COUNCILMAN’S CORNER
In the near future you’ll hear quite a bit about an extensive study of Fort Wayne’s parks that has just been completed. There were numerous public meetings and questionnaires that were distributed throughout the city during the information gathering phase of the parks study. Several residents of Waynedale made a special effort to attend public meetings and offered their input. I haven’t seen the final report yet and it won’t become official policy until it has been accepted by the Park Board and City Council. I’ve heard that two of the recommendations will likely include more programs in parks and continued expansion of the Greenway system—both good ideas. After the study is made public I’ll talk with citizens in the 4th District regarding the direction our parks need to take in the future.
As you are probably aware, legislation continues to move through the Indiana Senate that would empower the citizens of Fort Wayne and Allen County to study local government and recommend future changes. No changes in city or county government would be made unless they were passed in an all-county referendum.
Representatives Win Moses and Ben GiaQuinta will carry the legislation in the House of Representatives. Our current local governmental structure dates back to the 1800s and is hampered by duplication of the majority of services provided by city and county government. Small incorporated towns such as New Haven would be given the opportunity to opt out of any new government structure. Give our state representatives and senators a call or send a letter or email and encourage them to pass Senate Bills #223 and #225 (and their House versions). There is growing support as well for nonpartisan local elections (somewhat similar to school board elections) which I think is a good idea. More to follow.
I’ve asked AEP to look into prolonged power outages in various areas throughout the 4th District including some neighborhoods off Sandpoint Road. I appreciate AEP’s willingness to cooperate in tackling these problems. My approach is to be fairly aggressive in insisting that excellent service be provided by all public and private utilities. Utilities usually don’t have much competition—public input should be a driving force in keeping utilities’ service levels high.
If you have specific requests for projects in your neighborhood such as new sidewalks or streetlights be sure to discuss your thoughts soon with neighborhood association leaders. CEDIT request forms should be sent to the office of Molly McCray, City Council Research Assistant, on the 2nd floor of the City-County Building by March 15th. Give me a call if you have any questions about CEDIT requests or any other matters important to our city!
Tom Hayhurst, City Councilman
4th District
432-8418
tom.hayhurst@verizon.net
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