Thursday, January 28, 2010
The economy
I guess my big beef is that we (americans) did this to ourselves. We constantly have to have the next big thing and at the cheapest price. Since we do not work in the sector of industry that make the product we could care less if it puts someone out of a job, "it's not me", until we realize now that them being out of work leaves them no money to spend in our sector. So we had to pay the feds to take care of the others. Fewer and fewer left working have to pay to take care of more and more jobless. We can't blame business for making things cheaper somewhere else so we can buy it cheaper here. Now we keep asking the Feds to do more and spend more. They do not have money of thier own they take it from us, now or in the future.
town news 1/20/10
Well all,
Not much new news from the town right now. We had the insurance carrier for town employee insurance plan raise the rates by 40% this year which was way more than expected so the town manager has been working with the employees and the carrier to work out some options and we believe we have it taken care of with out costing the town to much more money.
We have had some memebers of boards and councils for the town looking to step down and now would be a great time to get involved with our community. We have a lot going on and it is a good time to be a part of it all. That is what makes our state attractive is citizens being involved and helping to shape our cities and towns. If you are interested you can let me know or call the town manager, Jeff Sheridan, for more info.
The town has been offered the opportunity to purchas some land for a VERY reasonable price and we have decided to go ahead with it. We may use it for a future park or can sell it for development but by owning it we have more control over what is built there. It has been on the radar of a couple of subsidized housing developers so we can now prevent those kinds of uses.
If I did not put it in the last note. I am now the vice president of the town council and on tuesday I was elected secretary of the executive board for the Hancock County Economic Developement Council which I have been on the regular board for 2 years now.
We had a guest speaker who works for a site selection firm and when they are going through a selection process for companies looking to expand in the mid west, Indiana continually comes in at one of the top 2 spots so that is good news for us and our state. Indiana is also better off economically that the surrounding states. I also think Cumberland is set up in a great position as far as local economics goes. The west and north side of indy are built out far enough that companies are really starting to look at the east side and Hancock county in particular and with the recent work we have going on in Cumberland we should really get noticed. The speaker gave some ideas for town and counties to do to get themselves noticed by corporate america and they include and good web site, infrastructure, interstate access, value of life aspects (parks, trails, utilities,etc) all of which we just happen to be completing right now. I am very excited about the future here and with being part of the HEDC we get more noticed by county officials as well.
The washington street, pensy trail, east sewer interceptor should all be finished in 2010.
Hurray for us. That's about all for now. I will be putting out business cards with my contacts on it in your mailboxes soon so everyone will know how to get a hold of me.
Thanks
Joe Siefker
Town councilman dist 5
Not much new news from the town right now. We had the insurance carrier for town employee insurance plan raise the rates by 40% this year which was way more than expected so the town manager has been working with the employees and the carrier to work out some options and we believe we have it taken care of with out costing the town to much more money.
We have had some memebers of boards and councils for the town looking to step down and now would be a great time to get involved with our community. We have a lot going on and it is a good time to be a part of it all. That is what makes our state attractive is citizens being involved and helping to shape our cities and towns. If you are interested you can let me know or call the town manager, Jeff Sheridan, for more info.
The town has been offered the opportunity to purchas some land for a VERY reasonable price and we have decided to go ahead with it. We may use it for a future park or can sell it for development but by owning it we have more control over what is built there. It has been on the radar of a couple of subsidized housing developers so we can now prevent those kinds of uses.
If I did not put it in the last note. I am now the vice president of the town council and on tuesday I was elected secretary of the executive board for the Hancock County Economic Developement Council which I have been on the regular board for 2 years now.
We had a guest speaker who works for a site selection firm and when they are going through a selection process for companies looking to expand in the mid west, Indiana continually comes in at one of the top 2 spots so that is good news for us and our state. Indiana is also better off economically that the surrounding states. I also think Cumberland is set up in a great position as far as local economics goes. The west and north side of indy are built out far enough that companies are really starting to look at the east side and Hancock county in particular and with the recent work we have going on in Cumberland we should really get noticed. The speaker gave some ideas for town and counties to do to get themselves noticed by corporate america and they include and good web site, infrastructure, interstate access, value of life aspects (parks, trails, utilities,etc) all of which we just happen to be completing right now. I am very excited about the future here and with being part of the HEDC we get more noticed by county officials as well.
The washington street, pensy trail, east sewer interceptor should all be finished in 2010.
Hurray for us. That's about all for now. I will be putting out business cards with my contacts on it in your mailboxes soon so everyone will know how to get a hold of me.
