Well, the voters of Fishers saw the light and decided to become a city. But now the real question becomes, who will be the first Mayor of Fishers?
One might assume that it would be a member of the current Town Council who has the inside track. But whom? Scott Faultless was the figurehead as president of the council for years, but early this year the council kicked him out and decided to rotate the job. John Weingardt is the current president.
However, the rumor mill has been running overtime. Pete Peterson, the council member from Geist, was mentioned as a possibility, but supposedly he has been saying he is not interested. Renee Cox's name has been floated as a possibility. She was the only council member openly in favor of becoming a city.
One might think Faultless, as an active personal injury lawyer, wouldn't have the time. But several sources now report that Faultless is in fact telling people he will run. This makes little sense to me, he would lose a LOT of money as a full-time Mayor.
But now, "tricky" Scott Faultless apparently hasn't gotten over resenting the change to city, and rejection of his merger idea that would have created a fake, figurehead mayor. Apparently, he wants to be a part-time mayor, and let the city manager, whom he would keep, continue to run the show.
I'm sorry, didn't the voters just reject that, TWICE? By significant margins?
Democrat Greg Purvis' name has also been mentioned, but he has personally downplayed interest in the job. Libertarians are usually good for some candidates, but none has been mentioned that I am aware of for Mayor. So it is just the two council members for now.
Anyone else? Personally, I am mostly in the "Anyone but Faultless" club. Suggestions and comments are welcome.
Friday, May 31, 2013
Friday, May 10, 2013
Michigan Left, update
Those who follow this little blog know that I have complained, at length, about the disasters at 96th and Allisonville, and the road construction for the "Michigan Left" that creates 4 lights for u-turns, that make you turn right to go left. Yes, you read that correctly.
I drove thru the intersection a couple of days ago. While it is still under construction, I believe all but one of the u-turns is open, which means that drivers are NOT supposed to turn left in the conventional manner.
But they are. I saw FOUR vehicles in a row turn left from northbound Allisonville to westbound 96th. There are signs everywhere not to do this. They were fortunate that there was a break in the southbound traffic, and that no police were in sight.
But this tends to support part of my skepticism about this project in the first place. Drivers will NOT understand, nor obey, the new traffic pattern.
Wonder what "lucky" driver, when involved in an accident here, will have a smart, aggressive lawyer who sues the Town/City of Fishers for creating an dangerous situation. You heard the prediction here first. More taxpayer dollars down the drain.
I drove thru the intersection a couple of days ago. While it is still under construction, I believe all but one of the u-turns is open, which means that drivers are NOT supposed to turn left in the conventional manner.
But they are. I saw FOUR vehicles in a row turn left from northbound Allisonville to westbound 96th. There are signs everywhere not to do this. They were fortunate that there was a break in the southbound traffic, and that no police were in sight.
But this tends to support part of my skepticism about this project in the first place. Drivers will NOT understand, nor obey, the new traffic pattern.
Wonder what "lucky" driver, when involved in an accident here, will have a smart, aggressive lawyer who sues the Town/City of Fishers for creating an dangerous situation. You heard the prediction here first. More taxpayer dollars down the drain.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Riverplace developer files for bankruptcy
As predicted in an earlier post, the developer of Riverplace at 96th and Allisonville, Centre Properties, has filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy in order to reorganize.
In the Indianapolis Star article about the filing, they blame the construction at 96th and Allisonville for the demise of their shops on the corner. Which is odd, as supposedly the expanded Riverplace behind the corner shops was the REASON for the silly u-turns at the intersection, where the Town of Fishers is spending $10 million (with cost overruns) to make traffic even worse there.
This whole area I have previously called "Fishers Flop #1. Failed development next to two sewer plants, the White River, and a near to gravel pits and an asphalt plant is the reason to "improve" the intersection (already bad during rush hour), so the development fails because of the road "improvement" it inspired?
Priceless. Oops. Not "priceless". TEN MILLION DOLLARS OUT OF OUR POCKETS.
Becoming a city can't come soon enough.
In the Indianapolis Star article about the filing, they blame the construction at 96th and Allisonville for the demise of their shops on the corner. Which is odd, as supposedly the expanded Riverplace behind the corner shops was the REASON for the silly u-turns at the intersection, where the Town of Fishers is spending $10 million (with cost overruns) to make traffic even worse there.
This whole area I have previously called "Fishers Flop #1. Failed development next to two sewer plants, the White River, and a near to gravel pits and an asphalt plant is the reason to "improve" the intersection (already bad during rush hour), so the development fails because of the road "improvement" it inspired?
Priceless. Oops. Not "priceless". TEN MILLION DOLLARS OUT OF OUR POCKETS.
Becoming a city can't come soon enough.
Thursday, August 9, 2012
Is the Riverplace developer about to go under?
