Category Archives: City of Indianapolis

Clean Water Issues Presentation in Rocky Ripple

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Date/time: February 17, 2011 at 7 p.m.
Rocky Ripple Town Hall, 930 West 54th Street

The Marion County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) has recently received a small grant to cover the cost of making a minimum of 50 clean water related presentations to Homeowner Associations, Civic Groups, and other organizations within Marion County Indiana prior to March 31st, 2011.  The purpose of these presentations are to provide interested organizations an improved “conservation awareness” of water quality and quantity issues and potential services that are available from the Indianapolis Office of Sustainability, the Indianapolis Department of Public Works, the Indiana Wildlife Federation, the Upper White River Watershed Alliance, and the Marion County Soil & Water Conservation District.

All are welcome.

Dispose of your e-waste properly

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As a reminder, the Indiana State law regarding the disposal of electronics will change effective January 1, 2011. Because of this State law, the City will no longer be allowed to dispose of electronic devices (including TV’s, computers, monitors, DVD players, and VCR’s) through the residential waste stream. The Tox-Drop program is available as an option for residents, but if they set it out for regular or heavy trash pickup after Jan 1, it will not be taken.

Post-Holiday Recycling Event January 8

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City’s Office of Sustainability Announces 5th Annual Post – Holiday Recycling Event

INDIANAPOLIS – The City’s Office of Sustainability, in partnership with Indy Parks and Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, will offer four drop-off locations for its Post-Holiday Recycling Event on Saturday, January 8, 2011 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

For the fifth year in a row, Indianapolis residents will have the opportunity to recycle unwanted electronics and holiday waste. The following items will be accepted at this year’s event.

  • Real Christmas Trees
  • Gift boxes
  • Cardboard boxes
  • Styrofoam (molded, white only)
  • Old electronics
  • Magazines and catalogs
  • Mail, school and office paper

Also, the “Paper Retriever” Program will be participating in this year’s event (note that Rocky Ripple has its own Paper Retriever which benefits Rocky Ripple’s parks, please consider placing your paper waste at the bin located near the Town Hall). Paper Retriever is a simple paper recycling program that directly benefits the community as well as the environment. Schools, churches, and other non-profit organizations house green and yellow Paper Retriever bins for members of the community to fill with recyclable paper goods. This year, all proceeds from the collection of magazines, catalogs, paper and mail at the below collection sites will be donated to Keep Indianapolis Beautiful.

In 2010, the event brought in a record amount of recyclable materials, including over ninety-seven tons of electronics; this is a thirty-five percent increase in electronics collected at the 2009 event.

Residents are asked to remove all ornaments, lights, tree stands, plastic bags, nails and other decorations from Christmas trees before drop-off. No artificial trees will be accepted.

Recyclables will be accepted at the following locations. Follow signs within each park to the specific drop-off locations.

  • Broad Ripple Park, 1610 Broad Ripple Ave., south lot
  • Ellenberger Park, 5301 E. St. Clair St., west of pool in main parking lot
  • Garfield Park, 2450 S. Shelby St., McAllister Center parking lot
  • Krannert Park, 605 S. High School Road, north parking lot

To learn more about Mayor Ballard’s vision of making Indianapolis one of the most sustainable cities in the Midwest, visit www.sustainindy.org.

Paper Retriever is a subsidiary program of AbitibiBowater. For more information, visit www.paperretriever.com.

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Molly Deuberry
Director of Communications / Department of Public Works
Office of Mayor Greg Ballard – City of Indianapolis
molly.deuberry@indy.gov P: (317) 327-5893 C: (317) 677-6469

Snow removal updates from the City

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Indy Snow Force officials will continue to monitor weather conditions and will make adjustments to the current winter weather plan as needed to ensure safe travel for motorists throughout the day.

Visit http://indysnowforce.com/ to hear a message from Mayor Greg Ballard regarding things we can all do to help ensure the safety of everyone in Indy during winter weather events.

Also, visit http://indysnowforce.com/ to learn more about Indy Snow Force and Mayor Greg Ballard’s commitment to keeping Indy’s streets and roads clear of snow and ice and keeping Indy residents safe. Residents can view safe driving tips as well as a Defensive Driving in Winter Weather video online to help ensure a safer commute.

