Letter from the President
Dear Neighbors,
The holidays are quickly approaching! With the cold weather brings all of the festivities of Christmas! In December the VRA’s annual progressive dinner will be taking place. All members are invited, but only the first 45 people to RSVP will be the lucky ones to attend! Be sure to pay your dues so that you will receive an invitation. Invitations will be sent in November through e-mail so be on the lookout!
The VRA is also organizing our annual Christmas tree fundraiser. We have purchased 85 trees from the Boy Scouts. It’s a tradition that residents in the Village place the decorated tree in their yard for a festive Christmas season. The trees are being sold for $28 and can be picked up from Lions Park on November 18th. For delivery and to have your tree set up, the charge is $35. All profits benefit the VRA.
The form for ordering a Christmas tree can be found here. Orders are due by Nov. 11th. We already have several orders in so be sure to reserve your tree today!
The fourth annual Zionsville Holiday Decorating contest (formerly known as the Door Decorating contest), will also be taking place in December. As a way to celebrate the holiday season, the VRA hosts a holiday decorating contest. We encourage businesses and residencies to participate. It is so much fun to see the Village decorated in holiday cheer! For more information on how to participate,
the form can be found here.
Thanks to all of those that have attended the meeting in October. We are still in search for our next president. Bret Brewer has graciously offered to serve as Vice President and President until a permanent president has been found. At the October meeting our new board was approved: Bret Brewer as Vice President, Gary Angstadt as secretary, and Phil Martini as treasurer. Thanks to these members for serving on the board. If you are interested in serving as our next president please contact me. I would love to share information about the position.
I look forward to seeing you around town. Have a happy Thanksgiving!
Town Council Insights:
Council transitions, holds first meeting in completed Town Hall
I’m sure many of you have seen the news that Councilor Hopper has resigned as President of Town Council on October 13th. As the Vice President (Gerald Ford) of the Council, I took over as acting President. I felt it was prudent however to have an election to determine leadership going forward. Unlike Mr. Ford, I was re-elected by my fellow councilors and feel thankful for this honor, despite coming into it through resignation. Bryan Traylor (District 1), who I’ve gotten to know well over the last 2 years, will serve as Vice President of the Council, and I’m thrilled he has accepted.
While my role as President will bring additional responsibilities, it will not have any impact on my desire and ability to represent District 5, and the portion of the Village which it represents. I look forward to this upcoming challenge, although my wife refused to play “Hail to the Chief” when I walk in the room. Disappointing.
Town Hall is complete (aside from a few punch list items) and an official ribbon cutting is being scheduled for November. Town Council has had our two scheduled meetings in our new room which has yet to be named. Since so many other meetings will happen in this room (BZA, Planning Commission, Town Court, etc.) we can’t call it “Council Chambers”, and my calls to name it after myself were quickly rebuffed.
Our first meeting was a very full agenda in our meeting and lasted almost two hours. We started out as standing room only; howeveronce the high schoolers had fulfilled their 45-minute obligation to attend, it emptied out rather quickly.
We approved (5-1) the Cove development that will transform the current trailer park on the South side of the village into single-family homes that look unique to the area. I’ve been a fan of this proposal since hearing about it at a VRA meeting a few months ago, and heard mostly favorable comments during that meeting and the process.
We also started the process of approving the budget, which I spoke about in the last newsletter. Approving the budget must conform to the overall governing body in the State (DLGF) so we have a timeline to review and approve. I’m happy to report we’re within the timeframe to get it done for 2018.
We also heard ordinances related to how much cash can be kept in various town functions ($100), changing of zoning for Interactive Intelligence, the creation of a TIF for the eventual development in the SE corner of Michigan and 146th street, and adding some signage for businesses located within Stonegate.
As always, I would encourage you to attend any of these meetings. There is always time for public comment, either on individual issues during public hearings, or on anything you want on the public record related to what’s going on in Zionsville.
