The State of The City...Jeffersonville

Earlier this week mayor Mike Moore of Jeffersonville delivered his "state of the City" address at the local Rotary Club. Mayor Moore outlined  plans , projects and ideas for the future as well as covering recent successes and growth.

 The Batblog feels the mayor with his look to the future has shown a pretty good feel for the needs and the pulse of the City . Primarily we like the mayor's realization of the need to improve the traffic infrastructure ,especially here in the east end which has been the area of recent unparalleled growth and development. Particularly needing  attention is access to the Veteran's Pkwy. area from the east end. Holman Ln. was never intended to handle the vast amount  traffic that it does daily, it needs to be four lanes or another access road to Veterans built....and it was needed 10 years ago

  Also needing attention and pinpointed by the mayor is the 10th St. corridor. Abandoned buildings and businesses , and poorly poorly maintained structures dot the landscape from just beyond the Census Bureau building to about 10th and Springdale Dr. intersection. These eyesores need to be removed and a better mix of businesses ,shops and restaurants are sorely needed.

 Particularly unsightly is the commercial strip just off of tenth, the strip of abandoned stores in the complex that house Mick's Lounge at the far end. This building needs to be updated, much like the Youngstown revamp of several years ago. We also agree with the mayor that the current Clark Co. Auction sight needs to be developed into something other than a bus depot for G.C.C schools. That short stretch in the area of 10th is particularly unsightly from  Youngstown east to Springdale Dr.

The new east end bridge will probably relieve some of the congestion travelling east thru the 10 St.but particularly outdated is the whole east end infrastructure. As mentioned, Holman Ln., plus Allison Ln.,Middle Road and Utica Pike all need to be looked at being widened. New subdivisions and the main flux of population lives and travels in these areas.

 All in all the state of Jeffersonville is pretty exciting moving forward with great strides having been made in the last 5 years. Jobs are plentiful, it seems like everyone is hiring. New businesses are opening, and even the run down area of 62 (pictured) represents just a small area that needs attention. Just as Mayor Moore revitalized downtown the BatBlog feels confident he will improve the areas that we mentioned needing attention. The only concern we have is the growth outgrowing the infrastructure of handling the traffic that progress brings...

Rest In Peace Glenn

Lifelong resident, former  owner and founder of Tubby's Pizza has passed away. Glenn was a super nice man, he lost his fight  after bravely battling cancer  for several years. Tubby's was an awesome place in it's heyday and kept downtown Jeffersonville alive back years ago..Glenn ran it with class, a friendly smile and good word...

 Condolences to his family and Rest in Peace Glenn you will be missed...


Glenn's daughter Felicia has started a Go Fund Me site to defray funeral costs...Please Donate if you can CLICK HERE

Brother Could You Spare a Dime....or a Cool Million

You sure you know how to fly this damn thing Galligan ???  Shut up Fifer ...Enjoy the Ride..

  According to the News/ Tribune article the Clark Co. Airport Authority will be pandering local municipalities for more taxpayer money in order to finish their runway. The BatBlog feels airport expansion shouldn't be a top priority right now as there are more pressing needs for local taxpayers. This is a luxury item that probably less than 1% of area residents use or will ever use...



Airport leaders would try and make you think that the C.C. airport is needed for economic growth. That argument just doesn't hold water...as this area with the Bridges project, River Ridge and the Riverport is growing by leaps and bounds  without the airport even in the equation. We already have two nearby airports Standiford and Bowman fields that are more than adequate to handle flights in and out of this area, a third big airport is a stretch

Zoom Zoom ...If we had some  of that Jeffersonville money Matt we could play airplanes

It probably won't make any difference of taxpayer's concerns . More than likely the political pandering will result in some local municipality ponying up the needed money... most likely Jeffersonville they have in the past shown little concern on how money should be well spent...

So the millionaires will have a nice place to land their Lear jets come Derby time, while we peasants fight the every day grind of traffic in our automobiles in the outdated and decaying traffic infrastructure ...Maybe 15 -20 years down the road C.C. airport expansion would be feasible , but not now. Let's take care of the people who pay for these things .... the forgotten taxpayer...Let's not finance millionaires and hobbyists and their high priced toys,,,

The Men Who Would Be Kings ...Part II King Jamey I ???

