Some council members still unsure about CIB budget
The Capital Improvement Board’s controversial spending plan will face its final trial Monday night as the City-County Council takes up the city’s $1.1 billion budget for next year.
The Capital Improvement Board’s controversial spending plan will face its final trial Monday night as the City-County Council takes up the city’s $1.1 billion budget for next year.
City would reap more cash in the long run and get more flexibility to alter the deal if necessary, but the controversial 50-year term of the contract remains.
Mayor Greg Ballard has unveiled a number of green initiatives, ranging from widespread use of hybrid vehicles to making the City-County Building more energy-efficient.
The city is kicking in up to $38 million for infrastructure upgrades to support a massive expansion of the Clarian Health campus at 16th Street and Capitol Avenue.
Some City-County Council members are skeptical of the Capital Improvement Board’s spending plan for 2011 that includes $10 million for the privately operated Indiana Pacers.
Developer Jeff Sparks met with city planners Oct. 1 to propose fixes to the apartment project at Capitol Avenue and St. Clair Street.
Hudnut will represent clients in federal government matters for Bose Public Affairs Group LLC, an Indianapolis-based lobbying firm. The former four-term Indianapolis mayor served the city from 1976 to 1992.
The Near North Development Corp. asked the city in a Sept. 2 e-mail to compare the renderings for the Di Rimini apartment project at 733 N. Capital Ave. with what was actually taking shape. A week later, the Department of Code Enforcement issued a stop-work order for the project.
The city has accumulated a $12 million surplus of funds from the downtown TIF district, raising questions from critics who wonder how the windfall came about.
City leaders argue the termination fee would be paid only if the city breaks the 50-year agreement after the City-County Council signs off on the deal, not if the contract doesn’t win approval.
The city plans to issue bonds and use tax-increment financing to fund the $150M project, which also will include 320 high-end apartments and 40,000 square feet of retail space. Construction should begin this year.
A city lobbyist who also is registered to lobby for Affiliated Computer Services Inc., which was chosen to receive a 50-year lease deal to manage meter operations, says he was not involved in the deal.
City Controller David Reynolds, who started with the city when Mayor Greg Ballard took office in January 2008, has accepted a job as senior fiscal analyst for the Indiana Senate’s Republican majority caucus.
About 80 downtown business owners and employees have signed a petition urging Republican Mayor Greg Ballard’s administration to nix major plans to revamp metered parking in Indianapolis.
Indianapolis’ Department of Public Works Board and its City-County Council Rules and Public Policy Committee both will meet
on Monday to consider the long-term deal. It would need approval from the City-County Council before taking effect.
The pitch from Mayor Greg Ballard’s administration to privatize the city’s parking meters is compelling, but the proposal
to sell the meters to Dallas-based Affiliated Computer Services Inc. has the city giving up more in the long run than is immediately
apparent.
Funding for city arts programs is expected to remain at $1 million in 2011, even as the mayor’s budget plan calls for cutting
$22
million in local spending. Funding for the parks department also should remain flat, at $21.1 million.
The city has entered into a 50-year lease agreement with Dallas-based Affiliated Computer Services Inc. The
city will receive $35 million upfront and a share of revenue to make sidewalk and street repairs. Parking meter rates are
expected
to double in some areas.
The city's AAA bond rating boosts proceeds to $153.8 million. It originally expected $140 million for street, bridge and
sidewalk projects.
Program that aims to reach local population without bank accounts so far has helped more than 7,500 people open an account.