For Immediate Release
May 9, 2012
Contact Stephanie Brinkerhoff Riley, 812-499-3384

I am pleased that the City of Evansville has decided to walk away from the deal with Earthcare Energy. I commend Mayor Winnecke for doing the right thing. I don’t think he had a choice, given the research done by the City County Observer, Dan McGinn, and myself. The public reaction that followed was both justified and expected. Although I believed this project was suspect on its face, you didn’t have to get far beneath the surface to expose some serious issues.

I am hugely disappointed in the performance of GAGE in even suggesting the project, and for their complete failure in properly vetting the project. I frankly, question the future of the organization and why the City is contributing so much to its budget. The fact that Debbie Dewey has refused to report how much of the money the City is giving GAGE for her compensation, is enough to warrant looking at this entity at budget time. We would be better served to keep at least some of that money for City Council to have its own budget to perform the duties that GAGE was either unwilling or unable to do.

Evansville is now galvanized against making loans to start-up businesses and is skeptical about traditional incentive packages. If a group of entrepreneurs that really have the potential to be the next Intel or Apple were to apply for help today, it would be political suicide for Mayor Winnecke or any member of the City Council to support a loan to that business. This is unfortunately one of the consequences of poor vetting and rushing the vote. Hopefully, in time the Mayor and the City Council can regain the confidence of the people through transparency and competent performance.

Now we must find a way to recover the $184,000 that Earthcare owes to the taxpayers of Evansville. Let’s work together to make sure that there are no more vetting fiascos, and that Evansville is seen by the outside world as a competitive and desirable place to do business.

EVANSVILLE – The Vanderburgh County Treasurer’s Office is reminding Vanderburgh County property owners that Thursday, May 10, 2012, is the final day to pay the spring installment of property taxes. If your payment is late, a 5% penalty is imposed on your outstanding balance for the first 30 days following the deadline. After 30 days, that penalty increases to 10%.

Vanderburgh County Treasurer Rick Davis reminds local taxpayers about ongoing construction at the Civic Center that has seriously reduced the number of parking spaces available at the Civic Center.

“Although the parking lot construction has been covered extensively by the local news media, including TV, radio and the newspaper, people still forget about the lack of parking spaces and are having trouble finding a parking spot,” said Davis. “We’re trying to alleviate that problem by promoting other popular forms of payment, including paying at Old National Bank; mailing your payment; or using our handy drop box in front of the Civic Center.

“Of course, if you have a question or need to talk to someone in person, we will be glad to assist our taxpayers,” said Davis. “But for the folks who just want to make their payments and do not require personal assistance, I recommend they use an alternate form of payment this year in order to help prevent more serious parking issues for taxpayers who require assistance.”

Davis reminded taxpayers that the Civic Center will be closed on Tuesday, May 8, due to the Primary Election Day, and that Old National Bank branches will be open and available to accept payments. When paying at Old National Bank taxpayers must bring the statement that was mailed to them by the Treasurer’s Office in order for the bank to process the transaction. Payments will NOT be accepted at the bank once the due date has expired.

You may also mail in your payment to PO Box 77, Evansville, IN 47701-0077. As long as your envelope is POSTMARKED by May 10, 2012, you will avoid late fees.

The drop box is also available in front of the Civic Center 24 hours a day. Davis said the drop box will accept payments even after the Treasurer’s Office closes at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. Taxpayers can drop their payments into the box until midnight without being assessed a penalty.

“As of Monday, we’ve had 6,315 envelopes deposited in the drop box since 2009, when it constructed and installed by Organized Labor – at no cost to taxpayers,” said Davis. “The drop box has been amazing as far as helping cut down lines at the front counter. It’s been a huge blessing to our office and taxpayers.”

Payments can also be made online by visiting www.vanderburghtreasurer.org by using any major credit card. There is a user fee of 2.75% to pay online. The website also accepts electronic checks (E-Checks) for a flat $3 fee.

Payments can also be paid using a credit card by mailing in credit card information on a form provided by the Treasurer’s Office with every bill mailed out. There is a 2.75% transaction fee to take advantage of this feature.

You may pay by phone using any major credit card. Call 1-800-2PAYTAX. You will need to provide the following “jurisdiction code” – 2405. There is a 2.75% transaction fee to take advantage of this feature.

New this year is the ability to use a MoneyGram at any local Wal-Mart or CVS. With this cash-only service, you will need to have your bill with you. You will need to use the code #2910 for Real Estate Properties or code $2909 for Mobile Home/Business Properties. There is a convenience fee established for that service ranging from $4.25 to $8.25, depending upon the amount of your property tax bill.

EVANSVILLE, IN – The Evansville Water and Sewer Utility (EWSU) and Mayor Lloyd Winnecke launched
a public effort in support of one of the city’s largest capital improvement projects to date, Renew
Evansville. It is EWSU’s approximately 20-year plan to improve Evansville’s sewer system and comply
with the Clean Water Act, as mandated by the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of
Justice and the State of Indiana. Renew Evansville will significantly upgrade Evansville’s sewer system
infrastructure, improve operations and reduce water pollution. Through a detailed assessment of the
current system, public comment and state and federal approval, EWSU will have about 20 years to
complete the plan to comply with a federal consent decree and state and federal regulations.

To gather public feedback as Renew Evansville is being developed, the following tools are available:
• A public website, www.RenewEvansville.com, which contains information about the agreement
with federal and state regulators, the timeline for implementation, copies of many of the
submissions the Utility has filed with the EPA since November 2010 and information for
residents.
• Updates via Twitter by following @RenewEvansville.
• A Citizens Advisory Committee that meets regularly to provide feedback on the plan’s
development.
• A speakers bureau, which can make presentations to neighborhood associations, civic groups
and other community organizations.

“The Evansville Water and Sewer Utility is ready to take action and work to improve and enhance one
of our city’s most important, yet unseen, assets,” EWSU director Allen Mounts said. “We encourage

Evansville residents to provide input and help make Renew Evansville the best investment for our city’s
sewer system.”

To engage public comment in planning, EWSU plans to hold public meetings about Renew Evansville
between Aug. 1 and Sept. 30, 2012. At that time, a draft plan will be available for the public to review
and comment.

Through Renew Evansville, Utility officials plan to upgrade existing infrastructure, use new construction
and “green” solutions to expand current pipe and sewer capacity, and make improvements to the
Utility’s operations and maintenance. EWSU must submit its final long-term Integrated Overflow
Control Plan to the EPA by Nov. 30, 2012.

For more information about the program, visit the newly launched www.RenewEvansville.com.

NBC has already projected a win for Evansville’s Richard Mourdock over 6-Term Senator Richard Lugar. Early returns show Mourdock with a 20 point lead with 17% of the vote counted. The vote in SW Indiana where Mourdock calls home has not been counted yet but is expected to increase Mourdocks margin of victory.