VANDERBURGH COUNTY

BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

SPECIAL MEETING

JANUARY 23, 2003

The Vanderburgh County Board of Commissioners met in special session this 23^rd day of January, 2003 at 9:05 a.m. in Room 307 of the Civic Center Complex with President David Mosby presiding.

President Mosby: I would like to call to order this special meeting of the Vanderburgh County Commissioners for a public hearing on the Jobe’s Lane Project. I guess, a few bullet points that I’m supposed to make here is that Vanderburgh County intends to apply to the Indiana Department of Commerce for a grant from the Department’s Community Focus Fund of the State Community Development Block Grant Program. This program is funded by Title One of the Federal Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 as amended. These funds are to be used for a community development project, and includes a water and sewer extension project on Jobe’s Lane. The total amount of the CDBG funds to be requested are now $135,000. Vanderburgh County also proposes to expend an estimated $230,000 from the county funds, which an additional $140,000 allocated to the county from the Evansville Water and Sewer Utility. That happened on Wednesday, if nobody knew. We ask that all attendees please sign in, and a sign-in sheet is provided. The purpose of this public hearing is to provide interested parties an opportunity to express their views on the proposed federally funded CDBG project. For the record, when you speak, please state your name before your comments. Before your comments. It there are any written comments to be submitted for the record, this is the time to do it. So, I think, everybody knows why we’re here. If there is any remonstrators to the project, I will take them first. Seeing no remonstrators, we will ask for any public comment that anybody would like to make for a part of the record at this time.

Bill Lockard: My name is Bill Lockard. My wife and I have lived on Jobe’s Lane for almost 38 years. As the good book shows, you know, good things come to he that waits. Well, the good Lord must have been busy for the past 37 or 38 years, because I’ve tried talking to Him about it, but finally He got around to it. It’s very difficult, but I would like to thank all of the people that became involved in this. Dave Schroeder, who actually didn’t give up, he kept after all of us. To my neighbors and my friends. To you, Mr. Mosby. To Judge Tornatta. There is so many people that recognized this problem, and gave it their support. Vanderburgh County Department of Health, etcetera, you know, I’m sure I’m going to forget someone that helped us on this. My son, Mike, who happened to be at the right place at the right time when the funds become available, and knew how to work within the system to get it done. So, to all those people that helped, our heartfelt thank you very much.

President Mosby: Thank you for your kind words. Is there anybody else that would like to add any comments? I know, go ahead, Dave.

David Schroeder: My name is Dave Schroeder. I live at 617 Jobe’s Lane. I just want to add my thanks to all of you who come on board here in the last several years to try to get this project going. Just to the Department of Commerce, without these added funds we’re still kind of stuck, you know, trying to get this project done, but, with your assistance in granting these funds, we’ll be able to move this project forward, and get something done out there. Again, I thank Mike. He’s really done a lot here to help this project, and everybody else that’s finally come on board, and agreed to work together, and get something done out there. I thank you.

President Mosby: Thank you, Dave.

Mike Lockard: My name is Mike Lockard, and I live at 5019 Shady Court, but as I’ve indicated previously, you know, home is where you call it, and home for me has always been 601 Jobe’s Lane, which is where I grew up and spent most of my life. As all of them are probably either going to say or want to say, you know, we owe a great debt of thanks to all of you for all of the hard work and the backing. You know, I cannot take credit for this, because if it wasn’t for some of the wise, you know, comments and pushes and directions that I got from various people, you know, especially from Mr. Mosby and Ms. Fanello, I would not have known how to even begin to approach some of this. You know, there was a lot of people working on this, and it was truly a team effort. That being said, you know, the whole basis of us being here is to say, you know, what the need is for this. I know there have been a lot of people who have thought that these monies being allocated are something that is funding a private development, or private property. In my humble opinion, nothing could be further from the truth. This situation that exists on Jobe’s Lane is a public health hazard. It has been called by many, many people from the Health Department, from the Department of Environmental Management, from the Department of Natural Resources, and from a respected sitting judge as being a public health emergency. It is truly a health emergency that needs to be resolved, and that is why we’ve been asking for this request. There are no areas in the county, and I have looked through every agency that I can get my hands on, both state and local to say, is there anyplace else that approaches the level of hazard that Jobe’s Lane has. So far nobody can tell me any. There are areas in the county that obviously have problems, but I can’t find any evidence of any place in the county where they’ve got sewage running black across the back of their property. This property is, just because of it’s very topography, on a very high point in Vanderburgh County. To use a somewhat of an allegory, it all runs downhill. It runs into a small lake where we have evidence, you know, that we have given showing where there have been complete and utter fish kills with dozens, if not hundreds, of dead fish floating belly up in the lake because of the runoff. That lake now has flown through the natural water table, over into the larger lake, which sits, part of it sits in the county, and part of it sits in the city, so, the bigger lake straddles the city/county line. That lake now is grossly contaminated with ecoli and coliform. It’s not drinkable. It’s not swimmable. Growing up, I swam in that lake. You wouldn’t get me to put my first big toe in that lake anymore, because of the results I’ve seen from the Health Department. Now, that lake has an overflow that runs next to my property. It runs literally on the edge of my home and my property. Well, that means I know exactly what is flowing down that stream. That stream flows down through and behind hundreds of homes. It will be now flowing into an overflow, and into an area that is going to be a brand new senior citizen development on Middle Mount Vernon. It ultimately flows into Carpentier Creek, into Bayou, and ultimately into the Ohio River. As long as this system up here remains unresolved, that contamination is not just affecting a few homeowners. It’s affecting hundreds of people, their lives, their children with dangerous bacteria pathogens. That’s why we’re glad to be, to have the opportunity to be here to urge your support for these funds. It was because of the initial $230,000 that we even have the ability to be here to approach the Department of Commerce. With the price of this project, at first we got no federal assistance, or state assistance. But, because of the ability of you guys to put that $230,000 up, it started the ball rolling. Let’s keep the ball rolling, move forward with this with the Department of Commerce. I think we have a good case to make to them, and we really appreciate your support. Thank you.