Call the Indy Snow Force Coldline, the city’s hotline for up to date snow removal information at (317) 327-8000 for further updates or to report emergency snow or ice conditions.

Please contact me with further questions regarding Indy Snow Force and winter weather plans for city roads. For information regarding interstates and state roads, please contact Ashley Hungate with the INDOT at (317) 467-3479.

Thanks!

Steven R. Hardiman II
City-County Council Liaison and Executive Assistant / Department of Public Works
Office of Mayor Greg Ballard – City of Indianapolis
steve.hardiman@indy.gov P: (317) 327-2053 C: (317) 223-1065

Receive your own updates by e-mail

To be added to Catherine Moore’s updates directly, write to her at Catherine.Moore@indy.gov. Catherine is the liaison between Rocky Ripple and the Mayor’s office.

 

Town Council Updates

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Attend the Festival this Saturday!

Hohlt Park will be home to Rocky Ripple’s 11th annual Art Festival from 11 am to 6 pm. To find out more, visit the Community Association Web site.

THANK YOU to the Community Association and the many community volunteers who make the Festival and so many other events possible in Town!

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Fountain Park Update

Thanks to an IPL Golden Eagle Grant, made possible earlier this year through the Center for Urban Ecology at Butler University (CEU@BU), ecological restoration is in process at Fountain Park, located at 53rd Street and Patterson. So far, mulched trails have been created, some native plant seed has been scattered, and invasive honeysuckle has been removed from the interior of the park. Benches and a new sign will be installed, and educational programs will be scheduled for the community. This property was originally donated to the Town by Butler University and has been rezoned as a park.

As the work continues in the park, residents are invited not to dump debris or build fires in the park.

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Continued Dry Conditions Require Extra Care
Mayor Announces Burn Ban

With Rocky Ripple having received only just over 1/2 of an inch of rain since the beginning of August, residents are urged to take care not to accidentally spark a fire. According to Indiana officials, “seemingly harmless actions such as driving over or parking on dry grass, or dropping a lit cigarette on the ground could cause a sizeable fire.”

For more information on how to prevent fires, read the notice issued last week by government officials:

http://www.in.gov/portal/news_events/57515.htm

Despite Wednesday’s scattered showers, a burn ban has been declared in Marion County.

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Update on Jansen Case

Last Wednesday, Anne Jansen was convicted of two counts of D felony theft. She had been accused of stealing money from the Town of Rocky Ripple and the Rocky Ripple Community Association (RRCA), respectively, when she served as Clerk/Treasurer and Treasurer. The guilty plea comes nearly two years after Council President Robert Tomey filed an embezzlement report against Jansen after he was notified by Jansen’s family that she had committed the crime to support her gambling habit over a number of years while in service to the community.

According to Matthew Bavender, deputy prosecutor at the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office, Jansen plead guilty to both charges and that the sentences for both counts will run concurrently. He said the judge had full discretion on all sentencing, handing Jansen one year probation minus the time she had already served.

Mitigating factors in the case included the unlikelihood that Jansen would commit this type of crime again, Jansen’s age as well as her lack of prior criminal history. Aggravating factors included the position of trust Jansen once held in the community as an elected official.

Bavender added that Jansen is required to seek help for her gambling addication while on probation. He added that final restitution to the Town and RRCA has not been determined, noting that the money she already has returned to the RRCA and the $30,000 bond that was paid to the Town will be subtracted from the total amount of money she owes.

Jansen was accused of taking $60,320.90, according to the State Board of Accounts (SBOA) report. (That amount does not include that which was taken from Community Association accounts.)

Town Council Updates

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Be careful: School is in session

Residents are reminded that school is in session and many Rocky Ripple stop signs are also bus pick-up/drop-off sites. Three routes come through town twice daily.

