Hello and welcome to Cats Week. I'm Annalise Poorman. The Monroe County Community School Corporation
Board of Trustees met on August 25th. During this meeting, the board agreed to hold a work session to
formalize the school system's redistricting process. School Board President Aaron Cooperman said declining
enrollment and underused school buildings mean some kind of change to the district's boundaries is likely.
My position is that some kind of redistricting, reorganization, or restructuring is inevitable. Even
if we were willing to say socioeconomic balance is not part of our criteria, even if cost-effectiveness
alone were our only criteria, which I don't think it should be, but even if that were it, I think this
report said that our current utilization rate is 69% across the corporation, and at the industry standard it is 85.
even if we were only talking about redistricting, reorganization, and restructuring to adjust for declining
enrollment and financial realities, I personally think it's inevitable. So the way I would answer the
question is, if the question is, do we move forward with defining parameters and applying those parameters
or metrics to options for change, my answer to that would be yes. I am on board with that.
Cooperman proposed bringing the full board together to determine what criteria should guide the redistricting
process. In the past, we have sometimes made small task forces to bring something back to the board,
whether that's a resolution or, and it could be a working resolution that we take friendly amendments to.
Board member April Hennessy argued that the school district has not undertaken major redistricting steps
in a long time and urged the board to consider socioeconomic balance along with building capacity and
declining enrollment. You know, existing attendance zones I think should not be treated as an inherently
neutral position. You know, I think that there's this thought that like redistricting is like a is a
controversial decision.
But I would argue that maintaining the kind of status quo or the districts as they sit is also potentially
controversial, right? It is not a neutral position to say, we're just not gonna redistrict, we will
just stay as it is. The status quo is inherently sort of controversial as well, I think, especially
when we think about the fact that we truly haven't done or engaged in true redistricting in a very,
very long time.
And whether or not we're solving for population density, for moving populations of individuals or groups,
whenever you have a district that has lagged for so long in looking at their boundary or catchment zones,
I think you're going to end up with problems.
Assistant Secretary Dr. Tiana Iruo-Jay says the district still needs to determine exactly what it is
trying to accomplish before evaluating potential redistricting maps. You're right. As a board, we haven't
made, like, decisions or even know what is the percentage of the socioeconomic status we're trying to
reach. I mean, I go back and forth. I've enjoyed reading this and reading all the
comments that people have made. But I think as a board, we have to know what are our clear financial
targets. I mean, what is the cost savings with this as well? Because I mean, as you all were talking,
too, about if you move students to another school, are schools going to close? I mean, what's the capacity
of that building? All of that, too, I think is something that we should think about as well.
The board eventually asked Superintendent Dr. Markay-Winston to organize a comprehensive work session
on redistricting, reorganization, or restructuring. For now, it remains unclear when the work session
will take place or what specific attendance zones or schools might ultimately be affected. The MCCSC
School Board will meet again on September 22nd.
Monroe County Council met on August 25. The meeting opened with a vote to table the 2027 target fund
balance resolution until September 8 and to move up several other budget discussions. During public
comment, Christopher M.G. from the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce warned of looming fiscal
choices urging counselors to challenge longstanding spending habits. Good stewardship doesn't
It doesn't always mean just spending less. Sometimes it means saying no. Sometimes it means redirecting
resources. And sometimes it means making a substantial investment now instead of failing to act that
will cause taxpayers considerably more later. And from the Chamber's perspective, we also have to keep
our eye on growth. We can make better choices about how we divide the pie, but over the long term, we
need that pie to grow larger through more jobs, more investment, more housing, and a stronger tax base.
What matters is that those decisions are deliberate.
measurable and tied to the county's most important responsibilities. The council then heard concerns
from the planning department, which has lost three of its eight employees in the past nine months, largely
over pay. Planning director Jackie Scanlon addressed the staffing losses and presented a proposal aimed
at resolving the issue. The number one reason for losing those key people have been for salary.
and two of those people left to the city of Bloomington to take a lateral position that paid $18,000
more. Monroe County Plan Commission President Scott Ferris followed, echoing Scanlon's concerns. Those
disparities are pretty gross. I mean, 20, 30% for like positions. That impacts, like most of you already
know, the morale
the quality of life and retention, as well as keeping the doors of the business open for a planning
department that is currently overworked and understaffed. Later, during department updates, Monroe County
4-H highlighted how county support affects the program and its participants. Recent high school graduate
Correll Patnode described her decade-long experience with 4-H as both educational and community building.