Thanks
Joe Siefker
Town councilman dist 5
Thursday, January 21, 2010
We are learning!
Well the voters of Massachusetts have spoken and regardless of the Left saying it was a knee jerk reaction, I feel it is more of a reaction to jerks in D.C. The president and his minions have continuously said that Bush made the mess that they have to clean up. They spent 12 months convincing and brain washing Americans into believing that. The fact is that Democrats controlled the house and senate since 2006 NOT 2008 and there is not a chance that Bush could have signed anything into law that the liberals had not sent him.
They did such a good job of imposing fear on Americans that a majority elected a man and a group of control freaks who have spent 12 months intruding into every aspect of our lives and spending more money that our future generations could possibly repay. The proof of this is given by the example of the tea party groups and the example of how the mainstream media cowers to the president by not acknowledging those groups and their gatherings.
I already feel sorry for our children and grandchildren when the bill for this spending shows up in the mail, because it will be hard to turn it around now.
Look at the record of how healthcare reform got to where it is. Mr. Reid had to pay off other senators to get the votes he needed. Mr. Barney Frank, when asked, said flat out that there is no way that all or even a few of the senators had the time to read and understand the bill before they voted on it. Can you believe that? He basically said that he was willing to vote for it because his party said to. There’s a responsible elected official for you.
To me government should concern its self with providing infrastructure, fostering economic growth, protecting its citizens via local police and emergency services up to nation military, control its boarders and protecting citizens from harmful products.
As citizens we need to take some responsibility for ourselves as well and stop asking the government to get involved every time we have a disagreement with corporate America. We have more power than we realize we just need to take the time to get involved and get organized. We should have done something to pull the reins on the mortgage lending practices that helped get us in this mess in the first place. We need to stop trying to see how little we can pay for product because everyone knows that products made in other countries cost less because those citizens are paid less. Running to the Wal-Mart’s of the world to save a buck ends up costing us more because they put Americans out of work. The buck we saved then has to go to the government to provide for the unemployed so in the end we really save nothing.
Be proud of your work and be proud of your neighbors work buy purchasing products made here by you and your fellow Americans. If we act responsible and take responsibility the ship will stay afloat with out big brother intervening. We are suffering from a lack of pride and a lack of loyalty.
Joe
They did such a good job of imposing fear on Americans that a majority elected a man and a group of control freaks who have spent 12 months intruding into every aspect of our lives and spending more money that our future generations could possibly repay. The proof of this is given by the example of the tea party groups and the example of how the mainstream media cowers to the president by not acknowledging those groups and their gatherings.
I already feel sorry for our children and grandchildren when the bill for this spending shows up in the mail, because it will be hard to turn it around now.
Look at the record of how healthcare reform got to where it is. Mr. Reid had to pay off other senators to get the votes he needed. Mr. Barney Frank, when asked, said flat out that there is no way that all or even a few of the senators had the time to read and understand the bill before they voted on it. Can you believe that? He basically said that he was willing to vote for it because his party said to. There’s a responsible elected official for you.
To me government should concern its self with providing infrastructure, fostering economic growth, protecting its citizens via local police and emergency services up to nation military, control its boarders and protecting citizens from harmful products.
As citizens we need to take some responsibility for ourselves as well and stop asking the government to get involved every time we have a disagreement with corporate America. We have more power than we realize we just need to take the time to get involved and get organized. We should have done something to pull the reins on the mortgage lending practices that helped get us in this mess in the first place. We need to stop trying to see how little we can pay for product because everyone knows that products made in other countries cost less because those citizens are paid less. Running to the Wal-Mart’s of the world to save a buck ends up costing us more because they put Americans out of work. The buck we saved then has to go to the government to provide for the unemployed so in the end we really save nothing.
Be proud of your work and be proud of your neighbors work buy purchasing products made here by you and your fellow Americans. If we act responsible and take responsibility the ship will stay afloat with out big brother intervening. We are suffering from a lack of pride and a lack of loyalty.
Joe
Friday, January 8, 2010
council mtg 1/6/2010
Town news 1/8/2010
At the town council meeting on Jan 6th Don Engerer was voted in as president and I was voted in a vice president.
We had a presentation from Mat Klein director of Indianapolis water. They are currently in the process of asking the Indiana utility regulatory commission for another rate increase. They had an emergency one this summer of 10% and are now asking for an additional 35% which if approved will take effect by summers end.
The issue, as he states it is that most utilities have about 15% of their debt in variable rate bonds and that IWWD had almost 60% when he took over in March of 2009. Then with the economic situation being what it is, the bonds were adjusted by the holders to a shorter payoff and a higher rate which meant that they could in no way make the payments. He has since gotten all of the debt into fixed rates.