A story I just saw in the IBJ about the developer of Riverplace, the giant flop of a multi-use development on 96th Street next to the White River, documents how Centre Properties is struggling and facing foreclosure on some of its properties, including one in Fishers on 96th just east of I-69.
Readers will remember from my earlier post about how this giant development, touted as the new gateway to Fishers by town council president Scott Faultless, has never gotten off the ground. Never one to admit a mistake, Faultless is spending $8.6 million in taxpayer dollars to make the intersection of 96th and Allisonville even worse, with the boondoggle called a "Michigan left".
This news story makes it even more unlikely that Riverplace will ever be built, kind of like the water park on State Road 37 that got foreclosed on, the subject of a future post. So why are taxpayers funding $8.6 million for road "improvements" for a busted development???
I don't know who the contractors are for this mess, but one has to wonder if they were contributors to Faultless and Company. Wouldn't surprise me.
Readers will remember from my earlier post about how this giant development, touted as the new gateway to Fishers by town council president Scott Faultless, has never gotten off the ground. Never one to admit a mistake, Faultless is spending $8.6 million in taxpayer dollars to make the intersection of 96th and Allisonville even worse, with the boondoggle called a "Michigan left".
This news story makes it even more unlikely that Riverplace will ever be built, kind of like the water park on State Road 37 that got foreclosed on, the subject of a future post. So why are taxpayers funding $8.6 million for road "improvements" for a busted development???
I don't know who the contractors are for this mess, but one has to wonder if they were contributors to Faultless and Company. Wouldn't surprise me.
Monday, July 16, 2012
Riverplace and 96th and Allisonville
What a lot of people think is Fishers' Biggest Flop is the entire mess at 96th and Allisonville. But it takes a bit of history to explain.
For many years, a developer, Centre Properties, has been trying to get permission from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources to fill in part of the White River flood plan just north of the 96th Street bridge. Residents north and south of 96th along the river opposed the permit, fearing increased flooding. For years, DNR turned down the permit, so the development went no where.
Suddenly, about 2007, the DNR reverses itself and approves the permit. If memory serves, this was not long after former Fishers Town Council member Charlie White (yes, THAT Charlie White) went to work for DNR. Now, I am not saying that Charlie had anything to do with that, but it seems a large coincidence.
So then, the developer asks for Town Council approval for its grandiose and supposed $500 million dollar mixed-use project with condos, stores, and commercial uses. And the Town Council approves it, despite near-total opposition by residents and testimony by both Fishers and Indy transportation people that the development would make an already horrible intersection even worse. Councilman David George, a civil engineer, voted against it. A news article about the approval is here.
Well, apparently the staff in Fishers was worried enough about massive traffic jams that they had to come up with something. And they did. Its called a "Michigan Left". What that means, astonishingly enough, is that YOU CAN'T TURN LEFT AT THIS INTERSECTION any more. What you do is turn RIGHT, then make a U-Turn, AGAINST ONCOMING TRAFFIC (maybe with a light), and then go right, the direction you wanted to go anyway.
I am no traffic engineer, but this seems to defy common sense, especially at rush hour. Traffic wanting to go left against rush hour traffic will have to make a right turn, change 3 lanes immediately, then U-turn against rush hour traffic. Without a light, impossible. WITH a light, almost impossible. Have you seen how FAR rush hour traffic backs up there? And with thousands of more cars with a half-billion dollar development, WHERE DO THEY ALL GO???
Fortunately, Riverplace seems a bust, so far. It was to have opened years ago, and nothing has been done there. It is a huge vacant lot overrun with weeds. So it is not adding to the massive traffic headaches at 96th and Allisonville.
Worse, Fishers is carrying the whole load financially for this "improvement". Indy is paying nada. They gave approval for their side of the county line on condition that they not have to pay anything. The estimated costs are over $8.6 million. A diagram and more info on this nightmare on the Town's website is here.
And who wants to live, work and shop next to TWO sewer plants and the smelly White River anyway?
This is not only the Town Council's fault. The developer has a lot sunk in this, foolishly. But we have now sunk millions of taxpayer dollars into making a bad situation worse.
I rate this:
FISHERS FLOP #1.
For many years, a developer, Centre Properties, has been trying to get permission from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources to fill in part of the White River flood plan just north of the 96th Street bridge. Residents north and south of 96th along the river opposed the permit, fearing increased flooding. For years, DNR turned down the permit, so the development went no where.
Suddenly, about 2007, the DNR reverses itself and approves the permit. If memory serves, this was not long after former Fishers Town Council member Charlie White (yes, THAT Charlie White) went to work for DNR. Now, I am not saying that Charlie had anything to do with that, but it seems a large coincidence.
So then, the developer asks for Town Council approval for its grandiose and supposed $500 million dollar mixed-use project with condos, stores, and commercial uses. And the Town Council approves it, despite near-total opposition by residents and testimony by both Fishers and Indy transportation people that the development would make an already horrible intersection even worse. Councilman David George, a civil engineer, voted against it. A news article about the approval is here.
