COUNCILMAN’S CORNER
Recently some significant improvements have been initiated in the Dalevue neighborhood in response to neighborhood concerns. Thanks to Tom Pallone and his colleagues in Fort Wayne’s Storm Water Division for their quick action to upgrade the storm water collection system in that neighborhood. Street lights are also being added under the direction of Al Lichtsinn of Street Light Engineering to enhance safety in the Dalevue area.
Additional flood protection improvements have also been made in the Winchester Road area along the St. Mary’s River. However, that low-lying location is one of several in the city where it takes a massive effort to protect homes during flooding. As additional dollars become available, home buyouts along the river and in several other areas in Fort Wayne will probably be the most logical approach.
In a couple of weeks City Council will tackle the 2006 city budget. All Council is allowed to do under Indiana law is to cut items from the budget. Every year there seem to be more and more “unfunded mandates” from the state and federal government. Meeting these requirements and providing needed community services is becoming more difficult each year. Well less than half of all property taxes go to support city services. Due to changes in state law that continued the shift of tax burden to residential property tax payers avoiding a significant property tax increase in 2006 will be a major challenge.
I’ve been asked whether the Waynedale area will be in a different City Council district after the Aboite area is annexed and redistricting occurs. Some of the preliminary maps show Waynedale and nearby areas becoming part of the 5th City Council district next year. There really isn’t any way to know where the district lines will eventually be drawn. Check out the city website if you’d like to have some input regarding the redistricting process.
Toxaway Day, when you can discard materials such as oil based paints, insecticides, lawn chemicals, etc. for a small fee is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 10th. The exact location hasn’t been made public yet so watch local media for that information during the next few days. This is a great project which helps keep our environment clean!
Congrats to Beulah Stoker, Cheryl Connett, Renee Haugh, and their crew of volunteers for another great Waynedale Community Picnic at Waynedale Park on August 27th. The annual event is great for kids in the area and it’s totally FREE thanks to many generous local businesses and individuals.
Call me with any thoughts or suggestions regarding our city!
Tom Hayhurst
City Councilman
4th District 432-8418
tom.hayhurst@verizon.net
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