EVANSVILLE BUILDING IMPROVEMENT GRANT COMMITTEE
Tuesday, October 17, 2006, 5:00 p.m.
Special Meeting
City Hall, 31 South Madison Street, Evansville,
Call to order.
Roll call (James Otterstein, Betsy Ahner, Richard Modaff, Sandy Decker, Chris Eager).
Election of Chairperson.
Election of Secretary.
Motion to approve application of Peter Dast, 18 East Main Street (Real Coffee-tenant), for $1200 building improvement grant.
Motion to adjourn.
Sandy Decker, Mayor
City of Evansville
Meeting Convener
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From reading this agenda, it appears the committee is forming for the sole purpose of handing out a predetermined award. And since the agenda came from the City, though there is only one elected official on the committee and no aldermen, I assume it is
ReplyDeletepublic funds that are being awarded.
A better course of events would be that the committee forms after Council approval, identifies the source and amount of funds
available, publishes criteria and requests for applications, examines applications then announces the award.
If this all happened, in some form, I am sorry I didn't catch it, and am raising the question now. From the items on this agenda, it seems a lot of steps are missing.
Also, I can not remember an item like this appearing in any budget, so I am wondering where the money is coming from. I haven't read in the ED minutes that they were releasing any of their left over funds to this new committee. And while this building is in the TIF district, and three committee members are also on the RDA, these do not appear to be TIF funds, which leads me to assume the improvements would not meet TIF criteria.
Perhaps this committee is using Historic Preservation monies. Two of these committee members are also on the Historic Preservation Committee which the Mayor used to Chair. The building is in the Historic District. Though if this is the case, I don't understand why the members of the Historic Preservation Committee are not in a position to determine the disbursement of their funds. Perhaps it is because one of the proprietors of Real Coffee, the business tenant in this building also serves on the Historic Pres. Committee and there would be too strong a conflict of interest by those members
Evansville Historic Preservation Commission Minutes
Wednesday September 20, 2006
"Susan Finque was welcomed as the newest member of the HPC. She is filling the vacancy left by the resignation of Louise Keely. "
A few years ago, an item like this was in the City budget, and required Council approval. That item may have had funds leftover, but at the close of that budget year
those funds would have gone back into the General Fund, and would not be available years later for the same purpose.
It is not clear in this BIG Agenda where this committee or funds are coming from. Again, if I missed the announcements somewhere, I apologize for showing my ignorance.