The Fishers-based Youth Mentoring Initiative (YMI) is set to host its highly anticipated annual Mayor’s Breakfast to Benefit YMI, an event dedicated to supporting its mission of fostering mentorship connections between Hamilton Southeastern School District students and volunteer mentors. The fundraising event is scheduled to take place on Thursday, September 7th.

The breakfast event, now in its 8th year, aims to raise funds furthering YMI’s goal of matching students with mentors who can provide guidance and support on a weekly basis. The event has become a staple in the Fishers community, drawing attention to the positive impact mentorship can have on young individuals.

A highlight of the event is a panel discussion, moderated by none other than Mayor Scott Fadness, where the topic of mentorship will take center stage. The panelists, individuals who have reaped the benefits of mentorship, will share their experiences and insights into how mentoring has contributed to their achievements.

The distinguished panelists include:

• Chris Huppenthal: A seasoned educator, Chris is a retired Hamilton Southeastern High School basketball coach with a state championship to his name.
• Bailee Poore: Former HSE student and athlete under Coach Huppenthal’s guidance, Bailee has first-hand experience of the impact mentorship can have on a student’s growth.
• Justin Masterson: A former professional baseball starting pitcher for renowned teams like the Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, and St. Louis Cardinals. Masterson’s journey to success was marked by the guidance of mentors.

“We are excited to bring together this panel to discuss mentorship at all levels,” said YMI’s Executive Director Brittany Rayburn. “Each of these individuals has been guided and impacted by mentors along their journeys of accomplishment, and it’s our hope the morning will inspire others to see themselves in the role of mentor to one of our students.”

The 8th annual Mayor’s Breakfast to Benefit YMI is slated to take place from 7:00 am to 9:00 am at the picturesque Heritage Gardens at the Historic Ambassador House. As the largest annual fundraiser for YMI, the event plays a pivotal role in gathering resources to connect more Hamilton Southeastern students with caring adult mentors.

Tickets and sponsorships for the event are still available at this link.  Those interested in becoming a mentor for YMI can find more information on their website, at this link.

There has been much discussion at the state and local levels about income taxes and property taxes in the Hoosier state.  Now, the Hamilton County Council is proposing to raise the county income tax rate in order to lower property taxes.

The situation is fairly complicated, but Current Publishing reporter Leila Kheiry does a nice job of explaining how the state law works and how such a proposal would be enacted by a group of local governments within Hamilton County.

You can read Leila’s story at the link below.

Hamilton County Council proposes property tax relief/income tax hike

When I began this local Fishers news blog in January of 2012, I knew Fishers was a growing area and would make news as it became a larger municipality.  It would have been hard at that time to imagine the massive media attention during the August 24 Hamilton East Library Board meeting.

The Indianapolis Star, the state’s largest newspaper, sent reporter Rachel Fradette, along with a photographer and a video camera to live stream the proceedings.  I didn’t take a full count, but I believe all the television news operations in Indianapolis sent camera crews and reporters.  It is hard to remember an event in this area that drew so much media attention.

The meeting was held in Noblesville, but the Hamilton East Library system serves both Noblesville and Fishers, with library buildings in each city.  The board rotates where the meetings are held between the two locations.

Why all the media focus on Fishers?  Because a majority of library board members implemented a policy of having the staff review all books in the teen section for possible reshelving into the adult collection, providing instructions to the staff on how to evaluate the books, based on the book’s content.  Library Director Edra Waterman told the board it would take a year to complete such a review and cost more than $300,000, but the board said, do the review.

When New York Times best-selling author John Green discovered his book was moved from the young adult to the adult section of the library, he let it be known on social media he was not pleased.

Even when the board indicated the book in question, The Fault In Our Stars, would be returned to the young adult collection, Green made it clear that was not enough, he very clearly said he wanted the policy to be rescinded.

Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness, in a statement to the Indianapolis Star and on a podcast with me, used  words I have heard him use many times before, urging “discipline and humility over cultural matters.”  He wants decision makers to be “thoughtful’ when putting together something like library policy.

The Hamilton East Library Board members are appointed by the Hamilton County Council, County Commissioners, Noblesville Schools and Hamilton Southeastern Schools.  In an IndyStar story written by reporter John Tuohy, County Councilor Ken Alexander and County Commissioner Christine Altman both told the Star of being “exasperated” by some of the library board actions.

