The Truth
It's the $92.4 million question: Should the city of Elkhart go it alone when asking the new Obama administration for economic stimulus money, or join a coalition of local leaders to seek funds and provide a more unified front for Elkhart County?
Mayor Dick Moore released a list of 18 projects he considers "shovel ready" to present to Sens. Richard Lugar and Evan Bayh and U.S. Rep. Joe Donnelly next week. Moore wants those projects to be funded by the president-elect's stimulus plan.
But county officials questioned Moore's go-it-alone approach, instead wanting a more unified stand to obtain the money. They believe the most pressing need is for Combined Sewer Overflow projects, unfunded, federally mandated projects that total hundreds of millions of dollars for the county's cities. Goshen Mayor Allan Kauffman said CSOs topped his city's wish list as well, along with bike and pedestrian path projects.
Three of Elkhart's 18 projects are CSOs. At least five others include sewers.
Moore made it clear during his campaign for mayor that his was a parochial interest: The city of Elkhart would come first. Granted, he was elected mayor of Elkhart, but in this economic climate, the argument of county officials makes much more sense.
There's no reason why a strong, prioritized plan for the money couldn't come from the entire county. It makes elected officials in Elkhart County look like they are cooperating and are on the same page.
And -- this can't be stressed enough -- if the money is used for CSOs, city residents may not have to see their sewer rates skyrocket.
Meanwhile, Moore's list begs for additional scrutiny.
The Elco project is included. While it was originally approved for about $11 million in bonding, it's ballooned under this proposal to $17 million. The Prairie Street underpass project, proposed in 2006 at $16.55 million, is more than $34 million. There are also more than $10 million in improvements and equipment requested for the Elkhart Municipal Airport.
We also don't understand how the city expects that its proposals will create more than 2,300 jobs. Can replacement snow equipment for the airport, a $350,000 "snow blower," actually create nine jobs?
Neither the city's nor the county's proposals look toward long-term job creation or technology. What about fiber optic/broadband capabilities to lure high-tech businesses? What about things that would increase green industries in our area? Putting more money into the Elco and building a new underpass doesn't address either objective. The fact that no such project in Elkhart County is close to "shovel ready" gets to the heart of our continuing long-term concerns about unemployment and the future of job growth here.
It's time to give up the every-man-for-himself mentality and think regionally. We've got to pull through these tough economic times together.