In the short time as sheriff of Clark Co. Jamey Noel has cemented his polarizing persona on the local political and law enforcement scenes. Some see him as the no nonsense, hard nosed law enforcement figure needed, who has begun cleaning up the cesspool of drug abuse and problems at the county jail. In some minds he is the  manipulator, mastermind and kingpin  who has directed the local GOP party to unparalleled gains here in the county.

 On the opposing view he is seen as a  somewhat tyrannical,egotistical  Napoleon like control freak who has his hand in too many operations, which he uses to his advantage politically. County party chairman, director of the New Chapel Volunteer F.D./ EMS and sheriff ....Noel certainly has his hands full. Publicity hound is another word critics use in describing Noel and the way he operates.

 The BatBlog is going to reserve judgement until later on Sheriff Noel as he has done some good things in an effort to clean up the county jail. He was left a mess by former sheriff Rodden, so Noel has a lot to work with there. Whether he wields to much power and influence on the local GOP party, that is for Republican party members to determine and if so act accordingly. He has taken local Rep.s to new highs and success at local elections, even though his task was made easier by the inept faces of leadership by local Democrats  Galligan and Perkins.

  A couple of things that has bothered the BatBlog is Noel's apparent action of doing things on his own. Particularly the recent contract signed with A&E to produce a reality show inside the Clark Co. jail. We believe this should have been run by the County Commissioners and Co. attorney before being agreed to, it is our understanding it was NOT....

Submitted by a reader...Thank You and well done

Also Noel promoting  carry permits seems rather over the top as well. There is nothing wrong with citizens carrying legally permitted firearms, but we aren't sure the sheriff should be promoting this. We're not sure it's in the best interest to have everybody in Clark Co. Indiana. carrying a concealed handgun and the sheriff promoting that premise.

 The BatBlog will put the King Jamey I title on hold for now. He has said he will relinquish the party chair which we feel is in the best interest of C.C. residents, as being sheriff is a full time job, but The BatBlog will remain vigilant and watching...but one thing for sure we have discovered is that the sheriff is one of the most polarizing figures in recent memory...

The Men Who Would Be Kings ... King Bob I

 

Let them eat cake...

Unfortunately sometimes politicians with successful political  careers and campaigns get a self exaggerated sense of importance, influence and power. Most of the time due to the checks and balances  our government instills,  these individual powers are mostly contained, but that doesn't keep a few from still trying...The BatBlog identifies these as, Men who would be Kings and tonight we will touch on one.

While The BatBlog isn't totally informed about the situation in Charlestown In. and King Bob Hall I, a reader tuned us on to the situation. Apparently King Bob wants a certain section of Charlestown bulldozed and replaced with better housing, in the process and apparently aimed at this section the King and his court of City council henchmen have drawn up ordinances that the BatBlog feels is unfair, abusive, beyond the scope of what a mayor (or in this case King) or council should be able to do and frankly unconstitutional...

Criminal activity in Charlestown ???

 The "Public Nuisance" ordinance passed yesterday includes... No feeding stray cats or dogs and residents must pay their utility bills in a timely manner... "habitual" violators can be fined  ranging from $500- $2500. If the violation isn't addressed the property owners home can be declared unfit for habitation and an order to vacate issued...

 So we guess if you throw a poor dog a bone or forget to pay your gas bill on time King Bob is going to throw you to the street.  If this wasn't so absurd it would actually be funny...What great legal mind drew up this ordinance ???  Why that would be City Attorney Mike "The Hammer" Gillenwater who at an earlier meeting said for the worst offenders we need a bigger hammer....

 Not only is King Bob I lowering the "hammer", he doesn't want to hear any complaining from the peasants either. City council rules have been changed so the peasant serfs have to give notice in order to be heard from, and you must state what you will talk about if and only if you are granted an audience with the King and his jesters at City Council meetings.

Rightful punishment for a peasant serf...

 King Bob is obviously living in the wrong time, he should have been born in medieval days of yore when flogging and placing lawbreakers in a stock in the middle of the town square was more appropriate for those so callous to feed a stray animal and slow paying their bills ...

HT on the 2016 GOP Presidential Race...

 I hate to admit it but I've been mesmerized with the GOP presidential debates. It's must see TV...
Trump love him or hate him is entertaining as hell !!!  Candidates before Trump have always mostly played nice saying that's "not true" when disagreeing. Trump on the other hand gets right to the chase and calls them "Liars"...I love it, and now he's got them all doing it....Saturday night's debate was a battle royale ....great theater. Trump the other night repeated what a supporter yelled out "Cruz is a pussy."  You gotta love it....

