IS IT TRUE? November 1, 2011

1. The early votes recorded so far in Ward 1 and Ward 5 exceed the votes recorded so far in the all four of the other wards combined by nearly 20%?

   Oh oh!!!

   • The zombie voter base really wants Winnecke to win.

2. Early votes are technically absentee ballots.

3. Off topic question: At whose authority does one sit as the head of the Vand. Co. Democratic Party?

   • Precinct Committee people elect the chairs of both parties. I think Parkes has 3 years left and Owen 2 years

     • That has been the case up to now, and you see the results. That’s why certain of us local Democrats are working with Dan Parker, John Gregg, and the Indiana Democrat Party to make sure future Vanderburgh County central committees are composed of individuals vetted by and answering directly to IDP heirarchy. No more renegades!

       • How could we get rid of these suckers (I wanted to begin that word with a different 1st letter) due to their blantant deriliction of duty? They are not serving the wishes of the voters of Evansville/Vand. County as they were appointed and sworn to do.

       • Wait…are you saying you’d rather only elect party officials that have been pre-selected by the state party?

         • No, I’m saying I want my party officials fully support the candidates that are chosen by the voters in the Democratic primaries despite how they may feel about any candidate personnaly.

4. I have seen repeated posts misrepresenting to some degree the county commissioners tax sale process. The particular individual who repeatedly posts the misinformation apparently has an axe to grind with DMD. I did some research and can report the following tax sale process as it has taken place over the past few years:

   Often times several properties are not sold at the county treasurer’s tax sale because those properties are encumbered with liens totaling more than the value of the property, or legal complications too numerous for the average buyer to deal with.

   After properties fail to sell at the annual tax sales run by the county treasurer, the unsold properties are identified for a subsequent auction to held by the county commissioners. The county commissioners’ legal staff clears title on those properties.

   Prior to the auction, DMD identifies properties in areas where it wants to rehabilitate real estate. DMD is not interested in properties all over the City of Evansville or Vanderburgh County, only those pertinent to the various rehab programs. For example, from the 2010 tax sale list, DMD identified 46 such properties.

   Subsequent to receiving DMD’s list, the county commissioners adopted a resolution to sell those properties to DMD, and the city council adopted a resolution for DMD to purchase those properties for the cost to Vanderburgh County of readying those for sale, i.e. attorney fees, certified mailing fees and title search fees. All this is done in public meetings during which there is opportunity for public comment.

   For 2010, 43 of those properties were sold by the County to DMD for $465 each, and 3 properties were sold for $1249.77 each. These figures stand in stark contrast to the other poster’s outlandishly high figures.

   I was not able to find where DMD ever bid for any properties at the county treasurer’s tax sales or any other properties auctioned by the County. Properties that are not conveyed to DMD by the legal process I described above are put up for sale at public auction and are sold to the highest bidder. The process followed by the county commissioners was approved by their legal staff and appears to be in total conformance to state statute and customary process.

   From what I was able to find, it does not appear that Brownfield or DMD is used to drive up prices at auction or to prevent the average citizen from having a fair shot at bidding or acquiring properties at auction, most of which sell for from $10.00 to $20,000 per property. I was able to discover that one particular candidate for city council has made strong allegations to certain groups and individiuals regarding Brownfield and DMD, allegations very similar in nature and wording to the posts made here and at the Courier & Press blogs, saying that he was unable to buy certain properties that went to DMD or Brownfield. I find that interesting.

   By the way, it seems that the property at 1112 Parrett (subject of the same poster’s repeated allegations) was not on the tax sale although it was purchased privately by DMD from the owner without any participation by the County.

   I hope this helps in understanding the process, and clears up some of the apparent misinformation previously posted again and again here and at the C & P blogs.

   Obviously it is totally untrue that “Winnicke and the commission auction off property at way over the assessed value.” Assessed value is not taken into account in the auctions and it’s unusual for a property to be bought at auction for a price over the assessed value. No “average bidder is left in the cold.

   • Thank you Bill.

   • Bill,
     You always seem to come in with a fair, level-headed explanation of pertinent points. Thanks! Would you be able to enlighten us on which candidate for city council you refer to? It is better to know than to guess.
     Thanks again.

     • I need to correct one of my previous statements. Sorry, sometimes I write things and then discover additional information later. This correction has to do with your question, 292.

       DMD has bid on properties at the initial county treasurer’s tax sales. That is what happened that infuriated the city councilman who wanted one particular property on the West Side. Anyway, that property eventually was turned over to Habitat for Humanity and will be a code-compliant domicile rather than just another rat trap.

       If I have made other mistakes in my original post, I will gladly correct them as well. But I think essentially I have given the facts to the best of my knowledge.

       • Dang, I did it again. I meant to say “city council candidate” rather than current city councilman. More coffee needed here.

         • Thank goodness for level headed Bill!!!

         • Grasshopper, Connie has taught you well. As in any story the ending is the best part.

5. A lot of people have a rather outdated notion of school bus transportation regarding the Evansville-Vanderburgh School Corporation.

   Taking Johnny and Mary to school and back home does not quite cover it nowadays.

