Banner Graphic, Volume 19, Number 293, Greencastle, Putnam County, 18 August 1989 — Page 1

Banner Graphic Greencastle. Putnam County. Friday. August 18. 1969. Vol. 19 No 293 35 Cents

Last year K was the drought that plagued In-

diana farmers, then a wet spring caused many to delay planting this year. And now, Mother Nature has doled out another dose of misery to some Putnam County farmers. A hail storm earlier this week in the northern part of the county did a number on some soybean and com fields, especially in the Somerset Church area. In this shot looking south from a spot west of Somerset, the beans had been beaten down by the hail, leaving just the stalks of the plants like a spindly reminder of what might have been. The Putnam County Extension Office had no figures on how much damage might have been caused by the hail storm. (Banner-Graphic photo by Gary Goodman).

Little public interest is shown in $5.71 North Putnam tax rate

By BECKY IGO Banner-Graphic News Editor Seventh-grade orientation brought several people to the Neath Putnam Jr.-Sr. High School Thursday night, but only two persons were present when the school board’s public hearing on the 1990 budget took place. New football coach Herb King sat in temporarily at the beginning of the session, while Dr. Ray Howell of Roachdale and the Ban-ner-Graphic were the only members of the audience when the public hearing actually took place. AS DISCUSSED during previous board meetings, the 1990 budget calls for. a total tax rate of $5.71 per SIOO of assessed valuation. The budget calls for a $2.95 general fund, a .5591 debt service fund, a capital projects fund of $1.25 and transportation fund of .9412, according to Supt Tom Rohr. Rohr noted the state advised school corporations, and others, to establish budgets as high as possible. That is because since

City employees’ picnic Saturday at Robe-Ann

The second annual City of Greencastle employee picnic is scheduled for Saturday at RobeAnn Park. City employees and their families are asked to bring a covered dish or dessert Meat and beverages will be provided. The group will meet at shel-

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reassessment is still under way, it will be some time before true assessed valuation figures are known. ‘THE TAX RATE for North Putnam was finalized (by the state) at $4.24 last year,” Rohr told the board. “By the time we go through all the steps again this year, I do not expect the rate to be any higher than what it was last year.” Rohr also said the proposed Capital Projects Fund rate of $1.25 wiU likely be cut by the state. That is because the state does not want CPF rates to be any higher in 1990 than they were in 1989, Rohr explained. In 1989, North Putnam CPF was 92 cents. “No one knows yet what will happen with the assessed valuation,” Rohr added. “It will be a real interesting year just because of thaL” BOARD MEMBER Don Lambermont said he was contacted by a few patrons, who indicated they did not want to see the school corporation build up a surplus in any of the funds, nor do they want to see money switched from one fund to another to pay bills.

terhouse No. 2 at the park from noon to S p.m. Plans are to eat lunch at about 1:30 p.m. Some 60-70 persons are expected to attend. City Clark Judith Berry and her deputy, Deanne Gaston, are in charge of the event, which was instituted last year by Mayor Mike Harmless.

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Rohr said that is not taking place at all. He noted the state used to allow school corporations to take cumulative building fund money and pay for general fund expenses. Later, the state stopped school corporations from doing that. *“We stopped that practice even before the state told us to,” Rohr pointed ouL Since that time, the CBF has been replaced by the capital projects fund. ‘THE STATE REQUIRES that any (Capital Projects Fund) interest must stay in that account,” Rohr explained. He added the school corporation is also restricted from using that money for anything else other than CPF projects. "I’ve heard some people say we shouldn’t be accumulating money in that account,” Rohr said of the CPF. “But, if we didn’t do that, we would just have to borrow more money in the future (to pay for a possible building program) and it would end up costing the taxpayers more in the long run.” When no other comments regarding the 1990 budget were voiced, Col. 2, back page, this section

