The five-member Franklin County Redevelopment Commission, along with non-voting advisory member Sara Duffy (representing the school board) and consultant Nick Lawrence of The Wheatley Group participating via phone at the June 28 meeting, primarily reviewed a 10-year-old document that allowed county commissioners to establish a department of redevelopment.

At issue were four of the subsections in the order and a desire to delete the wording from the document. The FCRC's comments and recommendations will be forwarded to the commissioners for their approval.

The first read (a) The Commission shall not have the power of eminent domain. Comments (board's opinion) were to either strike this or leave it since the Indiana General Assembly has already struck it from the state code.

Next stated (b) The Commission shall not have the power to purchase private property, but may acquire private property by other means, including but not limited to transfer from another governmental entity or gift. The Commission may be a lienholder and take all actions necessary as such. 

Remarks for this section said this “ties your hands from buying, developing and flipping. (Such as if you want to do an industrial park).” Additional comment said that this was not standard.

Part (c) read The Commission may not include private property in a tax allocation area without the written consent of the property owners of record on the date the Commission adopts its declaratory resolution to designate the allocation area.

This was referred to as an “opt-in provision,” also deemed not standard.

Finally, in (d), The Commission shall not have the power to issue bonds without guarantee of payment or purchase of the bonds by the private sector. The board's comments: Though this is often done (when the company buys its own Tax Increment Finance area bonds), requiring it is not standard.

Member Jana Selke motioned to forward the document to the commissioners along with the board's suggestion to strike all four subsections as more or less obsolete. This was seconded by John Palmer and passed unanimously at 5-0.

Member Scott McDonough, a commissioner at the time the order was signed, provided a little insight into the adoption of the document.

At the time, Dearborn County Council and Dearborn Economic Development were open to providing grant money for Franklin County to use toward its own economic development/ redevelopment efforts. With little time to prepare the document, the four sections in question were created as provisions necessary to get the commission underway.

“It was a matter of this is what you want to see in order to feel like we're not going to override anybody's rights,” said McDonough. “To address fears about things that had happened on economic boards already in existence.”

In other news, Palmer encouraged people to check out the new and improved Franklin County government website at franklincounty.in.gov that may “take a little while to get used to.” He said if someone finds errors to report them to himself or commissioners' secretary Fayetta Hay (765-647-4985). Duffy commented she's been unable to locate a few documents that she had often referred to in the past.

Palmer reiterated that with the opening of Reid Health's new 20,000-square foot facility on Highway 101 North expected next year, there will be a “healthier community, which means the economy is healthier too.” Reid, with about 40 employees, exam rooms, diagnostics and lab work, will join Margaret Mary Health and TriHealth in the local healthcare landscape.