Thoughts on the other candidates...Ted Cruz has that whiny ass voice, looks like a geek and appears phony as hell to me...

 Marco Rubio is wooden, mechanical ...everything sounds like a memorized speech, would make a good Baptist preacher...He wins the swimsuit competition with Mrs. HT though...

Jeb Bush...George W. has probably killed any chance for Jeb to win...Actually appears like a sensible alternative to the others , that I could possibly vote for...

John Kasich ...Here is another common sense candidate like Jeb Bush that I like and could vote for, but he doesn't seem to be catching on...

Chris Christie ...Never caught on either he looks like your local plumber and he's out....but did make Rubio look like an idiot in earlier debate...

Ben Carson...What the hell is he still doing in the race...too intelligent and nice of a guy to be a politician...

The national Republican party just can't figure out who they are, You have the real conservative, tea partiers and the Evangelical faction. The middle of the road traditional types like Bush and Kasich that the GOP hasn't been able to win with, And of course you have the loose cannon non traditional Donald Trump, that a big faction has fell in love with....Stay tuned it will be interesting

TIF Updates

 Anyone really interested in learning more about TIF (Tax Increment Financing) should read this  CLICK HERE...These professors from Ball St. aren't politicians they have PHD.'s in Economics and if you want to read their  complete study in PDF form here is another link  CLICK HERE..

 (When you get to the link... click on the picture (shown)  for the complete study in a PDF file)

Fascinating and very informative reading !!!

Inside the Clark County Jail

The Election That Never Ended...

 *********************************UPDATE***************************************************************************************************
NO DECISION TODAY; Attorneys will continue their arguments tomorrow in front of Judge Adams

*********************************************************************************************************************************************

The continuing saga of the Jeffersonville City councilman at large race in last Nov.'s election is back in the news this week. A court hearing is scheduled tomorrow to hopefully somehow straighten out and hopefully answer questions about the recount in the closely contested race for the 3 at large seats.

Accusations are flying back and forth by both Dem. and Rep. party chairs Galligan and Noel of politics being played, missing ballots,sleeping vote counters, counters being changed during the process etc.,etc., etc .The BatBlog has been told by a source close to the recount process "this is the worst cluster f_ _ _ I've seen, and that is truly saying something."

 In truth we will never find out who actually won the "Election that never ended" as the whole recount process has muddled any chance of actually determining who won.  It was a race for the whole election but the counts for Owen, Samuel and Cooley weren't even counted, only the totals of Rodriquez, Webb and Ellis.  Counting mistakes and discrepancies and a poor process have created a total mess.

 The BatBlog is calling for a total revamping of the  recount process as the current one obviously doesn't work. Create a 5 or 6 person panel or commission of non political, non partisan citizens chosen by judges from each party. Allow the panel and only them to handle, count and determine the validity and totals of  all the votes ...with a judge present to decide on conflicting matters. Keep all politicians , their attorneys , party chairs away from the whole process....and the conclusion of the panel is final.

The BatBlog isn't pointing fingers at anyone but allowing Noel, Gilligan, Perkins, Wilder and all the other political has been's and want to be's even near to the process is just begging to be what it end up being the "worst cluster f _ _ _" possible.  It's a shame for all the hard working candidates who invested their time and money in the race only to find out nobody knows who won. As well as the voters who took the time to vote, thinking their vote actually counted and expected that the true winner be determined only to find out it wouldn't happen ...This should never happen again...

Just Curious...What Happened to Ordinance No. 6

Just curious..... on the Jeffersonville City website  CLICK HERE  listing  ordinances, number 6 for 2016 has for some reason  either been omitted, forgotten about or Moe Zastawny numbered them...

Remember Moe's 10 point plan for Jeffersonville CLICK HERE  when he numbered them  0-1-2-3-4-5-7-8-9-10 (no number 6 either)

Anyway anybody know what happened to or where did ordinance # 6 go ???

Too Much TIF's (Tax Increment Funding)

The BatBlog has been pretty much supportive of the Mike Moore administration and his performance as Jeffersonville mayor, but  this week's announcement that Moore and the Jeff Redevelopment Commission would be extending the area of the TIF's districts locally is somewhat troubling. Hopefully caution will be used moving forward.

