August 13, 2013
MAYOR JOE’S PUBLIC FORUM
SETTING THE TONE!
That was Gnarls Barkley with his hit song
“Crazy”
 The lyrics include:

 “I
remember when I lost my mind”
 “Does that make me CRAZY”

Hopefully after tonight’s presentation you won’t
think that he wrote this song about me
PHILOSOPHY TO START THE DAY

“If you’re not moving forward, you’re losing
ground.” ~ attributed to many

While change is not always welcome or viewed
as positive initially, I hope to prove that if it is
done properly, it will benefit the community

Here’s a local example:
PHILOSOPHY TO START THE DAY

“That’s their interpretation of beautifying the
lakefront. I’ve told a lot of people I don’t
understand how you take a baseball field with
grass and make it a parking lot and that
beautifies the area.”
~ WHS Baseball Coach Kevin Lenz – NWI Times

That of course was before he had a chance to
see or play at Oil City Stadium – The quote
obviously still serves as inspiration for me.
PHILOSOPHY TO START THE DAY

“One way to keep momentum going is to have
constantly greater goals” ~ Michael Korda, author

I feel we have momentum, now we need to
continue to push the envelope
PHILOSOPHY TO START THE DAY

“It doesn’t matter how slowly you go – so long
as you do not stop.” ~ Confucius

I had hoped by sharing that quote with you
today, that you would forgive me for how long it
takes to actually institute change!
PHILOSOPHY TO START THE DAY

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over
again and expecting different results.
~ Albert Einstein

As you’ll hear today, I may not have all of the
answers or be 100% correct in every one of my
assumptions, but it’s time to take some risks
and change how we do certain things
PHILOSOPHY TO START THE DAY

Mayor Joe’s Definition of “Controversial”
(the word will appear several times in the presentation)
 Something
can be viewed as controversial if it can
impact a person’s:
 Employment
 Salary
or Income (Cost $$)
 Home or property
 Quality of Life
 Philosophical believes
 Or any Change that does not have unanimous support
AGENDA

Full Slate of Interesting – Controversial Topics
I usually thoroughly enjoy these Forums
 But… this will be a tough presentation for me

I
am in the process of making several difficult decisions that
impact a lot of people…and that’s not easy

For those of you who have not attended one of my past
Forums, here’s a quick overview:
 I’ll
run through my presentation as quickly as possible to stay
on schedule – probably 45 minutes or so
 I’d ask that you please hold your questions to the end
 At the end of the presentation, I’ll stay as long as needed to
answer your questions
AGENDA
Funding Plan Overview
 WCC – YMCA Project
 Stadium District Plan
 New Hotel Concept
 Water & Sewer rates
 Residential Matching Assistance (Grants)
 Quiet Zone (Whistle Ban)
 Miscellaneous Projects

FUNDING PLAN OVERVIEW
Important background info for today’s
presentation
 Extremely unusual & complex financial situation
 Our Assessed Valuation (Taxable Property) is
expected to grow significantly in coming years
 The growth will be short lived and then drop back
down to slightly more than it is today
 Goal – Capture the maximum opportunity for City

FUNDING PLAN OVERVIEW

New growth will be captured in our TIF District:



Allows us to borrow to fund capital improvement
projects
While there is not enough time to discuss the
specifics at a Public Forum, this is the strategy
that provides the biggest bang for our buck
Important Factors:
 We
don’t yet know all the financial details
 Money must be spent on Projects
 All debt will be repaid with Industrial tax revenue
FUNDING PLAN OVERVIEW
With that said, we are hoping that many of the
projects in our plan can be funded in the short
term, versus waiting to pay as we go
 Because the Funds are limited, my hardest task
is to identify the projects that provide the
biggest benefit to the community

FUNDING PLAN

I thought a brief review of the Funding Plan would
clarify:
That there will be Capital Funds available
 Why we will take on new debt – (NWI Times)
 That none of the debt repayment will be paid by the
residents


I was expecting to formally announce a few of
these new projects today, but our final Financial
Analysis was not completed in time.