Quayle scores TKO in Donaldson bout

By ERIC BERNSEE Banner-Graphic Editor Dan Quayle vs. Sam Donaldson. It had all the makings of Notre DameNorthwestern. Or one of those 93-second Mike Tyson bouts. Everyone expected one of those dreadful drubbings that make grown men turn away in horror. This one surely would have to be rated PG. As in pretty gross. AFTER ALL,. IT WAS Donaldson who Quayle was up against. The bane of every president’s existence since Nixon. The man who shouted loaded questions to Reagan over the popping of helicopter propellers. The inquisitor who never promised a Rose Garden of sanctity or silence while he was on the White House grounds. But a funny thing happened on the way to the slaughter. New respect has emerged here for Quayle. Donaldson was the one made to look foolish on national TV Thursday night. He and ABC “Prime Time Live” co-host Diane Sawyer tossed innocuous questions. Quayle gave vague or much-expected answers to most Never once did Quayle equate himself with Jack Redford or George Bush. Not even when Sawyer asked the former Indiana senator if he had a parting shot he wanted to take at Walter Mondale. It was Mondale, after all, who graded Quayle’s first year as vice president as a C. IN THIS LITTLE DITTY, Sam and Diane

. vu wsessing reassessment progress

By BECKYIGO Banner-Graphic News Editor Remember reassessment and how it was moving right along with no complications? Think again. During a Thursday morning meeting, words from ATEK and Appraisal Research representatives, the two companies handling Putnam County’s reassessment, were not very comforting to township trustees who heard conflicting stories about where the procedure stands. ACCORDING TO Jim Hake of Appraisal Research, his company, who subcontracts work under ATEK, said Putnam County reassessment is in good shape in comparison to other counties throughout Indiana. However, comments from Carolyn Ives, a field rep for the State Tax Board, left trustees feeling unsure. “All the field work has been done for your county,” Flake told the township trustees. He added his company is in the data entry phase with approximately 13,000 parcels out of the 25,000-plus parcels in Putnam County already entered. “So, I’d say about 50 percent of the data entry phase is done,” Flake said. ALTHOUGH ONLY one person is doing the data entry work now, Rake anticipates the company will hire additional people to work two shifts on the full-time basis to help with that process. “I really don’t see a problem with your county,” Flake determined. “Once we get the two shifts started we can begin rolling along sooner. - county, as a whole, is not in bad shape,” Flake said. “Everything is being done in a timely fashion.” Flake noted he anticipates the data entry portion will be finished by Nov. 1, while the data records cards will be done by Dec 1 BUT IVES TOLD the trustees Putnam County will have problems if the process is not completed by OcL 1 instead. “If the F-lls don’t go out until December, that will not work with the target date the state has set. Everything should be out by Oct. 1,” Ives noted. If the OcL 1 deadline is not fret, the state will not be able to finalize budgets for the city, towns and county government, school corporations, trustees, etc., and won’t be able to finalize tax rates. But Rake told Ives it will be impossible for “30 percent” of the counties in Indiana to meet the Oct. 1 deadline and Putnam County will not be the only county unable to do so.

Daze Work

obviously wanted Quayle to bite back with something like “if anybody would know a C, it’s Mondale.” But Quayle turned the joke on himself instead. “It’s better than most grades I got in school,” Quayle, the 1969 DePauw University graduate, quipped as the filmed interview faded to black. Sam and Diane prefaced their interview by saying they had offered the vice president a chance to answer his critics. But then they dredged up Johnny Carson and Jay Leno jokes. And they brought out the old Quaylc-isms: His Holocaust blunder (calling it a dark day in U.S. history) and the United Negro College Fund malaprop (instead of “A mind is a terrible thing to waste,” Quayle said, “It’s a terrible thing to lose erne’s mind ... or not to have a mind to waste.”).

