Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 30 December 2005 — Page 2

PAGE A2

THE INDIANAPOLIS RECORDER

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2005

dam A

and Free Party Starring A.J.Johnson Adelc (rivens Teddy Carpenter and yoor host Joe Torry Saturday December 31 S pm ^ 11 pm Murat Theatre

*

COUNCIL ► Continued from Page 1 relationship,” said Talley. “He’s been a very cooperative gentleman, as I knew he would be. I did not remove him from any of the positions he held when he was president, including the chairmanship of the public policy committee, and his appointments to various board and commissions. He even kept the same staff, and has advised me on staffing issues.” Talley noted that concerns about Republican dominance of committees as part of a “deal” and other accusations were never proved to be true. “We’ve got 12 months behind us that show I championed the Democratic agenda, an agenda that benefited the citizens of Marion County,” he stated. For his part, Boyd agreed that he and Talley have been cordial while conducting council business and said there are no hard feelings now, at least not anymore than what would be expected. “Politics is the ultimate reality experience, and those of us who have come up in the political tradition have to sort of take a look at what the circumstances or a situation might be at a given time and make the necessary adjustments to get the job done,” said Boyd. “At this point that’s generally where I am. There are no leftover hard feelings, although I certainly recognize what it is that happened.” Boyd added that a person in his position must maintain a positive frame of mind, or they could end up “carrying a burden” that might be very hard to digest. Throughout the year the council played a key role

in changes that could alter the course Indianapolis has taken in several aspects for years to come. In May the council passed an ordinance banning smoking in all public places (except bars, taverns, bowling alleys and private clubs), and goes into effect this March. Although some council leaders had reservations about state control of construction of a new stadium for the Indianapolis Colts and expansion of the convention center, the council voted overwhelmingly in June to raise food and beverage taxes to help pay for the project. In October the council supported Mayor Bart Peterson’s efforts to update the city’s sewer system by agreeingto raise stormwater and sewer fees slightly to generate $435 million for sewage improvements. But the proposals that undoubtedly generated the most controversy were an amendment to the city’s Human Rights Ordinance designed to protect gay and transgender individuals from discrimination, and an ordinance approving consolidation of IPD with the sheriff’s department. The discrimination ordinance was first introduced in April and defeated, while the consolidation proposal was killed by one vote in November. Amazingly, both proposals were introduced again and successfully passed after a few key councilors changed their views on the issues. “I’ve never seen anything like that during my 26 years on the council,” said Phil Borst, the council’s Republican leader. Boyd believes the year was good overall because the

council was able to address a flurry of proposals put on the table by both the mayor and individual councilors. Borst said the council passed ordinances that were simply “band-aids” and did not provide real solutions for the city’s problems. “Everyone in local government has to wake up and look at the big picture, which involves funding for the needs of this city and county,” he said. “We know there are significant revenue gaps of hundreds of millions of dollars and that’s important because it’s going to take money to fund efforts to respond to jail overcrowding and the bus system and to keep policemen and firefighters on the streets.” Although Talley is quick to mention that several Democrats and Republicans voted on the same side of several issues this year, Boyd and Borst agreed that partisanship on the council is still a growing problem that must be resolved in 2006. Next year Talley said he would like to help lead the council in launching a newly created planning council designed to intervene in the lives of youth early so they will not end up in the county’s juvenile center or the state’s correctional system. He would also like to increase the level of county support to foster children so that they won’t be transferred to state custody, which is more expensive for the county. Boyd has an optimistic outlook for the council next year. “There’s a great deal of potential for us coming together on the big issues and getting the job done,” he said.

CELEBRATION OF BLACK HISTORY Wednesday, February 8, 2006 at 7:30pm in the Hilbert Circle Theatre. (Doors open at 6:45pm)

FREE OF CHARGENO TICKETS REQUIRED

LESLIE B. DUNNER Conductor

DELORES KING WILLIAMS Soprano

STEWART GOODYEAR PIANO

,EE CONCEBJ E OF H1STORV S TtAL ART'STS w ,thout limits.

EVENT SPONSOR:

PROMOTIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: RADIO ONE

INDIANAPOLIS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA lndianapolisSymphony.org

PAGF it A2

CYAN MAGFNTA

Rl AP.K