So until the money is in the bank, it’s prudent for me to
take the cautious approach
WCC OPPORTUNITY

History
I
know many of us “Old-timers” grew up in this
building
 It is an important part of our community and our
past history
 I’ve fought hard to maintain the building and invest
in improvements over the years
 But, it’s a huge financial drain on the City’s budget
WCC OPPORTUNITY

Background
 $750,000
in (WCC only) annual operating expenses
 $250,000 in (WCC only) annual revenue
 $500,000 annual loss or subsidy
 None of the expected Capital $$ can be used to
offset these operating costs
 This loss was much worse in previous years, but
improvements made have reduced the burden
 New
windows
 Energy efficiency improvements
 Staffing changes
 Increased revenue
WCC OPPORTUNITY

Background

Why is the subsidy so large?
 Inherited
building – but no budget to support it
 Laws prevent or limit us from making a profit
 Always more difficult for a public entity to increase costs or
reduce the workforce
 Always had surplus funds to funnel to operation


Tax Caps have changed that dynamic
Maximus “Good Government” Study (2005/2006)

Recommended the sale of the building
WCC OPPORTUNITY


Decided to explore all options before divesting property
City Actions to Date


Internal Task Force reviews
Commissioned an IU-SPEA Study to review the operation and
make recommendations



Study indicated the best “Financial” solution was to privatize the
building as a Full-Service Heath Club
 Makes sense – Gyms, Pool, Track, Fitness area, etc.
Issues with this solution included:
 Displaced Youth/Seniors - Cost associated with the displacement
 Difficult to return to current operation if project failed
Reviewed and studied other options including:



Streamlined City Operation
Privatization – non-Health Club operation
Sale of Building
WCC OPPORTUNITY

Ideal Solution would:
 Continue
to provide community minded
programming similar to today’s operation
 Continue to serve all age groups of the community
 Allow the City to maintain ownership of the building
 Reduce or eliminate the City’s $500K subsidy
 Allow for a workable “Exit Strategy”

The only option that provided all of these
benefits was the YMCA
YMCA PROPOSAL
Lease the building for $1 per year
 YMCA to pay all operating costs associated with
their operation including:

 Staffing
 Utilities
 Maintenance
YMCA to have complete control of the operation
 Set their own rates

YMCA PROPOSAL

Benefits include:
 Immediate
savings of the $500K annual subsidy
 Continued and Improved Community Minded
Programming and Facilities for all ages
 New operation will be much improved over today
 YMCA
Expertise
 Renovations
 New equipment
 Additional Programming
 Childcare
YMCA PROPOSAL

Benefits include:
 Continued
availability of facility for:
 Emergency
Shelter
 Public Events
 Building
remains under City Control and Ownership
 We
will essentially act as the landlord and maintain the
primary structural components of the building
 Only
people who choose to use the Facility will pay
YMCA PROPOSAL

Important Factors:

Displaced employees will have multiple options
 Bid/Transfer
into open positions
 Early retirement
 Interview with the YMCA
 Severance to all, including part-time employees

City will invest to renovate the lower level and complete
the lobby restoration as planned
 This
would have occurred regardless of the option chosen
 All donations to the lobby renovation will be used as intended
YMCA PROPOSAL

Important Factors:
 At
least 4 of the 12 bowling lanes will be removed
 Option to remove all 12 lanes is being reviewed
 Cost
– Funding dependent
 Bowling
League options for this season limited
YMCA PROPOSAL

Important Factors:
 YMCA
is an extremely reputable organization
 They have funding avenues simply not available to
the City
 They already have a proven track record in NWI
YMCA

Timetable
 Signed MOU in place
 Finalize YMCA Lease ASAP
 Employee bidding and transfers by year end
 Close building on January 1, 2014 for construction
 Estimated savings of closing the building for
construction ranges between $100,000 - $200,000
 Construction January – June
 Reopen under YMCA control in June-July
 If we cannot agree to terms with the YMCA by the end of
construction, we will operate the renovated facility
YMCA
This is simply the best business decision
 Not everyone will agree with it, but we can’t
continue operating in the deep red