The media attention, which went national and international in its scope, apparently had something to do with the board’s unanimous vote at the August 24th session, with all that media looking on and a jammed meeting room, to “pause” the review of books in the young adult section.

The 7-member board has seen a number of 4-3 votes lately.  The term of board member Laura Alerding expires at the end of August and Noblesville High School teacher Bill Kenley will replace Alerding following action by the Noblesville School Board.  Will the addition of Mr. Kenley change the balance of power on the board?  Time will tell.

As I have written before, I have been a fan of the Hamilton East Library for a long time.  When first moving to Fishers in 1991, I visited the Noblesville location before the Fishers branch was constructed.  My wife Jane and my daughters have used the library, and Jane  I continue to be users of the Hamilton East Library in Fishers.

This entire dust-up over our local library’s policy has hurt the reputation of this community.  The publicity generated has not been positive.

We all need to let our elected officials know how we feel.  They appoint the members of the library board.  We all have an interest in library policies that reflect the entire community.

On a side note, I started a Twitter account in January of 2012 when this blog started.  The platform, recently renamed X, is used by me as a way to let my readers know when a new story is posted on the blog.  A few days ago, I welcomed X follower number 3,000.  That is a lot of followers for a small, local, volunteer news blog.

My thanks to the @larryinfishers X followers and to all that take the time to read this blog.  I have a firm belief that civic involvement and interest in local elections will only happen if there is news coverage.  I do the best I can as one person to provide that coverage.

I have tried to quit this enterprise twice, but something always happens to keep me here.  Plus, I’m not getting any younger.

But my health is relatively good for a guy my age so I enter another election cycle hoping to let people know where the candidates stand.

Thanks for reading this blog and listening to my podcasts.

I retired from my government job in 2011, where most of my 28 years there were spent as a tax law specialist, dealing with federal statutes.  I did some teaching, continuing education for tax professionals, at Indiana University for 5 years after retiring.  I have been out of that game for a few years now, but a news story that popped-up in recent days caught my attention.

There is not just a crowded field seeking the Republican nomination for Indiana Governor in next year’s primary election, there are many candidates with access to lots of campaign cash.  Hoosiers should prepare themselves to be bombarded with television and social media ads before next year’s May primary.

Candidates often look for an issue to separate themselves from the pack and start a discussion.  Suzanne Crouch, currently Indiana’s Lt. Governor, is a candidate for the top job.  She raised plenty of eyebrows by proposing the elimination of the state’s income tax.  The Indiana state income tax generates one-third of all state revenue, about $8 billion.

How would candidate Crouch make up that revenue?  She doesn’t say, but has been quoted as taking the position that she would not seek any other revenue sources.  She asserts the state could simply cut spending and find government efficiencies.  Crouch has not been specific about what exact spending would be cut or where efficiencies would be found.

Niki Kelly has been covering the Statehouse for a long time, first for the Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette newspaper and now as editor of the news nonprofit Indiana Capital Chronicle.  She is a regular panelist on the weekly Public Broadcasting program Indiana Week In Review.

During the August 25th edition of the TV program, Kelly said she appreciates candidates taking strong positions on the issues, but appears a bit baffled by Crouch’s approach to the state income tax.

“The details, from someone who’s covered the nitty-gritty of state budgets, are important,” Kelly said.  “(Crouch) said we’re not going to raise any additional taxes.  So, then, the idea of efficiencies, we heard again and again, efficiencies.  This kind of cracks me up about this conversation.  Republicans have been in charge for 20 years.  Are there billions of dollars of efficiencies still in state government, or inefficiencies in state government?  If so, why?  They’ve been in charge for 20 years.”

According to Kelly, finding billions of dollars of efficiencies in the Indiana state budget “is just not realistic.”

Host of the Indiana Public Broadcasting program Brandon Smith pointed out in the same episode that economic development experts say finding a quality place to live with amenities is much more important than tax cuts when it comes to locating a business operation.

Indiana’s income tax is not large, about 5% in most counties.  It varies because counties have the choice to levy their own income tax for local governments.  If Crouch gets her way, those local governments would lose that funding.

Our state income tax in not progressive, based on experts that study such things.  There are 9 states with no income tax.  How do they manage that?