4-H is not just a great organization. It is my life and my family. I don't know what I would do without
it. And it was such an honor to represent not only Indiana, but our great county. Thank you.
The council meeting then turned to homelessness with heading homes Mary Morgan discussing a
county appropriation that would help expand a housing first pilot program for people currently living
outside. The funding debate came just hours after the county cleared a large encampment at the Thompson
power line property. Council member Pete Iverson criticized how the eviction unfolded.
we need to have a much more robust plan. We cannot steal people's stuff, put it at the highway garage,
and not have a way for them to get out there to get it. That is unethical. It's unmoral. We cannot.
There's just so many problems. Are we changing the date without giving people a time when we're going
to be there? These are residents in our community. This is wild that this happened this morning.
So I thank you for being here and trying to answer the questions the best you can. I'm at loss of words.
We need to do better. I understand that it was a really rough decision to make, and I don't think that
there were, I don't see answers just as there aren't to any of these situations. So yeah, I do think
we need to do better.
Addressing questions from the council, Morgan explained some of the limitations of the community's current
housing and shelter options. Extreme barriers to housing that people cannot overcome by themselves.
And all of that really was evident in a very visible way at the power line
Thompson encampment. And I don't have a good answer for you. We did have staff out there working to
try to encourage people to go into shelter, to try to connect them with other services. But if people
were not willing to go to shelter for a variety of reasons, some had animals that they didn't want to
leave, some were couples that there's no sheltering available for couples without children.
And it's just a really challenging situation that this new initiative is trying to prevent from happening
in the future.
Despite concerns about long-term funding, a slim majority of counselors backed the heading
home appropriation. The meeting then moved to county employee pay. While the council signaled support
for a raise, members stopped short of final approval, instead voting to build a 2% cost of living adjustment
into draft 2027 budgets. Contingent on using economic development income, tax dollars to fund it.
Finally, the council took a step toward convening a municipal unit strategic task force, or quote, must,
unquote, this fall. The process is optional under state law, but opens the door to renegotiating how
local income tax revenue is distributed between the county and its cities and towns. Council member
Iverson emphasized his desire for broad participation. It is my desire, and I'm speaking just for myself,
This includes all Monroe County taxing units. I want everyone to be invited to this party. The resolution
to form the task force passed unanimously, setting up negotiations over local income tax shares as the
county enters its own budget season. The next Monroe County Council meeting is September 8th, with budget
meetings scheduled for September 2nd and 3rd.
The Monroe County Board of Commissioners met on August 27. During public comment, local resident Don
Cross said that while he praised the staff at the Justice Building, he is concerned about the working
conditions inside the building. I and a few others pray with people at the Justice Building from time
to time for the past 10 years. We are genuinely impressed with the staff that we have met and who work
in the Justice Building.
the clerk's office, prosecutor's office, judges, courts, public defenders in the jail and others. We
found them as friendly, diligent servants of our county who really care about their work and the people
that they serve. Many of our prayers over the years and especially lately have been for health issues
related to negative physical conditions in the justice building, some of them very serious.
As Monroe County resident, it is deeply disturbing to me that many justice building workers must deal
with and endure such negative conditions on a day-to-day basis year after year. Conditions that I would
not want to work in, nor would I want for people I cared about to work in. I urge that positive steps
be taken as soon as possible
to relieve this situation short-term and long-term for the sake of the people who serve our county so
well. County Commissioner Julie Thomas responded that she considers the building structurally unsound
and wants to move out. It is a failing building and we'd like to move out of it. And we've been stymied
in that effort. And that's unfortunate for everybody that works there and everybody that is housed in the jail.
or works in the jail. And we actually hear a lot of these issues raised in the media and elsewhere.