 The BatBlog has touched on TIF's before, (tax increment funding) is a controversial tool for redevelopment by municipalities that isn't understood by a lot of taxpayers and the majority of taxpayers don't even know what they are or how they work.  For a little insight on and an excellent article on TIF'S by Ball St. University  CLICK HERE.and here's another on how TIF's are bad for the taxpayers...CLICK HERE

TIF's can be effective tools when used correctly to redevelop blighted areas, unfortunately wise decisions aren't always the norm and when used unwisely TIF's may  actually adversely effect individual taxpayers with higher tax rates, and other consequences.... as the study has shown.

 The tax dollars captured in these TIF district's are also diverted away from other tax funded entities like schools, libraries, townships etc. With local financial problems by Clark Co. and the local school system requesting additional funding in the recent election with the referendum, one can see that TIF's  aren't always the correct solution to redevelopment, or in the best interests of public and taxpayers.

 The east end of Jeffersonville appears to developing quite well on it's own without added TIF funding and The BatBlog thinks it wise for the Moore administration to think carefully if this expansion is the right thing to do and is in the best interests of ALL local residents and taxpayers...

***************************BREAKING NEWS********************* 
Case Dismissed !!!

  The BatBlog is happy to report that the lady whose story about her arrest in the Jan. 30 edition of the BatBlog  CLICK HERE  has received notice from the Clark Co. prosecutor's office that her case has been dismissed without prejudice by the State of Indiana. The charges of possession of a controlled substance (2) counts that was dismissed,  were prescription medications which several had fallen into her purse and  were not in their original bottles.

While this middle aged lady MAYBE was technically in the wrong, she tried to explain her situation to the officers who still arrested her and took her to the Clark Co. jail. Her automobile was impounded and she spent 5 hours in the C.C. jail.

   As reported earlier by the BatBlog after going to court Judge Weber appeared to originally lean towards dismissing the case as the defendant told him she had documentation from her doctors of the prescriptions, but the prosecutor objected and asked for the case to be continued (later this month) in order for the arresting officers to appear. The continuance and charges were dismissed in the letter she received today from the C.C. prosecutor's office.

 While the outcome was a relief  to the woman charged and ultimately the right thing was done in this case , it still raises several disturbing concerns to the BatBlog. First it's total BS that this woman was arrested at all, she was  up front and honest, explained the situation but was ultimately traumatized. Having never been to jail or had so much as a parking ticket, the embarrassment and the trauma of being jailed plus the added financial burden of recovering her impounded car is not how honest citizens should be treated.

It appears to the BatBlog this was a case of over zealous possibly poorly trained county officers and a court and prosecutor that at least in this case was severely inept. An absolute funny thing about this whole thing is that neither the prosecutor or the judge even bothered to look at the documentation the lady went to the trouble to gather, to verify her prescriptions. She told them she had it (which she did) but they never even looked at the evidence to prove innocence or guilt.

Hopefully this is just an isolated case, because if our whole law enforcement and judicial system is run like this every day it is truly a comedy of errors. As we said before there are enough real bad guys out there....let's harass them ...not the hard working taxpayers....

Remain Vigilant my Friends

The Right Thing to Do - Jeffersonville City Council

  The BatBlog has been highly critical of the Jeffersonville City council in the past , and rightfully so. Things may be changing though, and congratulations are in order to this council particularly Dustin White who championed the new ordinance that separates the council as the City's  Park's authority...  For the N/T story CLICK HERE

This was the right thing to do. Our country was set up and thrives on checks and balances in government. As it was before this ordinance, the council was acting with both executive and legislative powers, with no separation  that is essential to democratic government.

I might take my ball and go home !!!

 Of course the dissenters (the vote was 5-4) led by Ed "Moe" Zastawny didn't want to give up their exclusive , dictatorial powers over the parks department.  Moe said giving the people majority power over the Park's was "a step backward"...Gee Moe, maybe you should move to Moscow and be a city councilmen over there. Moe must have forgotten the first three words of our Constitution "We the People." Power to the people is the foundation to which the entire Constitution depends.

  The new Park's authority will be made up of 5 appointees from the mayor's office and 4 from the City council. Hopefully the new authority will reverse the trend on foolish, unwanted, spending like the obscene amount directed toward a soccer field...

 The amazing thing about the vote is that four councilpersons (Moe, Gill, Samuels, and Hawkins who voted against) didn't see the conflict of interests and bad government the former Authority created. Makes you wonder about their political agenda and beliefs.

 Once again congratulations and thanks to the members(Owen, Jahn, White, Maples,Webb) led by  Mr. White who voted this in and returned this power to the people of Jeffersonville...