COUNCILMAN’S CORNER
It was certainly good news to hear recently that the parent firm of North American Van Lines will be adding 260 new jobs at its Fort Wayne operation! The national economic picture finally seems to be showing a few signs of recovery. I’ve said all along, that Fort Wayne and Allen County and the Chamber of Commerce are well prepared through the Economic Development Alliance to land new jobs for our area as soon as the national economic picture brightens a bit and hopefully, that’s exactly what’s happening. The Alliance is one of the most important examples of city-county cooperation—it’s great to see that relationship pay off with new jobs for the Fort Wayne area!
Congratulations to local community leaders Beulah Stoker, Cheryl Connett, and Renee’ Haugh, as well as, many other volunteers for the successful Waynedale Community Picnic held in Waynedale Park on August 30th! There were lots of free events for both kids and adults including free food, drinks, music, a moon walk, police dog demonstrations, and a great magic show. Many thanks to Waynedale’s favorite police officer, Cornell Wiley, and his fellow police officers for their support of this great “pro-kid” event! Kudos also to all of the local businesses that supported the picnic with free food, bicycles and other items to be given as door prizes, as well as over $2000 in contributions. Look for more similar events in the future—how about an all-Waynedale 4th of July parade?
Recently I’ve attended several meetings in the Waynedale area following up on the July 2003 floods. City Utilities officials whom I consider to be good problem solvers and knowledgeable about storm water problems attended those meetings, listened to flood victims, answered questions, and are now working on proactive measures to protect those who live in low-lying areas. Some homeowners probably need to be bought out if they’ve been flooded repeatedly and federal dollars are almost certainly going to be available to get that job done. Some residents were upset about being forced to leave their homes as floodwaters rose; that’s understandable but the actions of the FWPD and the FWFD may well have prevented a drowning due to high water or an electrocution due to flooded live electrical circuits. I’ve discussed those decisions with local public safety leaders who were in a tough situation and had to make judgment calls in a rapidly changing, threatening crisis environment. The City is reviewing every aspect of the flood of 2003 and will incorporate that information into future crisis management planning.
City Council is currently reviewing the city budget which by law is developed in the Mayor’s office and brought to Council in September. Council can cut the budget but cannot (by state law) add any expenditures. I was happy to see that the Mayor supported the current level of spending of CEDIT tax funds in each councilmanic district. Those dollars go a long way toward keeping streets and sidewalks (etc.) in good shape and help support the concept of Community-Oriented Government in which I am a strong believer.
Call or email me with any suggestions or problems relative to Fort Wayne City government. I appreciate your patience as I’m often working on dozens of situations at the same time. Don’t forget to register and vote in the city election on Tuesday, Nov. 4th!
Tom Hayhurst
City Councilman—4th Dist.
432-8418
tom.hayhurst@verizon.net
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