Legislative Changes Stumble, Forming New Town a Viable Option

The Geist United Opposition has been investigating two additional strategies to thwart the pending forced annexation by the Town of Fishers:

1. Legislative Change: A group of residents from around the state of Indiana, including Geist residents, worked together with state legislators to craft amendments to existing annexation laws. Spearheaded by Geist resident Rachel Quade, this group was able to get bills introduced to the Senate Committee on Local Government & Elections. Unfortunately, these bills never made it to the Senate floor for a vote. While we were optimistic that we could see statewide change in the current laws, we were also realistic knowing that this was a long shot and would never completely protect us from forced annexation.

2. Incorporating Our Own Town: A subgroup of the GUO Board has been investigating the possibility of incorporating the unincorporated areas around Geist into our own town. Like any option we have researched, we are keeping an open mind and trying to assess the pros and cons before we present this option to our residents. Preliminary data is promising, but there are hurdles to overcome.

First and foremost, we are working with several expert resources to determine the tax impact of forming our own town. Early discussions and research have shown that we would see a slight tax increase, but nowhere near the 20%+ we would see if the Town of Fishers annexed us. Controlling our own destiny, being able to vote for our own representation, and keeping our tax dollars right here in Geist is appealing to most residents to whom we have spoken.

Other key factors in the process include the provision of services such as roads and police (likely a continuation of the excellent county-provided services we currently enjoy), and assuring fire protection and EMS services. In recent weeks, the working group has made excellent progress defining how those services would be provided at a reasonable cost.

Based on phone polls we have done with some of our residents, this is definitely an avenue we want to continue to pursue. There are a lot of details that we have to address, and with the State Supreme Court ruling on the Southwest Clay vs. Carmel case imminent in the coming weeks, time is of the essence.

Please do not hesitate to offer your thoughts on the idea by posting comments below or directly e-mailing or calling any of the GUO board members. We will be sending you more information as we get it in the coming days.