Porter County visitors bureau partly backs South Shore expansion plan

BY MARTIN ZABELL, Times of Northwest Indiana Correspondent

PORTER | The Porter County visitors bureau is so impressed by state Rep. Chet Dobis' plan to fund the proposed extension of the South Shore railroad line that it decided Tuesday to support the proposal -- sort of.

The bureau's board voted 7-0 to back the proposed extension to Valparaiso, but decided to be neutral on the Lowell extension because it is not in Porter County.

The Porter County Convention, Recreation & Visitor Commission's board also made its support contingent on the state Legislature finding a "permanent funding source" to maintain the railroad line's current services.

Although it only partially supported the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District's plan, the Porter board's vote represented a major shift from December when the bureau postponed action because it was deadlocked on the issue.

The board member who proposed Tuesday's resolution said he changed his position because he favored Dobis' plan to fund the extension via $30 million per year in state sales tax revenue rather than a $50 annual vehicle registration fee or an increase in local income or gasoline taxes and was impressed that downstate lawmakers have reacted positively to it.

"I'm surprised (the plan) has gone so far already," board Vice President David Canright said. "We've been neglected for so long by Indianapolis. Everything has been one way in recent years."

The discussion about the extension plan lasted only a few minutes. Basically, Canright read a piece of paper that said the bureau should support "the plan to extend South Shore Rail Service to Valparaiso provided that the General Assembly adopts the Dobis Funding Proposal and identifies a permanent funding source for current South Shore operating expenses."

Canright revealed afterward that the paper was drafted by board attorney David Hollenbeck after a phone conversation between the two men. He said that South Shore railroad line service needs a permanent funding source because it is currently "dependent on the whims of (gubernatorial) administrations" and downstate lawmakers who revisit the issue every year.

Canright said his personal view is that annual expenditures needed to maintain current service should be funded by statewide or regional tax revenues that are earmarked for the line or by taxes raised by NICTD, which currently does not have taxing authority.