IS IT TRUE? January 3, 2011

IS IT TRUE that Martha Crosley is getting lots of suggestions about what could be done with Roberts Stadium other than tearing it down for ball fields?…that some of the ideas are quite ingenious?…that the Mayor of Evansville is on record as saying that these ideas need to come to him with funding?….that the innkeeper’s tax is available to these citizen idea people through the Evansville Convention and Visitor’s Board of Directors?….that at last count that was either $18 Million of bonding or $1.5 Million per year?…that these citizen proposals should assume that money is available when they construct their financing plan?….that with that much available in reserve and with citizen interest in investing something substantial may just come from this citizens action committee?

IS IT TRUE that during our Christmas hiatus that the FBI released numbers that indicated that during the first 6 months of 2010 that violent crime increased in the City of Evansville by 17.8% over the previous year?…that the very next day the Evansville Police Department released an 11 month report that showed Evansville in line with the nation as a whole with a 6% drop in violent crime?….that when crime is low that a single incident can make the numbers look terrible?….that in the first 6 months of 2010 there were 3 murders as compared to 2 murders the previous year?…that the third murder statistically made 2010 show a 50% increase in murders as opposed to ZERO?….that in a place like Evansville where murder is historically rare, short term statistics are not a good indicator of the state of the city?

IS IT TRUE that long term violent crime statistics for the City of Evansville are consistent at 3.77 crimes per 1,000 people?….that the national median for violent crime is 4.7 per 1,000 people making Evansville 25% safer historically than America’s median?….that this equates to having only a 1 in 265 probability of being a victim of a violent crime in Evansville, Indiana?….that when it comes to property crime our numbers while okay exceed the national median?….that the City of Evansville has a property crime rate of 48.65 per 1,000 while the national median is 34.3 per 1,000?….that you have a 1 in 21 chance of being the victim of a property crime in Evansville in any given year?…that property crimes really are 42% higher than the national median?

IS IT TRUE that the following link will take you to a website that has a both a crime map and crime statistics of interest? http://www.neighborhoodscout.com/in/evansville/crime/

IS IT TRUE that as a regional shopping hub that serves a population of nearly 700,000 in a city of only 116,000 that property crimes will by definition be higher?….that if a teenager from Lynnville or Sebree shoplifts a pair of socks at the Eastland Mall that Evansville gets hit with another property crime for statistical purposes?…that is much of the reason that our property crime stats are disproportionally high?

IS IT TRUE that the Evansville Police Department under the leadership of Chief Brad Hill does and has always done an excellent job of carrying out their duties to protect and serve the people of the City of Evansville and the visitors who come here to shop and recreate?….that the Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Department under the leadership of Sheriff Eric Williams is equally up to the task and coordinates very efficiently with the EPD when necessary?…that we are all very fortunate that our law enforcement officials are cognizant, competent, and dedicated to the safety of the people that they serve?

IS IT TRUE that it has now been 1,332 days since the announcement was made on May 14, 2007 that the McCurdy Hotel was to be refurbished into luxury apartments?…that it has now been 1,186 days since the Evansville Redevelopment Commission at the request of Mayor Weinzapfel approved the spending of $603,000 to purchase the parking lot.

IS IT TRUE that there are now 678 days remaining in the two years that the EPA had given the City of Evansville to present an acceptable solution to the Combined Sewer Overflow problem?…..that this plan is an expensive and complex endeavor that needs immediate attention to avoid the embarrassment and expense of another round of fines?