should, in the composite, articulate the philosophy of the community as it looks to its future.

But first, the roll call. Eight “here,” one “present.” Mitch Harper is known to graze just a few yards away from the rest of the herd. Gavel down, President Marty Bender conducted the first movement of the night’s concert, Do Pass or Not Do Pass. Two ordinances were passed out quickly, each relating to the sewer problems we have in Fort Wayne. Eight “yeas,” one “nay,” Mister President, announced Clerk Sandy Kennedy. Harper being the lone “nay,” grazing upwind from the sewer question. No rankling, not much discussion, a quick presentation highlighted by a fuzzy map and a quick vote. Mitch staking out a position? Read the rest of this entry »

By Jim Sack

Budget time again, that annual process of setting priorities and stretching pennies, has begun, Councilman Tom Smith in charge.

The administration, in the person of the chief financial officer, the controller, presented a slide show to preface the discussions and debates. It was a overview of revenues and expenses and how they have changed over the past ten to twenty years. In short, most of the city’s expenses are in personnel costs, (78%) and most of the revenue still comes (74%) from property taxes, although, as Controller Pat Roller bragged, the city over the years has developed new streams of revenue to “diversify” government resources, unlike other cities that are in much worse financial shape than Fort Wayne. She introduced a budget that is essentially flat for a city, she noted, that is physically some 38% larger than ten years ago and has 35% more roads to pave and repave and repave than years past. The number of city employees is down and costs are contained, she smiled. Read the rest of this entry »