STADIUM DISTRICT PLAN

Now for controversial project #2

I hope you had a chance to review the graphic
to get a feel for what I am proposing
STADIUM DISTRICT PLAN

This project will:
 Provide
the needed infrastructure for new BP
investment
 Provide the needed attractions to create a
destination place
 Provide new “diverse” residential opportunities
 Provide multiple new commercial opportunities
 Serve as the ‘Gateway’ into the Lakefront Park
STADIUM DISTRICT PLAN

While there are still some moving parts in the
Plan, here are some of the highlights:
 The
project area includes all properties east of the
Schrage Avenue east alley and north of 121st
 All
of Old Standard Avenue
 All of Old Center Street
 All of 119th Street
 All of Front Street
 Over
75 properties will need to be acquired
(Additional comments on this topic later)
STADIUM DISTRICT PLAN

The Proposed Plan (market driven) includes:
A variety of New Residential units
 New commercial/multi-use buildings
 Senior Citizen market-rate apartments
 Multiple new restaurants and eateries
 Entertainment venues – Museums – Sports Facilities
 An allotted area for new BP development
 Road closures and new roadways
 Oil City Stadium additions
 100’s of new parking spaces

STADIUM DISTRICT PLAN

Moving Parts - Entertainment Venues

Museums
Whiting-Robertsdale Museum (Refinery Component)
 Chicago Baseball Museum



National Mascot Hall of Fame




Picking up momentum
Moved from a Pipe Dream to a reasonable chance
Flying their Team to Whiting in September to present a proposal
Sports Venues



Strong commitment to lease the 2nd wing if we build our museum
Expansion of Oil City Stadium to accommodate Minor League Team
Currently reviewing a proposal to include an Ice Arena to accommodate
a Minor League Hockey Team
Children’s Activity Center option
STADIUM DISTRICT PLAN

Market Based Discussion
Heavy developer interest
 Financing projects in Whiting is an issue

No development history
 No market data to support condo sales prices
 No history to support high rents for apartments
 Glut of condos in Chicago market - forcing high pre-sell %
 “Village” Project demise
 1500 Block 119th Street Project will hopefully open the door

Almost all developers utilize the financial markets
 Could determine final product mix

STADIUM DISTRICT PLAN

Acquisition of Property
I
am well aware that acquiring someone property is
not always a welcome event
 We will be compassionate and take great strides in
making sure the transaction is fair
 If a property owner has been an asset to the City,
we will bend over backwards to accommodate them
 Finding
new homes/apartments
 Senior Building construction
 Trading, etc.
STADIUM DISTRICT PLAN

Acquisition of Property
 BUT………
 If
a property owner has neglected their property for
decades, I will use every tool in my bag to acquire
their property at the lowest possible cost
 I won’t allow bad absentee landlords or property
owners to impede our growth
NEW HOTEL CONCEPT
Moving on to controversial project #3
 You have heard me talk about this in the past,
but if we want to grow and increase our tax
base, a local hotel is a critical component
 As I stated in the past, such a hotel needs to fit
our community, not a hotel developer’s plan
 If it’s done right, a new hotel will not only
provide a needed resource, but significantly
benefit our tax base

NEW HOTEL CONCEPT
We have been in discussions for months about
possible locations, and the optimum location
always points back to the Park
 The most acceptable location in the Park is
depicted on the layout on the table
 This concept is a $20M investment
 The back of house operations would utilize the
back side of the park

NEW HOTEL CONCEPT
In the coming months, we will be discussing the
project with multiple developers
 At this point in time, I’m supporting this
location and will work to move the project
further ahead so we could fine tune the details
 Public Process

WATER & SEWER RATES



Now for controversial topic #4
To continue improving our water and sewer
infrastructure, we will need to raise additional revenue
Example:




Rates have been flat for 13 years


A new water line is needed on 119th Street between Schrage
& New York
Estimated Price Tag - $1 million
Annual Gross Water Department revenue - $550,000
Because we have made considerable operational changes
to improve our efficiency
I will request a small $3 to $5 monthly increase soon
RESIDENTIAL MATCHING GRANTS
Somewhat controversial topic #5
 We’ve been flooded with calls asking why the
matching residential grants are not available
 The answer is:

 We
are attempting to allocate funds to resurrect the
program for ONE more round of grants

Absolutely no guarantees, but the program will
not be available any sooner than spring of
2014
RESIDENTIAL MATCHING GRANTS

Important Points
Must help a broad based portion of the community
 Must focus on areas in need of development
 Need a large pot to be able to distribute fairly
 Poor use of Tax dollars, need special 1-time funds
 Special program – cannot fund indefinitely
 Commercial Investment critical to community

 Will
continue limited commercial grants ~$50,000 total
 Impact shared across entire community
 Stirs economic development to improve tax base

Detailed Strategy available
QUIET ZONE

No Controversy here


Everyone agrees that this is a project worth pursuing
Background
3 independent railroads
 80+ trains a day
 Low vehicular traffic counts
 No requirement for railroads to improve technology like
other communities
 We have taken the necessary steps up to the point of
committing the funds

 $400,000
per crossing x 6 = $2.4 million
QUIET ZONE
There is valid increased public concern
 City Council has identified the project as one of
their top priorities
 It all comes down to funding
 Barring an unforeseen catastrophe with our
Funding Plan– this project will be funded
 Even after funding is allocated, the project will
not happen overnight

MISCELLANEOUS NEWS/ISSUES

Lakefront Update
 End
of September – Current Phase complete
 November – INDOT Phase begins
 Connecting
trails over tracks
 Entry way beautification
 Existing pathways redone
 Event
structure – Gazebo - Formal Garden
 Design
 Finished
underway with completion next year
Landscaping
 Spring/summer
MISCELLANEOUS NEWS/ISSUES

Lakefront Update
 Whihala
 Next
 Dog
Parking Improvements
summer
Beach
 2014
start – Late Fall – Early 2015 completion
 Whihala
 Late
Lighting
2014 into 2015
 Administration
 2015?
Building – Boat Club
MISCELLANEOUS NEWS/ISSUES

Lakefront Update
 Gun
Club Restaurant
 Conceptual
Drawing – Vavrek Architects
 Start construction January, 2014
 Completion – Fall?

Beach Parking
 Reviewing
sign policy – 1 sign at each entrance
 New Parking Enforcement Crew beginning next year
MISCELLANEOUS NEWS/ISSUES

Atchison Avenue Parking (St. John)
 Nearing
Completion
 Joint Project – City of Whiting & Parish
 Increased parking – allow for new development

Dog Park
 Whiting

Dog Beach – Hammond Dog Park
Little League Improvements
 T-Ball
Field – by next summer?
MISCELLANEOUS NEWS/ISSUES

Indianapolis Boulevard
 May
bid letting
 June – November construction
 Includes:
 Paving,
Lighting, Turn lanes, Sidewalks, Trees, Sewer
lining, Hydrant improvement
 Partnership
 INDOT
with:
and Hammond
MISCELLANEOUS NEWS/ISSUES

117th Street (Cleveland to tracks)
 Bond
fund dependent
 Will be ready for bid this fall
 Includes:
 Paving,
Sidewalks, Lighting, Sewer, Water, Oliver Street
intersection improvements, Brick restoration at Park
entry, Bike Path connections
 Hoping
for January letting – 2014 construction
MISCELLANEOUS NEWS/ISSUES

Parking Projects
 1500
Block 119th Street
 Building
construction dependent
 Spring 2014?
 Schrage/White
Oak/Ohio (Whiting Baptist Church)
 Acquisition
Dependent
 Church agreement not finalized
 Spring 2014?

St. Mary’s Church discussion – School & Parking
MISCELLANEOUS NEWS/ISSUES

ADA Compliance



Sidewalk ramps – crosswalks
Goal to be 100% compliant by 2015
Playground Analysis – Upgrades
 2014-2015

Illiana Hotel
 City
has taken action to take ownership of the
property via the tax sale process
 Stay tuned
THE END
Q&A’s
 One stipulation – If you ask a question, please
let me know if you live in Whiting or in
Robertsdale