It varies by state.  For example, Alaska uses revenue from the oil industry.  Nevada relies on taxes paid by the gambling industry, but that has been uneven in recent years with more states legalizing gambling (including Indiana).

New Hampshire has no income or sales tax, but does tax businesses to make up the difference, along with very high property tax rates.

I won’t bore you with every state’s situation, but you get the picture.  Are there really $8 billion in spending cuts and efficiencies in state government that Hoosiers will not feel in a big way?

I do not pretend to know the answer to that question.  It will be up to Suzanne Crouch and other gubernatorial hopefuls to spell out any tax and spending proposals during the upcoming campaign next year.

Watch for some lane restrictions and neighborhood street resurfacing projects in this week’s Fishers-area road construction project listing.

Below is the full listing, as provided by the City of Fishers:

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To learn more about the State Road 37 Improvement Project and sign up to receive text updates, visit 37Thrives.com. 

STATE ROAD 37 AND 141ST STREET
A pre-construction phase at SR 37 & 141st Street is currently in place. During this phase, 141st Street will be a Right-In-Right-Out (RIRO) traffic configuration. 
This is not the permanent configuration. This will allow for traffic to flow more freely along SR 37 until the next phases of construction can be activated. This will eliminate backups along SR 37 that have caused dangerous stops to the free flow traffic and backups on the 146th Street interchange. Again, this is not the permanent configuration for 141st Street. The full timeline for the 141st Street interchange will be provided after project bids are accepted in the Spring 2024. View detour routes here. 

View how to merge safely onto Northbound SR 37 from 141st Street here and onto Southbound SR 37 from 141st Street here. To navigate the merge, remember:

• Use the accel lane to gain speed, not stop
• Use your mirrors and pay attention
• Look for a gap in SR 37 traffic and safely merge

To learn more about the Clear Path Improvement Project and sign up to receive text and email updates, visit clearpath465.com 

I-465 & I-69
Drivers will see an increase in construction along the I-69 corridor in the coming months. This work will focus on reconfiguring the interchange at I-465 and I-69. New ramps will provide direct movements from eastbound I-465 and northbound I-465 to northbound I-69. Binford Blvd. will also be reconstructed to separate local traffic from traffic entering and exiting I-69 and I-465. Access to I-69 from Binford Blvd. will remain open. 

The ramp from I-69 North to 82nd Street and the ramp from 82nd Street to I-69 North is currently closed through late 2023. For detour routes and additional project information, visit clearpath465.com 

To learn more about the Nickel Plate Trail, view the Capital Project Dashboard here.

NICKEL PLATE TRAIL
The City of Fishers is working on the completion of the Fishers portion of the Nickel Plate Trail between Hague Road and 106th Street. The installation of pedestrian rail is currently taking place and pedestrian flashers are not operative at this time.

There are daily lane closures currently on Cumberland Road, just south of 126th Street for sanitary and water line work. The northbound right turn lane and the southbound passing blister will be closed.

Phase 2A traffic restrictions are currently in effect. These restrictions eliminate left turn movements from 146th Street onto Allisonville Road and reopen to two through lanes on eastbound and westbound 146th Street. 

Utility relocation work is ongoing.  Periodic lane closures may be necessary to complete this work.  Please watch for flaggers and workers in and around the construction zone.  

Construction crews are continuing to work on storm sewer installation and roadway grading.  Crews have begun working on the widening of the westbound bridge over the White River.  The contractor has installed cofferdams and delineating buoys in the White River for pier construction.  Please use caution if canoeing or tubing through the work zone.

For additional project information, visit the 146th St. & Allisonville Rd. Project Page here.

There is a sanitary sewer project currently taking place at Metro Airport at 106th Street & Allisonville Road. There are times where lane restrictions may be in place on Allisonville Road. Please use caution in this area.

106^TH STREET

106^TH STREET TRAIL RESTRICTIONS

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Six months ago, the Hamilton East Library Board hired Barnes & Thornburg to be the board’s legal counsel.  According to reporting by the IndyStar’s Rachel Fradette, that relationship is ending.

It is not clear which side decided to end the contract, based on Rachel’s reporting.

