New city-county councilors eager to tackle Indy’s challenges
Six Democratic councilors-elect, and one Republican, make up the freshman class that will take office Jan. 1. Democrats will have a 19-6 majority on the Indianapolis City-County Council.
Six Democratic councilors-elect, and one Republican, make up the freshman class that will take office Jan. 1. Democrats will have a 19-6 majority on the Indianapolis City-County Council.
Taylor, chief of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department for nearly 4 years, plans to step down at the end of the year into another IMPD role.
Indianapolis Police Chief Randal Taylor said Friday that he had planned to serve as chief for two more years, but that after reflecting on the toll the job has taken, he didn’t think he could last that long.
Indianapolis officials say they are preparing for more severe weather in the years to come as climate-change events threaten to overwhelm the stormwater drainage system and pose other problems.
A planned reconstruction of the Westfield Boulevard Bridge will require lane restrictions this month followed by a 100-day street closure. It comes on the heels of a major reconstruction of Broad Ripple Avenue that took much longer than expected.
The city wants to build a “housing hub” that will include the city’s first low-barrier homeless shelter on 11 parcels at the intersection of Shelby and East Georgia streets.
The 19-5 vote, which followed party lines, creates an economic enhancement district—or EED—bound by North, East, South and West streets—the Mile Square—that would see increases to property taxes within those boundaries.
The council also approved tens of millions of dollars in bonds to support the redevelopment of Old City Hall, a demolition of the former Jail I building and renovation of portions of the City-County Building. Also passed Monday was a plan to create a study commission on the use of artificial intelligence.
A new proposal to impose a fee on downtown property owners for initiatives aimed at public safety, cleanliness and homelessness in the Mile Square is gaining steam among Democrats on the City-County Council.
Rusty Carr was hired to the DMD post after two separate stints as interim director. His final day with the city will be Dec. 29 and he will begin at The Parks Alliance on Jan. 2.
The move follows pushback by several neighborhood groups on the north side who expressed concern about the city’s plan, which could rely heavily on the Midtown tax-increment financing district to repay bonds issued for the acquisition.
Several Indianapolis neighborhood groups are taking issue with the city’s plan to spend up to $26 million in tax revenue earmarked for neighborhood redevelopment to acquire the new family center.
If approved, the bonds are expected to pay for the demolition to demolish a former Marion County Jail 1 and renovate portions of the City-County Building ahead of a planned consolidation of city employees from satellite offices.
Matt Gentry recently sat down with IBJ to discuss what’s next for both Lebanon and him, going into what he said will be his final term.
Election results show Democrats capturing 19 of the council’s 25 seats and Republicans gaining one post.
The department is poised to invest $9 million in COVID-19 recovery funds into cameras and other technology. Some critics are raising privacy and efficacy concerns; others say the city hasn’t adopted the new techniques quickly enough.
The federal lawsuit alleges Indianapolis Animal Care Services violated the volunteers’ First Amendment rights when they received threats of termination for wanting to speak publicly about issues plaguing the shelter.
At their final debate before the Indianapolis mayoral election, Democratic incumbent Joe Hogsett and Republican challenger Jefferson Shreve clashed on several issues, including economic development, city policies and animal welfare.
A question repeatedly posed by the Shreve campaign and other Marion County Republicans was asked Monday: Where was Hogsett during 2020’s downtown riots?
While incumbent Joe Hogsett says a broad use of incentives like tax-increment-financing bonds is often necessary to bridge funding gaps, Jefferson Shreve favors a moderated use of the city’s incentive toolbox.