The annual Fishers State of the City Address is now scheduled for Wednesday, March 15th, as part of a Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Forum Conference Center.  Mayor Scott Fadness had originally been scheduled to deliver the speech on February 15th, but asked the Chamber to delay the event.

During a podcast interview recorded January 10th, the mayor told local Fishers residents to “buckle up” for this year’s address.

“If everything falls into place, I think it’s going to be a really exciting speech,” said the mayor.  He expects “big, tectonic policy conversations,” with “6 or 7 ideas that will really transform Fishers.”

During the same podcast discussion, I asked Mayor Fadness whether Portillo’s is coming to Fishers.  His response?  “Yet to be determined.”  There have been, and continue to be, discussions between Portillo’s and Fishers, but nothing has been signed.  The mayor is aware of Potillo’s ads online asking for manager applications, and calls that “encouraging,” but repeated nothing is yet signed between the city and the restaurant chain.

You can listen to the entire podcast interview at this link.

People working for the City of Fishers will see a new administrator for a key retirement savings plan.  The city’s 457 plan is similar to private sector 401(k) plans, allowing city workers retirement savings with tax advantages.

City Controller Oscar Guiterrez told the Board of Public Works and Safety Thursday that Edward Jones will be the new broker handling the city employees plan, but American United Life (AUL) will continue as the insurance company.  Edward Jones will be providing services from financial advisers, visiting city facilities to advise employees on investment options for their retirement savings.

Mayor Scott Fadness said he wanted to add an employer match to employee contributions in 2017, but health insurance premiums increased too much.  He hopes to add the employer match in future years.

“Although the cost is neutral, the services rendered to the employees to be able to make smart financial decisions for themselves and their families will drastically improve with these additional resources,” Mayor Fadness said.

After 6 months of work, the City of Fishers and the accounting firm of Katz, Sapper & Miller have entered into a contract of up to $2.1 million for a 3-year project aimed at modernizing and automating the inner workings of city government.

Mayor Scott Fadness says if the firm meets all incentives in the pact, the city would pay out a maximum of $2.113 million over the 3 year span of this contract.  Without incentives, the base amount of the agreement is set at $1.76 million.

This is a “major, major undertaking for our organization,” according to the mayor.

Fadness called the current city financial system “antiquated” and will require an upgrade as the state requires municipalities to switch from a cash method of accounting to accrual. City budgeting is now done on Excel spreadsheets and needs to be modernized.

The mayor says this project will integrate and tie all the city’s systems together, allowing more data analytics by city staff.

Katz, Sapper and Miller will be the “solution architect” to get all this done for the city.

The Board of Public Works and Safety approved the contract at the meeting held Thursday morning.

The Indianapolis Star has taken information from the recent special census conducted by Fishers and Carmel and found that Fishers has moved up to number 5 on the list of most populous cities in the state, with Carmel a close 6th.

The additional population numbers will make Fishers eligible for more money from the state and local governments.

For more on John Tuohy’s story, use this link.

Thorpe Creek kindergarten students wanted to help a classmate….the story is a good one….I cannot tell it any better than Anne Marie Tiernon did in this WTHR piece, found at this link.

The Fishers Junior High School We the People team gave the HSE School Board a taste of their talents at the January 11th board meeting.  The team is also asking for your help in sending them to the national finals in Washington DC.

The group won the Indiana state competition, earning the right to compete at the  national finals in the nation’s capital.  The team is asking for donations in order to raise money for the Washington trip through a “Go Fund Me” Web page.  You can donate at this link.

The Hamilton Southeastern School Board welcomed two new members and elected a new president at the January 11th session.  Matt Burke will serve as board president during 2017, John DeLucia will be vice president and Sylvia Shepler will remain secretary. Previous President Karen Harmer commenced the session until new board members could be sworn into office.

Mike Bottorff and Amanda Shera were sworn in as new board members and Sylvia Shepler was sworn in for another board term.   All were given the oath of office by Hamilton County Circuit Court Judge Paul Felix.

In other board news:

–Approval was given to establish an appropriation outside the general fund for teacher performance grant money provided by the state.  Schools Chief Financial Officer Mike Reuter says the $2.28 million for the grants are “considerably more” than the just over $1 million for the performance grants the previous year.  Marcia Abraham, Fall Creek Elementary School Music teacher, spoke during the public hearing, expressing concern that these awards hurt collaboration among local educators and creates an unhealthy atmosphere of competition to qualify for these payments.  The board indicated the method of how this award money will be handed out will be a decision for the next board meeting.

–A new high school class in interactive media will be offered, following the board’s approval.  You can find more details about the new offering at this link.

–Superintendent Allen Bourff briefed the board on plans to offer “swap days” were Fishers High School and HSE students go to the other school for one day, to better understand the culture of the other high school.

Fishers will be the location of an event aimed at breaking the chains of those victimized by human trafficking.  The event is set for Friday evening, January 13th.

The details are below in a news release from the Fishers Police Department.

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January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month. In an effort to increase awareness The Leslie Anne Hulse Foundation is sponsoring an event this Friday, January 13^th. The Break the Chains-Step into Freedom Event will be held at the Geist Christian Church (Promise Road Campus) from 7pm-9pm. The church is located at 12756 Promise Road in Fishers.
 
            The format will be a dessert and discussion. Mr. Tim Swarens, the Opinion Director for the Indianapolis Star, will be the Key-Note Speaker. A panel discussion will immediately follow. The panel will consist of representatives from Ascent 121, Prevail, Inc. and Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Detective John Daggy.
 
            This event is open to the public, however the discussion will be most appropriate for children 12 years and older. Please feel free to invite family, friends, neighbors, educators, church youth groups, and anyone else you think might benefit from this information.
 
            Detective Leslie Hulse served the Fishers community for 10 years. She had a true servant’s heart and a passion for helping those in the most desperate of circumstances. Prior to losing her battle with breast cancer Leslie’s was assigned to the Human Trafficking Task Force. The men and women of the Fishers Police Department are proud to support this event and Leslie’s foundation.  
 
            For more information please visit www.lesliehulse.org

Is Portillo’s restaurant set to locate in Fishers?  Mayor Scott Fadness says “…to be determined.”  He emphasizes there is no signed deal with Portillo’s & the city of Fishers. The mayor says online ads seeking manager applications for the Fishers Portillo’s is encouraging, but repeated there is no deal at this time.

The mayor talked about that, economic development in general, Tax Increment Financing and a number of other issues in a podcast interview.

Fishers High School football Coach Rick Wimmer missed two gridiron games this past season as school officials probed an incident with a student, but the coach was reinstated as a coach and teacher after a time on paid leave.  WTHR’s investigative reporter Bob Segull reports that Wimmer has since served a 5-day unpaid suspension.

His suspension was contained in a board item only identifying the employee disciplined by number.  Segall says he has confirmed through school officials that Wimmer was the disciplined employee.

For more details, and to access Segall’s reporting, use this link.