Sept. 10 parade entries sought at Cloverdale

CLOVERDALE Entries are being sought for the Sunday, SepL 10 Cloverdale Sesquicentennial Parade. All parade entries must be turned in to Wayne and Hattie Rhine, Route 1, Cloverdale, by noon Thursday, SepL 7. Persons with questions about the parade may call the Rhines at 795-4422 or 795-6101. Everyone will line up at the

Some trustees in attendance made reference to an form letter sent by the State Tax Board, noting if reassessment is not completed in a timely fashion, a fine could be imposed. IVES SAID THE letter is only something the State Thx Board is “considering sending” and it has not been formally mailed at this time. “It was just sent over to Putnam County because we foresaw this as one of the counties where it was going to be impossible to get the (reassessment) data out by October,” she pointed out. “This letter is only tentative,” Ives explained further. “It was something sent to you asking you to look where you are in your county (as far as reassessment is concerned). “But I don’t know how you can meet the deadline of Oct. 1,” Ives told the Putnam County trustees. “Tb send this letter was not my decision, but at our last report meeting, it was suggested to make personal contact with each of the counties that may be running behind. You are the first one of the (ATEK-assisted) counties on a list of many ATEK counties (who are behind and will be contacted by the state),” Ives said. STILL, FLAKE AND ATEK representative Joe Skubiak assured the trustees, County Assessor Charlotte Gould and County Auditor Myrtle Cockrell both companies desire to get Putnam County’s reassessment done as quickly as possible. However, township trustees, like Jean Cromwell of Warren Township, wanted to know exactly when the companies plan to get the F-lls (a notice to property owners about how much their property has been assessed at) out to taxpayers. “We can only get so many parcels done even if we have two terminals (computers), or four ter-

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Cloverdale Elementary School parking lot and school yard no later than 2:30 p.m., with the parade beginning at 3 o’clock. Parade entrants are asked to provide a written form with entry title, sponsor, contact person and telephone number and a brief description of the parade entry. Those entry forms should be sent to the Rhines at Route 1, Box 497, Cloverdale 46120.

minals going,” Flake responded. “We’re getting the data in as quickly as we can.” AS FAR AS THE state’s notice is concerned, Rake said, in his opinion, that is merely an “overreaction” by the state. “You have the word of us (Appraisal Research) and ATEK that we will get your county done as quickly as possible,” he added. "In fact, your county will probably be done tremendously quicker than other counties.” But Warren Township Trustee Cromwell was not so sure. “At every meeting I”ve been to, you projected we were ahead of schedule. Now all of a sudden we’re behind. How did that happen?” Cromwell asked. “You were ahead when we were doing tire field work and the data collection,” Rake advised. ‘The problem came up because now we can only get so much information into the system so fasL “WE COULDN’T really begin doing anything until we got the land values from the state,” Flake added. “It wasn’t their fault, but it took time to get thaL I don’t think you can sit here and blame us totally for this. There are a lot of people involved in this' and everyone has to take a little of the blame.” Greencastle Township Assessor Eleanor Delp noted the county’s contract with ATEK notes the work was supposed to have been done by April 30 of this year. For each day the work ran over that contract deadline, the company was to be penalized SSOO per day. “But there was an amendment to that contract,” Flake pointed out BACK IN DECEMBER of last year, the county commissioners were notified by ATEK that the state legislature was considering delaying reassessmenL For that Col. 2, back page, this section

QUAYLE ADMITTEDLY had expected Donaldson and Sawyer to roast him for a third slip of the tongue. Asked by Donaldson which one he meant, Quayle smiled and said he’d never tell. Maybe if Sam and Diane had studied Latin in school they’d have figured out the Latin American faux pas hinted at by the vice president. But the real, knock-down, toe-to-toe round Thursday night went to Quayle. Not because of a sterling answer. Not because of his smile and good looks. But because Donaldson posed the dumbest question since Barbara Walters asked Katharine Hepburn if she were a tree, what kind of a tree she’d be. Donaldson didn’t question Quayle’s branches or even his roots. He asked insipidly: “Is your wife smarter than you?” Quayle blinked at the camera in disbelief. Certainly he must have wanted to respond with something like: “Are those your real eyebrows, Sam, or did you borrow them from Mr. Spock?” But Quayle kept his tongue. “I’M SMART ENOUGH NOT to answer that,” the vice president grinned. Way to go, Dan! Any married man worth his Couch Potato T-shirt knows his wife is smarter. We’ve all learned to play dumb and keep them guessing.

Just like Quayle kept Donaldson guessing. I just wish he’d been quick enough though to really put smirking Sam in his place. “Sam,” he could have said, “you’re no Barbara Walters ...”