Posted on 01/03/2007 7:28:23 PM PST by Kimmers
Indianapolis - Many people start the New Year with resolutions, and Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson is no exception. 2007 holds many challenges for the state's largest city.
2006 ranked as one of the city's worst years for violent crime. It's why Peterson puts battling crime as his number goal for the New Year. That means finding money to pay for new anti-crime initiatives aimed at keeping enough officers on the streets and moving people through the criminal justice system faster.
Peterson said he's putting together a funding plan to take to state lawmakers.
"Not to ask the state for money per se, but to ask for the authority to raise the money locally," Peterson said, adding that right now municipalities are too dependent on property taxes.
The mayor said another goal is neighborhood revitalization. Great Indy Neighborhoods is a new pilot program that targets six neighborhoods. It helps communities identify needs, plan for the future and pay for improvements through Tax Increment Financing (TIF) districts.
Downtown development is also high on the mayor's list. It includes finalizing plans for the new JW Marriott, selected last month to be the city's convention center hotel. Developers agreed to enlarge it from 800 to 1,000 rooms and tweak the design.
"I don't think the original plan was ugly but I just don't think it was as exciting as the other proposal and we'd like to see a little more excitement," the mayor said.
Peterson is also eager to find a new developer for the former Market Square Arena site. The development team chosen nearly three years ago to build high-rise condos there failed to meet the pre-sales requirement needed to get the project off the ground. Peterson says the city will issue a new Request for Proposals later this month. He still hopes for high-rise condos with a strong retail component.
"I'm really focused on who can deliver the product this time," Peterson said. "I don't want to approve something that looks exciting, feels exciting and gets everyone wound up but can't be paid for."
Another big goal? Moving on regional rapid transit. Phase one would provide service from the northeast side to downtown looping up to IUPUI.
"It's time to take a serious look at it here in Indianapolis," Peterson said. "I think this will be the year where we need to make a decision on whether to do it or not."
Rounding out the mayor's goals for 2007 is scoring the 2011 Super Bowl. The mayor said the city will make a formal announcement later this month, but the bid is all but a done deal.
He said hosting a Super Bowl would provide a huge economic boost for the city. Playing host city would cost $15 to $20 million, but Peterson stressed, "We're not talking about public funding for this effort. This would be private funding."
Peterson said business leaders in the community have been approached about helping foot the bill and have been supportive.
"I really think enough care about this and want to see it happen that we can come up with the money privately, without having to take money away from any of the city's important needs," Peterson said.
On a lighter note, Peterson said his personal goals include "sticking
He has played way to many games with the IPD and a number of them are now looking for other jobs.
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