Well, apparently the staff in Fishers was worried enough about massive traffic jams that they had to come up with something. And they did. Its called a "Michigan Left". What that means, astonishingly enough, is that YOU CAN'T TURN LEFT AT THIS INTERSECTION any more. What you do is turn RIGHT, then make a U-Turn, AGAINST ONCOMING TRAFFIC (maybe with a light), and then go right, the direction you wanted to go anyway.
I am no traffic engineer, but this seems to defy common sense, especially at rush hour. Traffic wanting to go left against rush hour traffic will have to make a right turn, change 3 lanes immediately, then U-turn against rush hour traffic. Without a light, impossible. WITH a light, almost impossible. Have you seen how FAR rush hour traffic backs up there? And with thousands of more cars with a half-billion dollar development, WHERE DO THEY ALL GO???
Fortunately, Riverplace seems a bust, so far. It was to have opened years ago, and nothing has been done there. It is a huge vacant lot overrun with weeds. So it is not adding to the massive traffic headaches at 96th and Allisonville.
Worse, Fishers is carrying the whole load financially for this "improvement". Indy is paying nada. They gave approval for their side of the county line on condition that they not have to pay anything. The estimated costs are over $8.6 million. A diagram and more info on this nightmare on the Town's website is here.
And who wants to live, work and shop next to TWO sewer plants and the smelly White River anyway?
This is not only the Town Council's fault. The developer has a lot sunk in this, foolishly. But we have now sunk millions of taxpayer dollars into making a bad situation worse.
I rate this:
FISHERS FLOP #1.
Friday, July 13, 2012
Now on social media
Wow, I seem to have gotten a lot of attention in just one day. Created a Facebook account, http://www.facebook.com/fishers.flops?sk=wall, I have 8 friends already, and a Twitter account, @FishersFlops.
And a local blogger, LarryInFishers, (webpage http://larryinfishers.com/Home_Page.html; Twitter @LarryInFishers) tweeted about my first blog post!
Now, how to get the word out better? Hmmmm. Any suggestions, contact me on Facebook.
And a local blogger, LarryInFishers, (webpage http://larryinfishers.com/Home_Page.html; Twitter @LarryInFishers) tweeted about my first blog post!
Now, how to get the word out better? Hmmmm. Any suggestions, contact me on Facebook.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Welcome to Fishers Famous Flops
Fishers, Indiana is a pretty nice place to live, with nice people, and great schools. But it could be better. The "leadership" of the Town of Fishers, under Town Council President Scott Faultless, leaves a lot to be desired.
This blog, which could also be called "Faultless Famous Flops", will be about some of those failures of leadership. These include developments opposed by neighbors, wastes of taxpayer money, approvals of failed developments of everything from strip malls to water parks, and so on.
Why this blog? Most people pay little attention to what goes on. I pay enough attention to know more than most, and I don't like some of what I see. I want to share what I see and know with fellow Fishers residents.
There will be a lot of stuff in here about Mr. Faultless and his style of "leadership". Examples? If someone bucks him, he gets insulting, demeaning, and threatens retaliation. Civil disagreement is not his style... in private anyway. He is famous for polticial cronyism, appointing those who back him to boards and such. He shuts out anyone who disagrees with him. He is the unelected "mayor" of Fishers, a "town" with no elected mayor, who only had a 1-vote majority on the Town Council to keep his job.
His "style" has led to waste, mismanagement, ghost employment, and poltical purges. But most people don't see it. I hope to help with that.
I hope to post at least once a week. If you live or work in Fishers, feel free to follow what I post. I also hope to cross-post this eventually in social media, stay tuned for announcements on that. Feel free to suggest this to friends who live in Fishers, I hope it will open some eyes.
This blog, which could also be called "Faultless Famous Flops", will be about some of those failures of leadership. These include developments opposed by neighbors, wastes of taxpayer money, approvals of failed developments of everything from strip malls to water parks, and so on.
Why this blog? Most people pay little attention to what goes on. I pay enough attention to know more than most, and I don't like some of what I see. I want to share what I see and know with fellow Fishers residents.
There will be a lot of stuff in here about Mr. Faultless and his style of "leadership". Examples? If someone bucks him, he gets insulting, demeaning, and threatens retaliation. Civil disagreement is not his style... in private anyway. He is famous for polticial cronyism, appointing those who back him to boards and such. He shuts out anyone who disagrees with him. He is the unelected "mayor" of Fishers, a "town" with no elected mayor, who only had a 1-vote majority on the Town Council to keep his job.
His "style" has led to waste, mismanagement, ghost employment, and poltical purges. But most people don't see it. I hope to help with that.
I hope to post at least once a week. If you live or work in Fishers, feel free to follow what I post. I also hope to cross-post this eventually in social media, stay tuned for announcements on that. Feel free to suggest this to friends who live in Fishers, I hope it will open some eyes.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)