By ANNIE GOELLER and JOSEPH S. PETE, Daily Journal of Johnson County staff writers
Landowners worried about whether hazardous materials will come through their back yards and the types of businesses that could locate along a proposed toll road aren't sure their concerns will make a difference.
More than one Johnson County resident told state officials they see the proposed Indiana Commerce Connector as a done deal and their opinions won't change plans to build the road through their farms and homes.
"I don't believe my input will change anything. I think this will come through," said Michael Lucas, who lives south of State Road 44.
Lucas and more than 400 other landowners fired questions and concerns at a state transportation official during a meeting Tuesday night at Franklin College.
Parts of the meeting were emotional and tense, with residents shouting out comments, groaning at responses to questions and concerns and cheering at statements from landowners.
One person spoke in favor of the project.
The toll road is proposed to run from Interstate 69 near Pendleton south and then west around Indianapolis, ending at Interstate 70 west of Mooresville. It would cross Johnson County south of Franklin.
Some of the 20 residents who spoke at the meeting expressed doubt that the road would accomplish the goals of the state: relieving traffic congestion and bringing high-paying jobs to the area.
A Franklin resident formerly of Kentucky thought a toll road would simply shift congestion without solving the problem. "It's an antiquated highway system wherever I go. Highways are built before the people come, and you can't control the congestion," Sean Devero said.
The toll road would change the community and make it more difficult for farmers to access their fields and for people to maneuver the area, some critics say. Without high paying jobs, the changes aren't worth it, said Janet Vanzant, of Franklin.
"If we trade our land access and history for $6-an-hour jobs, it's not worth it," she said.
Other parts of the county and state are also open for development, and large employers haven't yet located there, a Union Township man said.
"Franklin's industrial park is practically empty," Steve Miller said.
He didn't know what would attract businesses to the beltway, instead of other areas that already are developed and served by utilities.
Landowners didn't focus their questions on a specific route for the project. Joe Gustin, deputy commissioner of public-private partnerships with the Indiana Department of Transportation, said a specific route might not be available for up to four years.
Residents instead asked for details of the project, including how the county would make up for lost taxes when land is used for the project and who and what might travel the road.
A Shelby County man worried about whether hazardous chemicals and materials could pass through his quiet neighborhood once the road is built.
Phil Stieneker, who owns land within a mile of where the route could be located, worried about hazardous materials that usually would be transported along Interstate 465 coming to the toll road.
The answer from Gustin drew laughter and outcry from people at the meeting: He didn't know.
"There are going to be a lot of questions asked that we don't know the answer to. I want to be honest and tell you that," he said.
Darby Simpson, a Morgan County resident, asked why the state wasn't considering mass transportation, such as a rail system.
Gustin said that would be something the state could study, but that mass transportation systems had not been profitable across the country so far.
Local officials, including a county council member, a former commissioner and the county council attorney brought up concerns of lost tax dollars and accessibility to county roads.
A Greenwood attorney said losing land to the project will hurt the county's budget.
Some farmers pay tax bills as high as $2,400 a year. If farmland is taken across the entire county, taking thousands of acres from the tax base, the county won't be able to pay for services, Phil Wilson said. "The county is 25 miles wide. You multiply that out, it's astronomical; and Johnson County won't be able to pay its bills," Wilson said.
Businesses generate more property taxes to local governments than homeowners, Gustin said. A beltway may attract more businesses to the area, he said, but there's no guarantee businesses will come.
A former commissioner and a county council member also wondered about how many overpasses and underpasses the road will have.
"As part of the design, we've got to have ways to get over and under this," said Joseph DeHart, a former county commissioner.
County council member Charles Canary had a laundry list of questions at the meeting's end that went unanswered, such as whether counties would pay for connecting roads and whether connecting roads would bypass main county routes.
"The bottom line is the people don't want this," he said. "This idea was originated by the government and not the people. What happened to government by, for and of the people?"
Residents said they left with little more information than they had when they came to the meeting.
Gustin told the standing-room-only crowd that the road would have four lanes, and interchanges would be located at interstates and likely at other state and U.S. highways.
For several other issues, he didn't have an answer and told landowners the state would be researching the information.
Among the lingering questions were whether the beltway also should include areas north or west of Indianapolis, how the toll road would affect taxes, school districts and emergency workers, and what types of businesses the road could bring.
Most people said they don't know how they will be personally affected by the route, since the route has not been detailed. Maps the governor's office handed out last year show the route south of Franklin, likely between State Roads 44 and 252.
The theme in the crowded room was one of opposition and disbelief in what state officials have said.
During a brief presentation from Gustin at the beginning of the evening, the speakers crackled and the lights went out.
"We might take that as an indication no one wants this," Gustin told the dark room.
His statement was met with loud cheers and applause and an assessment from many in the room that Johnson County does not want a toll road.
Gustin told the group that the public meetings were meant to collect feedback from residents. The governor has said part of the decision to move forward with the project will depend on community support.
Near the end of the meeting, residents stormed out before Gustin completed his closing remarks.
When Gustin asked if the meeting had been helpful, people laughed and muttered under their breath.