Read the full story at this link. (NOTE:  Your access to this story may be limited if you are not an IndyStar subscriber.  Online subscriptions are very inexpensive.  Once again, I urge everyone to subscribe to your local media!)

WTHR is reporting that a vehicle crashed into a home on Easy Street in Fishers Thursday.

For more on the story, use this link.

The saga of the Hamilton East Library Board continued Thursday afternoon with the board voting to “pause” the review of books in the teen sections of the Fishers and Noblesville libraries.  The vote was unanimous.

The board also voted to approve a slate of officers that include Tiffanie Ditlevson as the new board president, Craig Seibe Vice President, Ray Maddalone Secretary and Andre Miksha Assistant Secretary/Treasurer.  The vote to approve the officer slate was 5-2, with Michelle Payne and Craig Siebe voting no.  New officers begin their one-year term next month.

There was a lengthy discussion between Board Member Ray Maddalone and Library Director Edra Waterman about what does and does not apply to the policy that would require moving a book from the teen section to the adult collection.  There was a discussion about the meaning of the word “explicit” in the policy as it applies to passages about sex.

Maddalone argued John Green’s The Fault In Our Stars should not have been removed from the teen area of the library.  Waterman explained how the staff was interpreting the board policy and provided the board the guidelines being used to apply the policy as the books were reviewed.

The board will have a new member next month, as Laura Alerding was not re-appointed to the library board for another term.  Noblesville High School Teacher Bill Kenley is set to replace her following a recent vote by the Noblesville School Board.

The board’s policy requiring the review of all teen section books for evaluation of possible re-shelving to the adult section has been controversial with board meetings becoming adversarial the past several months.

The “pause” approved at the Noblesville Library session Thursday will allow talks between the board and the library staff to come up with a revised policy.

Many local officials, including Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness, County Commissioner Christine Altman, County Councilor Ken Alexander and other local officials have spoken out about the controversy that found itself in national news stories and the front page of the Indianapolis Star, the state’s largest newspaper.

There has been criticism of the board’s decision to hold this meeting at 3pm, rather than 6:15pm.  During the Nominating Committee meeting, Alerding said the meeting  start time was moved up due to a death in the family of board member Micah Beckwith.

Director Edra Waterman watches the board discussion

The Hamilton East Public Library Board voted to pause the review of books in the teen section. The vote was 7-0. This story will be updated later today.

In past years, Mayor Scott Fadness has presented his budget plans to the City Council Finance Committee before presenting his proposal to the full Council.  This year, the mayor presented his 2024 spending plan to the full Council first, then sent the proposal to the Finance Committee.

Wednesday evening, the Finance Committee received a detailed fiscal plan from contractor Mike Reuter.  I was not provided with a copy of that plan, but Reuter indicated some numbers in that plan could be subject to change once more details become available.

The details of the presentation would likely confuse many, so suffice it to say that the city’s income situation appears stable, although the extra Local Option Income Tax cash coming from Carmel as a result of action by the Indiana General Assembly was a three-year deal and will be coming to an end soon.

Deputy Mayor Elliott Hultgren emphasized that Mayor Fadness has not used that additional income tax distribution from Carmel for year-to year budget items, knowing the funds will end.  Last month, Carmel filed a lawsuit against the state, claiming the law giving Fishers some of Carmel’s income tax money is unconstitutional.

Following Reuter’s rundown, Hultgren briefed the committee on how the Fadness Administration is proposing to spend part of the Carmel income tax money, to the tune of $12 million.

Here is the mayor’s proposal:

–$2,2 million for trail connectivity

—$800,000 for a trail node at Hub & Spoke, including rest room facilities

–$3.5 million for landscaping, particularly on medians, replacing grass so city staff will not need to endanger themselves while cutting grass

–$1 million is earmarked for sidewalk repairs in neighborhoods throughout the city

–$750,000 for a Neighborhood Vibrancy program, providing an 80% city match, up from the previous dollar-for-dollar match

–$250,000 would to go an Urban Forestry program

–$3 million would be utilized for a 96th Street Vibrancy Program

–$500,000 in Teacher Innovation Micro Grants, where teachers at HSE Schools would submit requests for funding and a committee of retired teachers will decide the awarding of these grants.

The next Finance Committee budget meeting is set for 8:30am, Monday, September 11, with department heads explaining their budget requests.