Who Killed Indy’s comprehensive smoking ban? or a Sad day for Indy

 

Terrible.  Indy politicians have once again missed an opportunity to improve the health of our community.  There’s a lot of blame to go around about why the city council has once again failed to pass a [nearly] comprehensive public smoking ban.

Mayor Greg Ballard is one person to hold accountable.  Matthew Tully in today’s star writes that the mayor  walked into a closed-door meeting with council Republicans and made it clear he didn’t want the ordinance to land on his desk.” Tully points out that as a canidiate for Indy mayor Ballard approved of a comprehensive smoking ban.

Democrats aren’t blameless either.  First of all, if council Democrats had made a stand during the Peterson era about smoking (or anything, really), this would be a mute point. Indy would have long ago joined the 21st century when it comes to public health.  But Peterson and the council back then weren’t about taking bold stands.

And on the city council, Democrats should feel embarrassed.  Council member Dane Mahern abstained from the vote because, as Tully reported, his father is a lobbyist for the tobacco industry. Heaven forbid, you take a stand that might bump against your father’s business interests.   More so, Mahern had his father host a fundraiser for him within a week of the scheduled smoking ban vote.

This was a chance to be a truly bipartisan and  other Democrats didnt’ show up.  Council member Doris Minton-McNeal, Monroe Gray, and, already mentioned Mahern, abstained from voting.  Their abstentions helped kill the bill and  Minton-McNeal didn’t even bother to show up.

Whatever the reasons, other Democrats who voted against the bill include Duke Oliver and Vernon Brown.

Thanks should go to  Democrats Jose Evans and Angela Mansfield and Republicans Barbara Malone and Ryan Hunter for taking a strong stand for making Indianapolis a better place to live.   And don’t forget to thank Smoke Free Indy.

 

http://www.indystar.com/article/20091028/NEWS08/910280381/Tully++Ballard+threat+helped+kill+smoking+ban

Filed under: Broad Ripple, Indiana, Indianapolis, Indianapolis Star, Indianapolis politics, POlitics, city council, community, community organizing, economy, progressive , Indianapolis, POlitics, Greg Ballard, Indianapolis Star, city council, Indianapolis politics, Bart Peterson, Jose Evans, smoke free indy, smoking, ban, smoking ban, angela mansfield, ryan hunter, doris minton-mcneal, monroe gray, vernon brown, duke olliver, barbara malone, dane mahern, mayor, comprehensive smoking ban, matthew tully

Indianapolis Hotel Worker’s are rethinking Indy’s economy, United Methodist Churches should rethink the economy as they Rethink Church

Nuvo Newsweekly–the alternative weekly here in Indianapolis–ran a great cover story about the struggle of downtown and northside hotel workers to organize a union.  One of the workers, Jessie Ham (above on the left) is prominently featured in the article is a friend our church, Lockerbie Central United Methodist Church.

She sums up this struggle:

Ham considers what life would be like if she tried to raise a family on her salary. “If I had a child – and I’m in my mid 20s, so it’s not farfetched for me to be thinking of it – I couldn’t afford it, and I work in one of the nicest hotels and nicest restaurants,” she said. “I could not afford to eat in The Eagle’s Nest.” Entrees at the revolving restaurant atop the Hyatt run approximately $30-$60.

She also talks about her encounter with Indianapolis Mayor  Greg Ballard:

Ham attended a Mayor’s Night Out meeting in mid-May and wrote in a question for Mayor Greg Ballard: The Capital Improvement Board is bringing in $3.5 billion in revenue, the hospitality industry is creating thousands of jobs, yet hotel workers are struggling to get by. What can we do?

She said Ballard stumbled over the answer, eventually offering that she should “find another job.” The mayor was unavailable for comment for this story.

There are some great United Methodist pastors who have been upfront and helping workers organize.  Rev. Darren Kushman-Wood locally is one of those pastors and I highly reccomend his book, Blue-Collar Jesus: How Christianity Supports Worker’s Rights.   Darren is also a great church leader and has done great work to transform his current church, Speedway Unitd Methodist, into a congregation that is engaged with the community.

But its probably time for the pastors at the biggest, most influential United Methodist churches, to start speaking some truth to power.

Filed under: Indiana, Indianapolis, Indianapolis politics, Lockerbie Central United Methodist Church, POlitics, community organizing, progressive, united methodist , Blue Collar Jesus, Darren Kushman-Wood, eagle's nest, economy, hotel workers, Hyatt Regency, Indianapolis, Jessie Ham, labor movement, lockerbie central, lockerbie central united methodist, low wage workers, rethink church, speaking truth to power, Speedway United Methodist, unions, united methodist church, worker's rights

We fought the law and the law won. And then the condo project went bankrupt

The Indianapolis Star’s top story today is “Failed townhomes, condo, to auction.”

The article highlights a number of high profile housing developments that have failed.  One of those projects is  The Kosene and Kosense/Gunstra Builders project in Broad Ripple called “The Townes at Winthrop.”According to the paper, only six of twenty eight units have sold.

This failed condo project is in my neighborhood.  For those who aren’t familiar with Indianapolis, Broad Ripple is a neighborhood that is famous for its nightlife, small businesses, walkability, and general pleasantness. My wife and I love living there.

Anyway, my letter to the editor about the building of these now failed condos was published in the Star, March 11, 2006.

Broad Ripple residents ignored in condo battle The City-County Council’s narrow decision to go forward with the Kosene & Kosene Broad Ripple condo project is not about adapting to change as your March 8 editorial claims. It shows instead that a well-connected developer has more power than the desires of an entire community.

As standing-room-only crowds at the council meeting and during a previous town hall meeting show, Broad Ripple residents were united in their opposition to this project. It is too dense, overwhelms the neighborhood and destroys green space on the Monon Trail. Kosene & Kosene rejected ideas for a more sensible project and Broad Ripple Councilman Jim Bradford snubbed his constituents while lobbying his Republican colleagues to vote for the project. Of course, Indianapolis needs to adapt to change and have innovative planning, but we don’t want unaccountable politicians and shortsighted developers.  Mike Oles III Indianapolis

This was a heated battle and one of the few times I have seen an Indianapolis neighborhood get really organized.  They packed the city council meeting the night of the final approval of the project.

And then basically, the city council–a bipartisan group of Dems and Republicans– voted for it.

This all happened after  the builder’s lawyers smeared the neighborhood activists and the residents of Broad Ripple that night.  Never mind the fact that there was standing room only–a rare feat at the council–and  the crowd was nearly unanimous in its opposition to The Townes project.

The Indianapolis Star in its editorial on March 8, 2006 wrote:

The city council was right to approve the condo development, which will replace a handful of small, older houses.  The condos will provide affluent cstomers for the areas nightclubs and restaurants, as well as a clientele for more datime shops and services.  they also will generate badly needed property tax revenue.”

I guess they also owe the people of Broad Ripple an apology.

Filed under: Broad Ripple, Indianapolis, Indianapolis Star, Indianapolis politics, POlitics, city council, community, community organizing, economy, progressive , Indianapolis, POlitics, economy, housing crisis, urban development, Broad Ripple, Development, forclosures, condos, gunstra builders, Kosene and Kosene, activism, local politics, Indianapolis politics, jim bradford, Monon Trail, housing, Indianapois Star