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 Post subject: Be ready for Garbage Fee soon!!!
PostPosted: Sun Nov 23, 2008 8:32 am 
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CROWN POINT | The Lake County Council will send warning letters to nine cities and towns whose 2009 public budgets appear to be on the brink of financial trouble.

Council members declared East Chicago, Gary, New Chicago and Whiting to be fiscally unsound, which is no surprise to those community leaders, who already know they face the loss of more than $55 million in revenue because of state-mandated property tax cuts beginning in 2009.

However, the council also said the suburbs of Lowell, Munster, Schererville, St. John and Winfield may face similar problems because their projected spending exceeds their apparent income.

The County Council controls the purse strings for county officials, but hasn't sat in judgment of other government agencies until this year under a new state law requiring the council to review all levels of public spending except for school districts.

The council's recommendations are nonbinding, but state fiscal officers who do have the authority to cut government spending may be influenced by the County Council's opinion.

Council members said their opinions could be flawed since they don't have any reliable data on future real estate values. They gave cities and towns one of three color-coded grades: red for budgets in the worst shape; yellow for those that are close to being balanced but needing more cuts; and green for those they approve.

They gave yellow rankings to Calumet Township, the city of Crown Point and its public library, the Dyer sanitation district, the town of Griffith, the Hammond Public Library, the city of Hobart, the city of Lake Station, the Whiting Sanitation District and public library; and the county public library.

They gave green passes to the town of Cedar Lake, Center Township, the town of Dyer, the Dyer water district, Eagle Creek Township, the city of Hammond and its redevelopment and sanitation districts, the town of Highland and its sanitation district, Hobart Township, the county solid waste management district, the Lake Ridge Fire Department, county government, the town of Merrillville, North Township, Ross Township and the Winfield water district.

But we will still have all our Festivals!!!! What is wrong with our Town Council??? Do they not understand that things need to be cut. As they said at the Town Coucil meeting adding a garbage fee is not gonna solve the shortfall, but still having these festivals is? I think right now we need to concentrate on how to fix this shortfall. The festivals and such can be postponed until the economy is better. You can not keep adding fees and increasing utilities to make up for these shortfalls, some cuts need to be made!!!


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 Post subject: Re: Be ready for Garbage Fee soon!!!
PostPosted: Mon Nov 24, 2008 10:05 am 
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a garbage fee alone will not continue to pay for services to unincorporated areas, just another burden by St John taxpayers as a result of an administration that sticks it's nose in other towns business. In this time in our economy, no developments going in, no houses being built, a town that is under a tax cap and cant pay its bills, increases in taxes for a new high school that St John's increase in size put a burden on; it's this type of GREED and money/land grabbing that has put our town, county, state and nation in trouble. Shouldn't we start to set an example locally? Should St John be creating an enemy with a neighboring town? If St John wants to annex, should have done before putting money into a project that had the potential to not be realized. Let's not forget the towns bill for legal fees. Again, out of taxpayers pockets.

St. John objects to proposed Dyer annexation
StoryDiscussionFont Size: Default font size Larger font size BY VANESSA RENDERMAN
vrenderman@nwitimes.com
219.933.3241 | Friday, November 21, 2008 | 20 comment(s)

DYER | St. John officials were on the other side of the dais during a public hearing Thursday night as they objected to a proposed annexation effort by the Town of Dyer.

Dyer is proposing to annex more than 3,000 acres south of town, which would affect 1,400 property owners. St. John had planned to eventually incorporate some of that same land.

St. John and three property owners recently annexed into St. John filed two written objections added to the record.

St. John Town Manager Steve Kil read a prepared statement of opposition on behalf of the town.

"St. John believes that the annexation is simply a land grab which will impose additional tax burden responsibility on property owners not interested in being within the Dyer corporate limits," Kil said.

The statement accuses Dyer of having no plan for orderly growth along with no way of providing water and sanitary service to the proposed annexation area, whereas St. John does.

"In fact, St. John has already extended its water and sanitary sewer services to portions of this Dyer proposed annexation area," Kil said.