The Mayor’s Community Service Awards

A nomination form has been released for the 2010 Mayors Community Service Awards. The Mayor’s Office will once again recognize Indianapolis citizens for their volunteer contributions and commitment to community service. Marion County Residents can be nominated in one of several categories including Arts, Business, Church, Special Needs, Education, Elderly, Health/Hospitals, Media, Neighborhood, Philanthropy, Sports, and Youth Services. Please see the attached Nomination Form for the Eligibility and Criteria Requirements for the recipients’ consideration.

Award nominations are open to those residing in the Indianapolis/Marion County community. If you would like to nominate a candidate, please complete a nomination form and return it by Friday, August 20, 2010 deadline. Contact Douglas Hairston.

Download a nomination form from:
http://www.indy.gov/eGov/Mayor/Pages/Mayor’sCommunityServiceAward.aspx

Douglas S. Hairston, Director; Front Porch Alliance
Office of Mayor Greg Ballard – City of Indianapolis
P: 317-327-4336 F: 317-327-5271

Town Council Meeting Tuesday September 14

Join the Town Council at 7:30 p.m. for the next Town Council meeting.

Septic Tank Elimination Program update from City

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PRESS RELEASE
Department of PUBLIC WORKS
JANUARY 8, 2010

Media Contact: Kit Werbe
Public Information Officer; Indianapolis Department of Public Works
Office: (317) 327-4669

CITY BRINGS SEWER SERVICE TO MORE THAN 1,100 HOMES IN 2009

Septic Tank Elimination Program to bring sewer service to an additional
1,200 homes in 2010

INDIANAPOLIS – Five Indianapolis neighborhoods and more than 1,100 residents are enjoying sanitary sewers thanks to the city’s Septic Tank Elimination Program (STEP). In 2009, the Department of Public Works (DPW), through its STEP program, worked to construct sanitary sewers and eliminate septic systems on the city’s south and eastside.

“This is one of the most aggressive schedules the city has ever had to eliminate the use of septic systems,” said Mayor Greg Ballard. “Failing systems are a health hazard and this is really more of a quality of life issue than anything else.”

In 2009, under the direction of Mayor Ballard, DPW re-prioritized planned sewer projects and pushed the schedule forward to eliminate more septic systems than any other time in the city’s history. Through STEP, the city anticipates bringing sewers to more than 7,000 homes from 2009 through 2013.

Areas receiving sewers in 2009 included neighborhoods near:
* Eustis Drive and Michigan Street
* Post Road and Rawles Avenue
* Franklin Road and Southeastern Avenue
* Northern Estates
* 10th Street and Mitthoeffer Road

Project costs totaled approximately $30 million. STEP projects are funded through sanitary sewer user fees. In addition, homeowners pay a one-time connection fee for the construction of city sewers and monthly sewer charges. Project areas received new sanitary sewers, manholes, street resurfacing and incidental drainage improvements.

“We are making progress toward eliminating septic systems, but there are still about 26,000 homes in the city that are serviced by private septic systems,” said DPW Director David Sherman. “What people don’t always realize is that septic systems eventually fail and when they do, human waste can leach into groundwater, backyards, neighborhood ditches and streams.”

Septic systems are linked to high E. coli bacteria counts in many neighborhood streams and ditches during dry weather, when children are most likely to play in them. Some septic tank owners get their drinking water from private wells, which can be vulnerable to contamination by E. coli bacteria.

In 2010, the city plans to complete six projects and convert close to 1,200 homes from septic systems to the city’s sanitary sewer system. In addition, six projects will be in construction in 2010, which will result in the elimination of an additional 1,800 septic systems in 2011.

The STEP program is part of the city’s Clean Streams-Healthy Neighborhoods program, which is designed to curb raw sewage overflows into rivers and streams, address chronic flooding, eliminate failing septic tanks and improve quality of life in Indianapolis neighborhoods.

For information on when a STEP project is planned for a particular area, please visit www.indy.gov/STEP or call (317) 327-8314.

Mayor Ballard launched SustainIndy and created the Office of Sustainability in October of 2008. Both represent an innovative enterprise aimed at delivering long-term cost savings to the city, building the local economy, improving our quality of life and enhancing our environmental and public health. Its efforts are designed to aggressively move Indianapolis forward in making it one of the most sustainable cities in the Midwest. For more information, visit
www.sustainindy.org.