And the thing is, we continue to have mold remediation and testing done in every one of our county buildings
because the mold levels are very high in this county.
in the summer anyway. But the situation last year led us to have an ongoing contract. That work goes
on and it continues. Next, the commissioners discussed ongoing impacts from the June tornado that swept
through the area. Thomas said the county has signed a letter of intent to seek grant funding for clearing
creeks and removing log jams. This is related to the June 2026 tornado.
and the hope is that we can get some good creek clearing of log jams and things which will help keep
everyone safer and it will also keep our roads lasting longer. So that's one of those long-term impacts
of a tornado. We just had a grant related to Clear Creek
from previous tornadoes. So this one is new and very exciting opportunity and I hope it works. I hope
it happens and it would be great if it did. Commissioner Jody Madeira addressed criticism that the county
did not do enough to help in the aftermath of the June tornado. She defended the county's response and
the work of emergency responders. So the June 26th tornado
June 2026 tornado brought criticism that I think we had not done enough. The facts do tell a different
story. I think we had done our part that just as we do with every single disaster community faces. And
so we issued an emergency declaration and we had done things like consider and approve contracts for
roll off dumpsters. We received updates, we asked questions, and we offered assistance. In short, we
did our job.
Also the Monroe County Fire Department, the Highway Departments and Emergency Management also performed
admirably immediately following the tornado and throughout the days of recovery that followed. They
did their jobs and it's important I think that we really keep the record straight and give credit to
the people and the departments who do respond effectively when our community needs them to. The County
Commissioners will meet again at 10 a.m. on September 3rd in the NatU Hill Room.
The Ellisville Town Council met on August 24th. The agenda started with an ordinance regarding the commercial
use of public records. Town attorney Darla Brown walked the council through the details. So the town
is receiving more and more requests for public records that appear to be requests for information so
that the requester can use it for commercial purposes.
and there is a section under the access to public records statutes which allows for a municipality to
pass an ordinance which prohibits the information being used for commercial purpose and that is the
purpose of this ordinance. If the town council passes this ordinance then any requester seeking information
that appears to be requested
for use for commercial purpose will be required to sign a certification under the penalties for perjury
that they will not use it for commercial purposes. Okay. Just by way of explanation, this is incredibly
burdensome for our staff because some of these record searches go on for years that they're asking for
data. They're asking for some very arcane data that is, of course, public record, but on the other hand,
we're not able to charge for the data that our staff is
producing so that these people can turn around and then make a profit off of it. So that's what this
ordinance is intended to prohibit, not to prohibit you from getting the data you need for your own purposes,
but for someone turning it into a for-profit industry at our expense. Councilmember William Ellis and
Attorney Brown discussed what would happen if a citizen did use public records for commercial purposes
should the ordinance pass. Darla, what is the penalty if they
say it's not for commercial uses and they use it as a perjury or was there another? Well, you can certainly
decline to provide them any records in the future. If you could prove perjury in a court of law, that
would be great. Okay. Chances are it'll be more just realistically for time, money and effort,
just say, right, you're done. The ordinance will be posted on the Alexville Town Council website for
the public to read.
Later in the meeting, Chief of Police Jimmy Durnall spoke to the council about a conditional offer of
employment to fill a vacancy in the police department, as well as the transition plan for when he and
Chief Deputy George Robinson leave the department. Deputy Chief George Robinson and I will be leaving
at the end of January in 2027. So we want to make sure you were clear on that. We've got about four
and a half, five months for transition.
I think President Oldham has a plan to do that tonight. But again, I just want to thank my officers
for coming overnight. It really means a lot to me. Thank you. Well, first off, let's start us with a
thank you to both you and Deputy Chief Robinson for absolutely making sure the state on track for a
long time. And you've really been able to do some wonderful things with the department. We deeply appreciate
it. And I'm sure they have a whole lot more nice things to say later in the year, but
For now, just suffice to say thank you both. It's really been a pleasure. In the back of my head, even
back when I was trooper in Connorsville District, I always thought, I saw Don Kooster driving around
here. I know I'd like to be him. I want to be him. But he ended up in Chief of Police over here. So
it worked out wonderful for me. Thank you so much. Thanks, Jimmy. Congratulations. Thank you. The next
meeting of the Ellitsville Town Council will take place on September 14th.
And that is all for Cats Week. Thank you for joining us. For Cats and WFHB, I'm Annalise Poorman.
Summer of 83.