St. John Town Council President Michael Fryzel also spoke, saying he disagreed with the way the public hearing was handled.

At the start of the meeting, Dyer Town Attorney Bill Enslen explained each person would be allowed one minute to speak. There would be no discussion, and no questions would be answered, he said.

"Answer the questions for the people," Fryzel told the Town Council, as the crowd of several hundred cheered.

Fryzel later said the meeting was a joke. During a public hearing, people should have their questions answered because it's the responsibility of the elected officials to do so, he said.

Fryzel also noted the strong police presence.

At least seven sworn members of the police department were at the meeting, both in uniform and in plainclothes.

Kil said the meeting was "not at all" what he expected. Usually, public hearings of this nature go on for several hours. Dyer's meeting took about an hour.

"I was really surprised," he said. "This was not normal by any means."

People had legitimate questions, and those questions weren't answered, he said. It's part of the responsibility of a Town Council to listen and respond to questions, Kil said.


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 Post subject: Re: Be ready for Garbage Fee soon!!!
PostPosted: Mon Nov 24, 2008 10:07 am 
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Once again, town politicians dont really care what the people want, just what they want and what's written in their 5 yr plan

Neighbors in middle of Dyer-St. John struggle

BY WILLIAM NANGLE
Times Executive Editor | Monday, November 24, 2008 | No comments posted.

Seemingly hundreds of "no annexation" signs abound in the Dyer-St. John area.

People living in the unincorporated area just outside the towns don't want to become part of either community.


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 Post subject: Re: Be ready for Garbage Fee soon!!!
PostPosted: Mon Nov 24, 2008 3:05 pm 
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Joined: Sat Aug 09, 2008 5:15 am
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mrbsmom wrote:
CROWN POINT | The Lake County Council will send warning letters to nine cities and towns whose 2009 public budgets appear to be on the brink of financial trouble.

Council members declared East Chicago, Gary, New Chicago and Whiting to be fiscally unsound, which is no surprise to those community leaders, who already know they face the loss of more than $55 million in revenue because of state-mandated property tax cuts beginning in 2009.

However, the council also said the suburbs of Lowell, Munster, Schererville, St. John and Winfield may face similar problems because their projected spending exceeds their apparent income.
The County Council controls the purse strings for county officials, but hasn't sat in judgment of other government agencies until this year under a new state law requiring the council to review all levels of public spending except for school districts.
The council's recommendations are nonbinding, but state fiscal officers who do have the authority to cut government spending may be influenced by the County Council's opinion.

Council members said their opinions could be flawed since they don't have any reliable data on future real estate values. They gave cities and towns one of three color-coded grades: red for budgets in the worst shape; yellow for those that are close to being balanced but needing more cuts; and green for those they approve.
They gave yellow rankings to Calumet Township, the city of Crown Point and its public library, the Dyer sanitation district, the town of Griffith, the Hammond Public Library, the city of Hobart, the city of Lake Station, the Whiting Sanitation District and public library; and the county public library.

They gave green passes to the town of Cedar Lake, Center Township, the town of Dyer, the Dyer water district, Eagle Creek Township, the city of Hammond and its redevelopment and sanitation districts, the town of Highland and its sanitation district, Hobart Township, the county solid waste management district, the Lake Ridge Fire Department, county government, the town of Merrillville, North Township, Ross Township and the Winfield water district.

But we will still have all our Festivals!!!! What is wrong with our Town Council??? Do they not understand that things need to be cut. As they said at the Town Coucil meeting adding a garbage fee is not gonna solve the shortfall, but still having these festivals is? I think right now we need to concentrate on how to fix this shortfall. The festivals and such can be postponed until the economy is better. You can not keep adding fees and increasing utilities to make up for these shortfalls, some cuts need to be made!!!


I don't think public schools should be an exception at all. Dyer got a code green? :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
Isn't a lot of this budget shortfall due to the economy...rising fuel prices, now building permits...ect.?
The economy wasn't all to good when "certain" people got pay raises and down the road "certain" people lost their jobs. How's this for a way to cut a little more out of the budget? Let's have 3 town council members instead of five. Always best to start with smaller government first. There's a plan.

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