Recent editorials published in Indiana newspapers
The (Munster) Times. March 29, 2017
Commuter rail build firm foundation for growth
Northwest Indiana stands to benefit greatly from twin commuter rail projects planned for the Region.
The West Lake Corridor project will extend commuter rail service beyond the existing east-west route for the first time in more than a century.
The double-tracking project will speed and improve service along the existing route, making the commute by train quicker and more pleasant.
But that's not the only benefit of these projects. There's a redevelopment aspect that holds immense promise for communities along the rail lines.
State Rep. Hal Slager is pushing House Bill 1144, which allows the establishment of transit-oriented development districts at all station locations.
To those who complain about economic conditions along the 100-year-old rail line, here's your answer.
The plan is to encourage development surrounding the stations - homes, retail, offices and other improvements.
This is a new idea, and change can be scary for some people.
But learning more about how these transit development districts would work can dispel myths.
The Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority would work with local communities to set up these districts, with plenty of opportunity for public comment along the way.
The districts would capture only any increase in property taxes within the district, not the full amount that already exists. The district would have to earn that additional amount.
It's a recognition that transit-oriented development boosts property values. People want to live and shop there.
These districts would be new to Northwest Indiana, but they have a proven track record elsewhere.
Bringing additional residents to these new homes near train stations would boost total incomes in the Region, which means income tax revenue would increase as a result.
U.S. Rep. Pete Visclosky, D-Ind., is fond of telling constituents that Northwest Indiana has lost its young people. They're leaving the Region in droves.
These rail projects, including the transit development districts, are a good way to make the Region more attractive to young people.
We need to shape the Region not just for the people who live here now, but also for those who will live here in the future.
This is the biggest economic development project of our generation. It's important to make sure we do it right.
Tonight, the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission will seek comments on these projects at a public hearing from 6 to 8 p.m. at Michigan City's City Hall, 100 E Michigan Blvd.(asterisk)
Technically, the hearing is for the 2018-2021 Transportation Improvement Program, Amendment No. 4 to NIRPC's 2040 Comprehensive Regional Plan Update Companion, and its updated Air Quality Conformity Analysis.
Attend and show your support for commuter rail and community redevelopment.
We need these projects to lay a firm foundation for economic growth, and an improved quality of life, in the Region.
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The (Bloomington) Herald-Times. March 28, 2017
With 'productivity', Archie Miller could be perfect coach for IU, fans
On paper, Archie Miller looks like a near-perfect fit as the next Indiana University men's basketball coach.
He also looks a lot like the man he's replacing.
It can be argued that Tom Crean was a near-perfect fit for IU. He is a guy who loves the Indiana tradition, had Midwestern ties, had some experience coaching in the Big Ten as an assistant at Michigan State, and did very well as a head coach at a mid-major program at Marquette. He is intense about basketball, complies with the rules, was not shy about saying how much he loved his players, and those players graduated and stayed out of trouble - with a few notable exceptions who were ushered out of the program.
As for Miller - he said at his Monday news conference he loves the "power of the brand" of Indiana's basketball tradition and talked about his Midwestern ties, his experience coaching in the Big Ten as an assistant at Ohio State, and certainly could have dwelled on the success he had as head coach at a mid-major at Dayton. He talked about growing up in a basketball family with a basketball in his hands, the high standards he sets in and out of the classroom, and the investment he believes should and must be made in his players, caring about "their total development as a person."
Whether Archie Miller turns out to be the perfect fit won't be known until he starts putting teams on the court and they start piling up victories and winning championships. Crean was given a three-year honeymoon period to drag the Hoosiers out of the ditch they were in from the Kelvin Sampson crash. After that, his teams won at a reasonably high rate but did not register elite results. Winning the Big Ten two years out of the past five was terrific, beating Kansas and North Carolina early this year was exciting, but missing out on two NCAA tournaments in the past four years, including this year, simply did not meet the expectations for IU men's basketball. Near-perfect gave way to "thanks, but good luck somewhere else."
Miller doesn't inherit the mess Crean did, and he was quick to say the IU program "has been run very, very well." He knows he could have good to great returning talent, depending on who stays at IU and who decides to move on. He'll likely get no more than a one-year honeymoon period from the demanding Hoosier basketball fans, and he seemed OK with that.