President Mosby: Thank you , Mike. Did any, did anybody else in the audience have anything they wanted to add? Judy, oh.

Unidentified: (Inaudible. Not at mike.) Move your chair by the podium.

Shirley Lockard: My name is Shirley Lockard. I’ve live at 601 Jobe’s Lane for 36 years. I would just like to thank everyone, and give my appreciation, because I know this took a lot of work, a lot of time, a lot of book work, a lot of study to get all this done. If we get it done, then maybe we can go in, and cook a meal, wash our dishes, go take a shower, and flush our commode, and, hopefully, maybe live like normal people are supposed to live. Thank you.

President Mosby: Thank you.

Bill Lockard: I’ve lived there almost 38, and she’s only been there 36. (Inaudible. Not at mike.)

Mike Lockard: I’m 41.

President Mosby: Is there anybody else that would like to add anything? Judy, did you or Sarah want to say anything? Okay. I guess, you know the comments that I would make is I would, first of all, like to thank the County Council for appropriating the $230,000 from the federal funds that the Commissioners received back, at that time, to this project. I would also like to thank the Water Department, and I didn’t have time to contact anybody on Tuesday, but that came up on a spur of the moment went Judy came to the office and said we have one problem, we’re not fully funded. We need to figure out where the rest of the money is coming from. So, it just so happened that the Water Department had a meeting that day at 1:00, and Patty got me on the agenda. So, John Stoll went with us, and we were able to capture $140,000 from their Sewer Extension Fund. Their only request was that we ask the county, in turn, in the budget next year to start putting $100,000 a year into that fund, and Judy and John was there. It’s not stipulated upon us getting the money this year. They are going to give us the money this year. Their only question was that we ask the county to start participating in the Sewer Extension Fund, because they are using their money in the county, and they would like for the county to help. I don’t think that’s unreasonable. We did it over in the city, when I was on the City Council we used to put $100,000 of LIT money into that project, which meant it could only be used in the city. Now, that it’s Water and Sewer Funds, it can be used throughout the city and the county. I would, I agreed to go to the County Council, and I would ask them to do that. I guess, the other person, the two people I need to thank is Sarah and Judy. They’re the ones that started this grant rolling, and Judy’s offered to do it for a very minimal fee. That has helped tremendously. So, with that we will have enough funds, hopefully, to do this project. John Stoll, I want to thank him for all his work with Clark Dietz, and going to these meetings, and sitting for two and three hours, being drawn out. Is there any other Commissioner that has anything to add?

Commissioner Fanello: I wanted to say thanks for all of those who have brought the problem to our attention, and we’re happy to help with that. As, I think, Mike said it very, very well, you know, this isn’t a project for private development, this is a public health emergency. This is why we collect property taxes. This is why we’re here. We are here to serve you. I’m happy to do that, and am very glad that everyone has worked together to keep this project on track and moving. So, thanks.

President Mosby: Commissioner, do you want to add anything? I guess, we need to accept a motion to send this on. Is that what we need to do, Judy? Just accept a motion to send this on to the, I guess, Community Development Block Grant Fund.

Judy Weatherholt: (Inaudible. Not at mike.)

Commissioner Fanello: Yeah, we do. We don’t have any (Inaudible).

Judy Weatherholt: Pardon me?

Commissioner Fanello: We don’t really need a motion today to–

President Mosby: Is there anybody else that would like to speak?

Judy Weatherholt: (Inaudible. Not at mike.) Anybody that has not signed in. There’s a sheet to sign in here. (Inaudible).

President Mosby: Oh, okay. This sheet is right over here to the right. So, don’t forget, before you leave. You can’t sign your neighbor in if he’s not here, but be sure you sign in. If there’s nobody else that wants to speak, I will ask for a motion to adjourn this special meeting and hearing for Jobe’s Lane for CDBG Funds.

Commissioner Fanello: Motion to adjourn.

Commissioner Crouch: Second.

President Mosby: So ordered. Thank you all very much.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:18 a.m.

         Those in Attendance:

         David W. Mosby             Catherine Fanello           Suzanne Crouch

         Kevin Winternheimer      Bill Fluty                          Teri Lukeman

         Bill Lockard                     Mike Lockard                  Dave Schroeder

         Shirley Lockard               Judy Weatherholt           Others Unidentified

         Members of Media