Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Ballard Supports Peterson's Tax Increase?

A press release from GOP mayoral candidate Greg Ballard's campaign suggests he supports increasing Marion Co.'s county option income tax (COLIT) as proposed by Mayor Peterson as long as the money is used to hire 750 more police officers and reopen closed police substations, such as the north district substation at 42nd & College closed by Peterson. Ballard's press release reads:

Republican mayoral candidate Greg Ballard called on Mayor Bart Peterson to guarantee to taxpayers that he will spend the $85 million public safety tax increase he has requested to put new police officers into our neighborhoods.

“We must stem the rising tide of crime and first and foremost that means cops on the street,” Ballard said. Explaining further, Ballard noted, “at a cost of $80 thousand dollars per officer, the Mayor could easily hire the additional 900 officers Sheriff Anderson called for three years ago.”

Sheriff Anderson stated three years ago that these officers would be needed to adequately cover the county under a merged Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department. Ballard concluded, “I call on the Mayor to use this proposed tax increase to hire a minimum of 750 additional officers and reopen substations in underserved areas.”

In addition, Ballard called again for the reopening of the former IPD North District substation, pointing to crime in the area as a dramatic example of the effects of a decreased presence by street officers. According to Ballard, “The attacks on senior citizens in this area must stop now.

While I am pleased a suspect has been identified, there is no excuse for the Mayor to have allowed violence in this area to continue unchecked for so long.”

Ballard said that, if elected, it will not take him eight years to realize public safety must be the mayor's top priority. It will be his priority from day one.

"If Bart Peterson had followed through on his campaign promises and addressed public safety when he was first elected, or if he hadn’t cancelled cadet classes that would have meant much needed officers on the streets, we would all be safer now." Ballard stated.

"Once again, Indianapolis is being asked to sacrifice for Bart Peterson's poor planning and lack of leadership."

From what AI hears from area neighborhood leaders, Peterson plans to grant Ballard's wish, at least with respect to the north side police substation. A politically-connected real estate developer has been trying to get neighborhood buy-in for an $8 million planned renovation of a property at 34th & Central for more than 70 "affordable housing" units. The building is located across the street from one of the pea shake houses the city raided earlier this year in response to neighborhood complaints and the heat placed on the city by area bloggers. Area neighbors strongly opposed adding more low-income housing stock to the troubled neighborhood, but the developer found a magic bullet. AI hears the city will open a new police substation as part of the proposed redevelopment, which wins neighborhood support for an otherwise doomed project. The developer will also enjoy more than $700,000 in annual tax credits. And can you guess what law firm helped broker the deal?

Mayor Peterson's campaign will no doubt stage a press conference in the near future to announce the deal. And how can Ballard respond? I guess he could question whether the Mayor's interest in the neighborhood is driven by a true desire to improve it, or whether he's simply taking care of his close business and political friends as usual, and any public benefit derived from the project is merely coincidental. At any rate, this is what Ballard can expect for the remainder of the campaign. He's going to have to learn how to out-fox Peterson if he wants to make any headway in his already uphill campaign.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ballard needs to be more than a one issue wonder on crime.

Perhaps he could create his own "Ballard Plan" improving upon the old "Peterson Plan".

Wilson46201 said...

At this point, the only 2007 GOP game plan seems a combination of "True Crime Stories" and "Police Gazette"...

Anonymous said...

The old "Peterson Plan can do nothing except improve.
bart WILL NOT promise any more police officers. He wants to give the money to his special interest group millionaire friends.

Anonymous said...

I drove by the old peashake this past weekend.

Looks like it's up and running again.

Anonymous said...

4:49, Illegal numbers racketeering continues to thrive doesn't it. At least with a new police sub-station in that area the racketeers won't have to travel very far to drop off those envelopes stuffed with cash.

BTW, Joe over at the Indyundercover blog has been strangely quiet as of late on these gambling operations. I guess some of his Leo friends told him to lay off. A cops gotta make a livin' too you know.

Ballard? He doesn't have a clue about how to run a campaign nor do I think he's got it in him to do what it takes to win. Sad, very sad.

Anonymous said...

"A politically-connected real estate developer has been trying to get neighborhood buy-in for an $8 million planned renovation of a property at 34th & Central for more than 70 "affordable housing" units. The building is located across the street from one of the pea shake houses the city raided earlier this year in response to neighborhood complaints and the heat placed on the city by area bloggers. Area neighbors strongly opposed adding more low-income housing stock to the troubled neighborhood, but the developer found a magic bullet. AI hears the city will open a new police substation as part of the proposed redevelopment, which wins neighborhood support for an otherwise doomed project. The developer will also enjoy more than $700,000 in annual tax credits."

Is "affordable housing" a code word for "Section 8 or 42 ghetto?" Government housing doesn't have to be crime ridden, _if_ the owners/government really enforce the rules.

Anyways, better Marion Co. than my neighborhood.

Anonymous said...

Coming late to the party here, but as I read the release, Ballard's not necessarily supporting the tax increase. It appears he's saying that if the Mayor's going to ask for an increase for public safety, he would only support it if it put more cops on the street. Seems like this isn't the fairest headline, maybe?