   There are a host of between school transfers that take place in the morning, during the day, and in the afternoon. There are field trips during the day. There are after school programs that end at different times that require buses to deliver children to their homes. There are extra curricular programs, i.e. they may need 3 buses to deliver kids from a designated school to a local bowling facility and 3 buses to pick them up and either return them to the school or deliver them to their individual homes. The location of the new schools on Highway 41 North will require an increasing number of runs out there. And I have really just scratched the surface here.

   The Bus Transportation Fund of EVSC eats up huge amounts of local tax dollars. Couple that fund with the School Bus Replacement fund costs, which may replace 10 or more school buses in a year, and you begin to get the picture of the multiple millions of dollars that are spent each year to “get Johnny and Mary to school and back.”

   Add to that list of increasing costs the fact that these formerly non-union driver jobs, that have increased apace, are now represented by the Teamsters Union, and we are seeing job actions like “sick outs.”

   It all goes back to an uninformed electorate who fails to understand the importance of finding and electing the best people they can to fill the the School Board Trustee positions, instead of allowing people with vested financial interests in the school corporation to choose those candidates for them.

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6. “By the way, it seems that the property at 1112 Parrett (subject of the same poster’s repeated allegations) was not on the tax sale although it was purchased privately by DMD from the owner without any participation by the County.” (Jeffers)

   * * * * * * * * * * *

   Why was DMD interested in this particular property?

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   • 1112 Parrett is a beautiful, historic home. It lies in the heart of the Haynie’s Corner Arts District facing the fountain plaza. It was a photography studio with an investment of time, money, blood, sweat and tears. It came in a package deal with an additional lot that had been used as a garden/outdoor photo shoot area. It is extremely unfortunate in my opinion that the Boren family was unable to move into the property with their plan for an art gallery/bistro operation. I hope someone else soon does.

     By the way, a deal for over a million dollars in private investments on two other lots owned by Brownfields has just happened in the immediate downtown/near downtown district. Something good must be happening for private investors who also are developing the Eastside to see promise in the older neighborhoods as well.

   • Why did DMD pay $190,000 for a house that assessed at $132,600? The owners paid $118,000 then sold it to the city for $190,000 just a few years later. They only asked $30,000 from the next buyer. I would defenatelle rather sell my house to the city than to a private buyer. What is the status of that property now?
     Brownfelds/DMD has had a lot more that 45 properties on their books at one time. It is normally 100-200.
     According to Jonathan Weaver, they are a government entity that does not have to pay taxes. But they also claim to be non-profit and immune from public information laws.
     If you have done the research, you would have seen more than one denial of information based on the non-profit status. They have over $1,000,000 in assests and a lot of those properties still sit vacant. They received multiple loans from DMD. They are not good stewards of the taxpayers money.
     Connie Robinson was invovled with this group for years, but did not file her conflict of interest form until the day Rick Davis released his Transperancy Plan. The reason for the conflict would seem to be her position as an elected official on the City Coucil. Thats because a city agency loans money to her group.
     The reason she listed on the form was that she sells trashcan liners.

     No government entity should have 501(c)3 status. Other government entities should not deal with those groups. It reaks of non-transparency.

     • I will look into it more deeply as I have time to do so.

       I tried to address several discrepancies I thought I saw in your previous posts. I have trouble trying to follow your jumping back and forth between DMD and Brownfield ownerships and your references to each entity.

       While I agree that transparency in government is essential, I’d like you to give a legal reason why Brownfields should not have 501(c) status, a reason other than your opinion, a reference to a statute might be helpful.

       As far as the assessor’s valuation of property, do you know how many challenges to valuations are made after every reassessment?

       You may have legitimate concerns. I to have had concerns and have asked numerous and persistent questions about the plans presented to APC by ERC and DMD for both those districts. I made my concerns known in the form of comments and questions as a member of APC in public. But now I see progress lately in the Arts District and in the Downtown TIF District. And I see that even though I continue to have concerns about the plans, many of my previous worries have proven to be addressed or look as if they will be sufficiently addressed as work progresses.

       What I think would be more appropriate for you, if you still have deep concerns, is to address them to the pertinent board at a public meeting so both your questions and the answers given by the board are recorded in the public record rather than being logged here as rumors and undocumented allegations. At least if corruption exists, then cite the statutory violations instead of giving us your opinion that things don’t sit well with you for this that or the other perceived impropriety.

       • Well I hope you don’t have to offer immunity to get people to talk. It appears that as a county employee, that was the only way you would talk when you were involved in a “gohst employment” investigation. I know you were not charged, but as a government employee, you should have been open and willing to talk without requesting immunity.
         The irony is Mark Owen said he would support you because the voters picked you in the primary. He said “I do know that you reasonably ought to judge a person by his entire record.” Davis has a record of being open, being honest, cutting cost in his county office, and being involved in his community. AND he won the primary by 18% points over Owens personal choice, Tornatta.
         Can you tell me what criminal case Rick Davis had to get immunity in before he would cooperate? Why would Mark Owens feel it ok to support the peoples choice then , but not know? What record does Davis have that is more questionable than yours was?

         http://local.evpl.org/views/viewimage.asp?ID=878132

       • As far as the legality of this group, the current administraion has a habit of doing things that are sneaky, but legal. This is one of them. SNEGAL!

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