In Porter County’s
only contested race for a Commissioner seat this primary election, Jim
Biggs, John Cannon and Jeff Trout are running to be the Republican choice
for North District Commissioner.
Jim Biggs
Biggs previously
held the seat for two terms, from 1992 to 1999. He also ran in 2012
unsuccessfully against the incumbent John Evans. Evans chose not to seek
another term this year.
Currently in his
second term on the County Council, Biggs said the Commissioners play a
definite role in their constituents’ quality of life and asserts that the
job should be handled with compassion and professional standards.
Biggs said his
biggest concern is finding a balance in declining property tax revenue
versus the increasing demand of services. He advocates the County have a
spending plan that goes beyond one year. When it comes to storm water, Biggs
believes the current board of commissioners have a plan underway to address
issues with the new stormwater fee and he supports exempting conservation
organizations that retain water on-site.
When it comes to
the topic of how best to use the roughly $148 million in sale proceeds from
the County-owned Porter Memorial Hospital, Biggs said County government
officials should protect it from being spent down. The revenues made on
investment should not be disbursed until the County has a solution in place
to fund its E-911 center and the Sheriff’s Department pension plan.
Biggs, who has
spoken out against Pavilion Partner’s plan to build a conference/banquet
center at Indiana Dunes State Park, said that innkeepers tax dollars should
be closely monitored.
Biggs said he
thinks there are other possibilities for economic development the County can
reach towards other than the use of tax increment financial districts.
John Cannon
Cannon has been a
member of the Portage City Council since 2011 and has subsequently served on
the City’s Redevelopment Commission for three years.
Cannon said he is
running for office because he feels there needs to be a change in Porter
County Government. He said he can work with both political parties to get
things accomplished.
The issues in the
race for Cannon include strengthening the prevention of drugs, using
hospital funds and rebuilding infrastructure like drainage, roads and
buildings. Cannon said he would like to see the hospital proceeds be put
toward infrastructure issues and a study to assess the costs in the first
year and a plan developed for upkeep in the next ten years. Then a study
should tell how much money will be generated in interest each year. If costs
and revenues don’t balance, other action needs to be researched, he said.
For the County’s
new stormwater fee, Cannon said fee credits should be considered.
He is in support of
the proposed banquet center at Dunes State Park, saying tourism is important
way of promoting greatness in Porter County. He believes the Innkeepers Tax
the Tourism Board receives should be shared equally with the municipalities
for promoting tourism.
Cannon said TIF
districts can help the County economically just as it has helped cities. He
would be in favor of a five-year TIF to spur economic growth and the
diversion of funds could be supplemented back to government units in the TIF
area.
Jeff Trout
Trout is a business
owner in Chesterton and has served on various boards for the past 15 years,
including the Chesterton Redevelopment Commission, Plan Commission, Board of
Zoning Appeals and seven years as a Town Council member.
His experience on
the Town Council gave him the experience of prioritizing needs and looking
after the day-to-day operations similar to what the Commissioners do, Trout
said.
Trout’s said his
main goals if elected would be to look after infrastructure, keep property
taxes low through the investment of hospital funds, support law and judicial
systems to address substance abuse and continue economic development around
Porter Regional Hospital and the Porter County Regional Airport.
As a commissioner,
Trout said he looks forward to serving on the recently formed Stormwater
Management Board and solving infrastructure problems while exercising fiscal
responsibility. He does support exempting or reducing the stormwater user
fee for property owners who can demonstrate proper storage of runoff and
said appeals should be decided on a case-by-case basis.
In investing the
hospital sale proceeds, Trout believes in shoring up budget shortfalls the
first few years that an investment return is garnered. Based on that track
record, the County should formulate a capital expenditure plan, he said.
Trout said he
supports the Porter County Convention, Recreation and Visitors Commission
and the results of bringing tourism dollars to the county that support jobs,
which is why he cautions against change to the way innkeepers tax is
allocated.
TIF districts can
be a useful tool for redevelopment, Trout said, but be used just for
infrastructure improvements and not diverted from units such as schools. Tax
abatements should be used as a last resort and only be considered for
attracting businesses who can produce many jobs with livable wages.
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