"This is what you want if you love the game," he said of the opportunity to be at a school where such high expectations are put on the coach. He pledged to work very hard to earn the trust of all he comes into contact with, but understands the importance of winning when it comes to getting fans on your side.
"The ability to unite a fan base comes down to productivity," he said.
Consistent productivity translates into being one of the top dozen or so teams in the nation year after year after year after year. That kind of on-court success combined with fulfilled pledges of embracing high standards in and out of the classroom and representing IU in a first-class way that yields pride in the basketball program would make him a perfect fit for the job. Nothing "near" about it.
We welcome him and his family to Bloomington and IU and wish them success for a very long time.
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Kokomo Tribune. March 28, 2017
Be watchful for cyclists
ABATE of Indiana - the nonprofit motorcycle advocacy group - is once again offering its annual classes on rider safety in Kokomo this year. And its basic motorcycle rider courses, which begin in the parking lot of Inventrek Technology Park May 19, already are sold out through July 14.
In 2010, just two days after we reported such classes wouldn't be held in Kokomo, a Swayzee cyclist was killed northeast of Greentown. Indiana State Police said a motorist in a pickup ran a stop sign at Howard County Roads 1350 East and 300 North, striking the motorcycle and its female rider.
"(The motorist) said he never saw her," Trooper Randy McPike said after the fatal accident. "The skid marks indicate he did not stop at all."
It's an all-too-familiar story. Motorcycle accidents usually are caused by drivers of cars and trucks - and nearly all result in injury to the cyclist, according to a 1981 study.
With funding from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, researcher Harry Hunt of the University of Southern California investigated 900 motorcycle accidents and 3,600 accident reports involving motorcycles in the Los Angeles area. Hunt found:
. About 75 percent of motorcycle accidents involved a collision with another vehicle.
. In 66 percent of those collisions, another vehicle violated the motorcycle right-of-way and caused the accident.
. Failure of drivers to see motorcycles was the predominating cause of the accidents.
. Intersections were the most likely place for the motorcycle accident, with the other vehicles violating the motorcycle right-of-way.
. The likelihood of injury was extremely high in these motorcycle accidents. Ninety-eight percent of accidents with another vehicle resulted in some kind of injury to the motorcycle operator.
It's clear drivers must be alert to the presence of cyclists. Expect to see them at all times. Allow mo-peds and motorcycles as much space as a car when passing them. And be particularly aware of cyclists at intersections.
Motorcyclists are 21 times more likely as those traveling in a passenger car to die in a traffic accident, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Look for them while on the road as outdoor temperatures continue to warm.
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South Bend Tribune. March 30, 2017
Keep home rule for nuisance properties
It's puzzling that a state senator from a rural northeastern Indiana town with a little more than 1,000 residents is sponsoring a bill that would effectively abolish South Bend's Chronic Nuisance Ordinance.
The law has been working since it was first adopted in October 2013 and allows the city to fine landlords if police are called to a property an excessive number of times. Police Chief Scott Ruszkowski says the ordinance has dramatically reduced the number of times his officers have been called to some addresses.
The year the ordinance was adopted, Courtyard Place Apartments, a complex at 26th Street and East Jefferson Boulevard that's now called "Cedar Glen" under different owners, was on pace for about 900 police calls. But after passage, calls to the complex plummeted to just a few every month or two.
Nearly all of the people who had a hand in drafting the measure say it is effective because it holds accountable the owners of properties that are the subject of repeated calls for service - including those for police, code enforcement, the city's 311 line and council members. Council President Tim Scott, who sponsored the ordinance, estimated the city was spending $300,000 in taxpayer money annually to respond to nuisance property calls.
Senate Bill 558, which is scheduled for its next hearing before the House Judiciary Committee on April 3, would prohibit cities from fining landlords and instead allow tenants to be fined.
Fining the very people who are likely causing the problems in the first place seems counterproductive. As Ruszkowski said in a Tribune story published last week: "If they're not going to follow the rules before, they're not going to follow them after."
Statewide organizations already have begun lobbying the legislature to rewrite SB 558 so control over nuisance properties would remain with local agencies.
South Bend's ordinance is working. As it is written now, SB 558 would only serve to take away home rule from the communities that best know how to effectively deal with nuisance properties. It should be rejected by the legislature. Leave the power to deal with nuisance properties where it belongs: in local hands.
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