December 19th Fishers Public Hearing on Geist Annexation

An important reminder: the Fishers Town Council is holding the required public hearing on the Geist annexation on Wednesday, December 19th, 4:00pm, at the Fishers Town Hall.

All Geist residents should attend this meeting! Plan to make a statement at the hearing as to why you are against this forced annexation. It may be that:

• You are against paying significantly higher property taxes for services you don’t need, don’t want, and don’t use.

Even if the state changes the property tax system, Fishers will simply replace property taxes with another, higher tax (e.g., local income).

• You don’t like the idea of the Town Council—a governmental body that you did not elect and who does not represent you—forcing you into their town against your will and for no other reason than they want your money.

• You don’t like the way the Town Council conducts business: spot annexations to ensure certain councilors can retain their council seats; uncontrolled growth that is stressing our schools and infrastructure; forcing people to sign agreements not to fight annexation (non-remonstration) in order to get building permits; and, making outrageous, retaliatory statements like our kids won’t be able to play in the SPORTS program or our sewers will be shut off if we fight annexation.

Tell all of your neighbors to attend! Please help get the word out and call your neighbors and ask them to attend this meeting. The date and time are certainly not convenient, but that would appear to be by design—after all, why wouldn’t the Town Council make it as difficult as possible?

We will see you there on the 19th.

S.P.O.R.T.S.—more Fishers FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt)

If you can’t win the hearts and minds of people by offering something tangible and of value, then you can always try to scare them by spreading fear, uncertainty, and doubt. They won’t come along willingly, but you might scare them into bending to your will.

No doubt, you have heard that certain Fishers Town Councilors are saying that if Geist forms its own towns or is not annexed into Fishers that your kids will not be able to participate in the HSE SPORTS programs because some of those programs take place in Fishers’ parks; they say the Town will no longer allow non-Fishers kids in those parks, and one councilor has even said that he will use the police department to enforce that.

And they wonder why people don’t want to be under the thumb of their government.

Here are the facts:

• By its own ordinance, the Town of Fishers cites that any participant in SPORTS using their parks simply reside within the HSE School District. To quote:

As a condition of use of town athletic and sports fields by youth leagues sanctioned by S.P.O.R.T.S. which are given priority in scheduling and which are allowed to use the town’s athletic fields free of charge, the town requires that all participants in S.P.O.R.T.S. sanctioned youth recreational sports leagues shall reside within the Hamilton Southeastern School District (emphasis added).

• Further, from the same ordinance:

Notwithstanding the foregoing provision, it is the policy of the town that no child shall be denied the opportunity to participate in any sports league utilizing the playing fields owned by the town in violation of the Constitution of the United States of America or the Constitution of the State of Indiana (emphasis added).

• Even the mission statement of the SPORTS program includes all kids in the Hamilton Southeastern community:

S.P.O.R.T.S. (Southeastern Program of Recreational Team Sports) is a private, not-for-profit organization dedicated to providing youth in the Hamilton Southeastern community with the opportunity to participate in recreational and competitive team sports that promote character development, leadership and physical fitness.

One might question how a town councilor can make threats that if carried out would violate their own ordinances. But then, it wouldn’t be the first time that a politician ignored an inconvenient truth.

Of course, the Town Council can always change its ordinances, but then (in addition to discriminating against kids from Geist, Noblesville, and other non-town areas), the people of Fishers may begin to question whether they want a town council that spends their time and the people’s money on childish retribution.

Point is: the threats are hollow.