Citizens for a Responsible Town Hall in Zionsville

More study, safety first and a lower cost option for this space!

The people of Zionsville have spoken, and to move ahead with plans for a new and unnecessarily huge town hall would be a slap in the face to the community you claim to love. Address life or death matters (Oak St) then involve the community in the planning of a new town hall.

Please be transparent and prudent about your plans to spend our town budget. What is the long range plan? Do we need a giant building to run a town our size? Please put your energy behind improving our roads and keeping residents safe.

Seriously, get your priorities right!

$10,000,000.00. Really?!

Keep us safe. Do the right thing.

I haven't heard the arguments for a new town hall that are worth the lives of citizens. If there are some, please share them so we can have a discussion. "Because we can" is simply not how elected government should run.

Please fix our roads for safety. Solicit town hall bids through an RFP process.

Please please fix road safety first

The safety of Oak & Kissel should be a priority before a new town hall is built!

Please reconsider

Found this little gem online this afternoon. Please feel free to share with your friends...get the word out!! Thursday, January 28, 2016 Zionsville Will Get New Town Hall The Same Way Westfield Got Its Grand Park Soccer Arena So much for the state law requiring units of local government to conduct a public referendum and allow voters to decide when government wants to borrow money and pledge tax revenues to build new buildings. Zionsville, like Westfield's grandiose decision to build an indoor soccer arena at Grand Park in a sweetheart deal with a politically-connected developer, will do the same thing to build a new town hall. Westfield turned to Holladay Properties to build its indoor soccer arena and lease it back to the city for 25 years at a cost of $53 million before taxpayers will take ownership of the facility that cost about $25 million to build. Zionsville isturning to the politically-connected Keystone Realty Group owned by Indy Eleven owner Ersal Ozdemir, to get its new town hall. When Zionsville officials first started talking about plans for a new city hall, the building cost was estimated to be about $6.5 million. Now that they're closing to inking the deal, those costs have grown to $10.2 million. As Barnes & Thornburg's Bruce Donaldson explained the financing of the new town hall to town council members, "It would be sort of like if you bought a house on contract from a seller." What this deal actually involves is a build, operate and transfer agreement, which is governed by Indiana's Public-Private Agreements Act. That law requires these opportunities to be publicly bid through an RFP process. I've seen no mention of an RFP process that led to the selection of Ozdemir's Keystone Realty Group. But, hey, since when does a silly law get in the way when it's time to reward someone who has been very generous in contributing campaign dollars to the politicians? Keystone is also a client of Donaldson's law firm, but I'm sure the mayor, who is also a

This intersection is a priority safety issue. My husband and I were victims of an accident at Kissel and Oak caused by an inattentive driver in September of 2010. Our car was totaled and we sustained considerable injuries. Every time we enter this intersection, which is at least twice daily we remember the crash and are on extra "alert" for negligent driving. Please fix this soon!

Please hold off approving ANYTHING to do with a new town Hall until Oak Street safety concerns are addressed, the RFP process and Indiana law is followed on the proposed Town Hall, and all information on the proposed Town Hall are available publicly accompanied by line item costs. Serve the needs of the community. Address the safety of the citizens. FIX THE ROADS!

Public Safety should always be a paramount issue to office space. That said - the current Town Hall needs repairs or replacement to keep it viable and funding is a critical component of each. I call on the new Mayor and the new Town Council to institute a new policy of Transparency and to seek public input and interaction on certain hot button issues even it means additional public forums and extra efforts to advertise them (beyond the typical boilerplate notices). Doing so is crucial to your credibility with the public. In other words JUSTIFY YOR ACTIONS.

Having worked in the transportation industry for 25 years, I refuse to turn onto Oak St from Kissel because its so dangerous. I love Kissel Road but avoid going there because of the danger. I don't know the needs of the town hall or the town's financial situation but I do ask that mitigation of the deficiencies of this intersection be considered if there's not enough money for both. Thanks.

The size of this Town Hall is ridiculous! There are so many other important things that need to be addressed first.

Our family was involved in a major collision on 334 that totalled our vehicle. We were struck from behind by a truck traveling nearly 60mph as we sat facing west waiting to turn south on S 850 E. We were sent into oncoming traffic and then ended up facing east. We are thankful that oncoming vehicles missed us and that our vehicle was one with the highest safety rating. We were able to walk away without life- changing injuries but are reminded of the experience many times a day as we travel 334 to and from Zwest. And, we witnessed 2 accidents for which we had to call 911. One at Kissel and the other at S 950 E (at the entrance to Thornhill where few drivers obey the posted sign indicating that the right hand lanes are for right turns only.) Additionally, for the past 19 years we have lived a few blocks from the current town hall, off of 334, and have watched the risks that drivers and pedestrians have taken to access or cross the street. We simply ask that as you look to the future (as it appears you are doing with a large scale building project as well as with the approval of housing and business projects) you don't lose sight of the present and be considerate of the concerns of the residents who must continue to navigate our current infrastructure while everything grows at what appears to be an accelerated pace. Zionsville residents are somewhat aware of the trouble spots on 334 however, the growth plan will result in a continued influx of additional drivers who may not be as aware. Keep this thought in mind as you govern and make lifelong changes to our town...doing the right thing is always the right thing to do.

We need a traffic circle here!

In Lebanon there is a 100 year old building building that continues to serve as the home of Boone County's government, so I say that Zionsville needs a new Town Hall about as much as the mayor needs a hole in his head. For a change, let's put the safety and well-being of the residents of Zionsville above yet still another expensive development project that we cannot afford.