He stated that they are about, if I got this right, 918 million in debt with more federal mandates coming in and the need to build safety and backup supply methods has forced them to ask for this increase. Most residents will see about $8-10 dollars a month more on their water bill. This will not change the sewer bills or rates. Those are set by the town and I am still trying to get them down.
He also discussed the water conservation ordinance that Marion county put into effect this year. The town being in two counties is looking at a similar ordinance but it would really only effect the Hancock county side since the Marion ordinance would take precedent. It basically says that during drought times the mayor of Indianapolis can declare a water emergency which would restrict water of lawns, washing of cars at home, filling of pools, etc. until the all clear is given. The reason for the ordinance is that the water company, at times of drought, can not keep up with normal demand forcing them to spend more to bring in backup or over work their equipment.
I think residents in my district do a fairly good job of conserving already so I do not anticipate this being much of an issue.
We also passed the ordinance for the Fire contract that I negotiated with Buck Creek fire department. We recently paid 180 thousand for 2008 and 190 thousand for 2009. They had asked a couple of years ago to have us pay 250 thousand but I felt that was to much of an increase. It would have meant that the Cumberland portion of Buck Creek township would be paying about 1/3 of their budget but we only have about 25% of the number of homes. I also feel that we have an economy of scale on our side as we are a big portion or their budget in one contract. We were also given the option of giving up fire coverage by the town and allowing the township to bill directly on our tax bills. I did not feel that was a viable option at this time as it would have meant our property tax bills going up with no control over how much.
The agreement we reached is that we would increase or payments by 10 thousand each of the next 2 years to finish out the contract then we can evaluate what we can do from there. This would put us at 210 thousand by 2011. Compared to 250 thousand a year that they were asking for we saved 150 thousand over the three year contract.
Winter is here so everyone stay warm and safe and let us know of any issues or concerns.
Joe Siefker
Town councilman dist 5
At the town council meeting on Jan 6th Don Engerer was voted in as president and I was voted in a vice president.
We had a presentation from Mat Klein director of Indianapolis water. They are currently in the process of asking the Indiana utility regulatory commission for another rate increase. They had an emergency one this summer of 10% and are now asking for an additional 35% which if approved will take effect by summers end.
The issue, as he states it is that most utilities have about 15% of their debt in variable rate bonds and that IWWD had almost 60% when he took over in March of 2009. Then with the economic situation being what it is, the bonds were adjusted by the holders to a shorter payoff and a higher rate which meant that they could in no way make the payments. He has since gotten all of the debt into fixed rates.
He stated that they are about, if I got this right, 918 million in debt with more federal mandates coming in and the need to build safety and backup supply methods has forced them to ask for this increase. Most residents will see about $8-10 dollars a month more on their water bill. This will not change the sewer bills or rates. Those are set by the town and I am still trying to get them down.
He also discussed the water conservation ordinance that Marion county put into effect this year. The town being in two counties is looking at a similar ordinance but it would really only effect the Hancock county side since the Marion ordinance would take precedent. It basically says that during drought times the mayor of Indianapolis can declare a water emergency which would restrict water of lawns, washing of cars at home, filling of pools, etc. until the all clear is given. The reason for the ordinance is that the water company, at times of drought, can not keep up with normal demand forcing them to spend more to bring in backup or over work their equipment.
I think residents in my district do a fairly good job of conserving already so I do not anticipate this being much of an issue.
We also passed the ordinance for the Fire contract that I negotiated with Buck Creek fire department. We recently paid 180 thousand for 2008 and 190 thousand for 2009. They had asked a couple of years ago to have us pay 250 thousand but I felt that was to much of an increase. It would have meant that the Cumberland portion of Buck Creek township would be paying about 1/3 of their budget but we only have about 25% of the number of homes. I also feel that we have an economy of scale on our side as we are a big portion or their budget in one contract. We were also given the option of giving up fire coverage by the town and allowing the township to bill directly on our tax bills. I did not feel that was a viable option at this time as it would have meant our property tax bills going up with no control over how much.
The agreement we reached is that we would increase or payments by 10 thousand each of the next 2 years to finish out the contract then we can evaluate what we can do from there. This would put us at 210 thousand by 2011. Compared to 250 thousand a year that they were asking for we saved 150 thousand over the three year contract.
Winter is here so everyone stay warm and safe and let us know of any issues or concerns.
Joe Siefker
Town councilman dist 5
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