By ANNIE GOELLER, Daily Journal of Johnson County staff writer
A Marion County neighborhood association opposes the governor's proposed toll road because of its potential impact on Indianapolis and because it would help fund construction of Interstate 69 through Perry Township.
The proposed Indiana Commerce Connector could cross into Marion County once the route is finalized, and allowing private toll roads changes the role of government, said Pat Andrews, vice president of the Marion County Alliance of Neighborhood Associations.
"It's no longer the government providing necessary services for the public. It's the public providing money for private businesses," she said.
The group also opposes the I-69 extension between Indianapolis and Evansville that would cross through Perry Township in Marion County, which would be paid for with money from the toll-road lease.
Andrews' group is one of the first in Marion County to speak out against the proposed toll road. The alliance is a partnership of neighborhood associations that works together on large-scale issues, such as I-69, sewer projects and tree preservation.
The group helped fight for an amendment last year that rerouted I-69 out of Perry Township.
Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson has not taken a position on the proposed road. His office is researching the issue and watching the debate in the legislature, said Justin Ohlemiller, spokesman for Peterson.
The beltway is proposed to loop around Marion County to the south and east but not cross through it.
But Andrews said Indianapolis isn't in the clear yet and at least one legislator who represents Marion County has expressed concern that the road could draw businesses away from the city.
The route provided by the state is vague, not showing any detail on where the road would be built. Until the route is finalized by a private company, no one is sure where the toll road would run, Andrews said.
If the company decides the road would be more profitable closer to Indianapolis, where more businesses are located and where there is more traffic, Marion County could easily become directly affected, she said.
If not, the group still worries whether roads in Indianapolis could be upgraded without violating the contract between the state and the private company or causing taxpayers to pay more for future road improvements.
A clause included in the lease of the Indiana Toll Road in northern Indiana would require the state to pay the company for a competing highway within 10 miles of the route. Ten miles from the proposed beltway reaches into Marion County, she said. The future of mass transit and how government provides services also could be affected, she said.
"I don't think anyone in their right mind in future generations doesn't think we'll need to think of mass transit," she said.
A future mass transit system could be considered competition for the toll road, which could mean the state would pay money to the company to make up for any lost tolls, she said.
The proposal also affects the future of government and the services it was created to provide, she said.
Free highways are paid for by tax dollars. The governor's proposal would take land away from property owners for a private company and for a project not everyone could use.
Roads should not be built only to relieve traffic congestion for people who can pay extra to use them, she said.
Andrews said her organization is interested in how the project will affect Marion County but also has sympathy for the areas where the route is now proposed, including Johnson County south of Franklin.
Highways drive down home prices and cause people to move out of neighborhoods, she said.
"We know what happens, and we will always have sympathy for the neighborhoods being targeted," she said.