08-31-15 Personnel and Finance - Laserfiche WebLink

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At 5:22 on the recording clock Scott Ford took center stage to list Community Investments progress and projections. Scott emphasized with an overhead the mission of his department. He said the past and future efforts were directed to do three things... attract and retain growing business, connect residents to economic opportunities, and plan for vibrant neighborhoods. Each initiative was to be measured by the performance indicators or KPI's. Each Councilmember followed with questions. Karen White asked if there were any new programs. If so how were they to be funded and when would they begin. Scott replied that EDIT funds would get the initiatives started by the end of the year. Dr. Ferlic asked about annexation and the rumored sale of Elbel Golf Course. Scott said state law made annexation even more difficult than before. Elbel was he said a Park Department issue. Tim Scott asked about the future of the vacant and abandoned housing program. Scott said,the City was on track to meet the target 1,000 houses in 1,000 days. In the future Scott Ford said the focus would shift to prevent homes from getting on the vacant and abandoned list. Henry Davis was critical saying the City was not doing enough to address core problems of unemployment, poverty, and affordable housing in sustainable neighborhoods. Scott took exception to the job creation effort citing multiple successes. The neighborhood development challenges are addressed with funded initiatives in the 2016 budget proposals. Tim Scott wondered what was being done to assist downtown business impacted by the two -way traffic conversion. Scott Ford said regular meetings with downtown owners had helped to formulate the construction and rollout aimed at minimizing the disruptions. Dr. Varner suggested angled parking downtown would be safer that the current straight -in system. Scott said the trade -off would be fewer parking spaces. Dr. Ferlic expressed concerns about South Bend becoming a regional magnet for the "homeless" suggesting the "boat theory" claiming there are limits to what we can afford. Karen White reiterated her concerns about the adequate funding in the future for investments in quality of life neighborhood issues. Karen then asked if there was anyone from the public who cared to comment. Jim Bognar felt the Foreign Trade Zone was underutilized and should be expanded and better promoted. Regina Williams- Preston said any neighborhood programs should be mindful of the need to listen to residents living there. She also said a revolving loan fund for housing improvements should be established. With that Karen made closing comments before adjourning the meeting at 6:26 P.M. Attachments (3)