July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
Effort that shouldn't have been necesary (09/15/07)
Editorial
David Ford was happy to help.
But it's a measure of the crazy times in which we live that his help would have been needed at all.
Ford, a Republican state senator from Hartford City whose district includes the South Adams school district, played the pivotal role in breaking the logjam over a much-needed school construction project.
The project - a $25 million replacement of aging elementary and middle schools with a new kindergarten through grade eight facility adjacent to South Adams High School - had cleared hurdle after hurdle, only to run afoul of the furor over property taxes that has made sensible government difficult this year in Indiana.
Even though it had broad support from the public, as evidenced by a successful petition drive in the wake of a remonstrance, the project appeared likely to be shelved until early next year.
The Indiana Department of Local Government Finance had to sign off on it, and there was little enthusiasm in Indianapolis for anything remotely related to school construction.
That's when Sen. Ford entered the picture. At the urging of South Adams school board president Tony Mellencamp, the senator arranged for a face-to-face meeting between school officials and Cheryl Musgrave, head of the DLGF.
He was joined in the effort by State Rep. Mike Ripley.
Both Ford and Ripley accompanied Mellencamp and superintendent Cathy Egolf to the meeting.
The results were astonishing, even to those directly involved. Musgrave was warm, receptive, and engaged. She listened, asked questions, and - after about an hour - gave the project her seal of approval.
It helped, of course, that the case for the South Adams project was a good one.
The need is obvious, the current debt load modest, public safety a factor, and public support demonstrable.
But none of those would have been enough if the project hadn't had a champion, someone urging that it be given an honest, careful look.
It was a great stroke of constituent service on the part of Sen. Ford and Rep. Ripley. But it shouldn't have been necessary. - J.R.[[In-content Ad]]
But it's a measure of the crazy times in which we live that his help would have been needed at all.
Ford, a Republican state senator from Hartford City whose district includes the South Adams school district, played the pivotal role in breaking the logjam over a much-needed school construction project.
The project - a $25 million replacement of aging elementary and middle schools with a new kindergarten through grade eight facility adjacent to South Adams High School - had cleared hurdle after hurdle, only to run afoul of the furor over property taxes that has made sensible government difficult this year in Indiana.
Even though it had broad support from the public, as evidenced by a successful petition drive in the wake of a remonstrance, the project appeared likely to be shelved until early next year.
The Indiana Department of Local Government Finance had to sign off on it, and there was little enthusiasm in Indianapolis for anything remotely related to school construction.
That's when Sen. Ford entered the picture. At the urging of South Adams school board president Tony Mellencamp, the senator arranged for a face-to-face meeting between school officials and Cheryl Musgrave, head of the DLGF.
He was joined in the effort by State Rep. Mike Ripley.
Both Ford and Ripley accompanied Mellencamp and superintendent Cathy Egolf to the meeting.
The results were astonishing, even to those directly involved. Musgrave was warm, receptive, and engaged. She listened, asked questions, and - after about an hour - gave the project her seal of approval.
It helped, of course, that the case for the South Adams project was a good one.
The need is obvious, the current debt load modest, public safety a factor, and public support demonstrable.
But none of those would have been enough if the project hadn't had a champion, someone urging that it be given an honest, careful look.
It was a great stroke of constituent service on the part of Sen. Ford and Rep. Ripley. But it shouldn't have been necessary. - J.R.[[In-content Ad]]
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