Notable (Or not so Notable) Leap Day Birthdays

I had to write something on Leap Day just to ensure that the date, February 29, officially appears on this blog.


At www.leapyearday.com I found a list of notable people born on Leap Day over the centuries and was hoping to share it with you. However, I only recognize a few of the names, so I'm not going to bore you with the whole thing. Here are the most notable of the notables (judged by whether or not I recognize them or think that they are interesting):

• 1468  Pope Paul III last Renaissance pope (1534-1549.
• 1692  Edward Cave, England, printer (Gentlemen's Magazine).  Not sure if this is the namesake for Cave and Company, printers in  Westfield.
• 1904  Adolph Blaine Charles David Earl Frederick Gerald Hubert Irvin John Kenneth Lloyd    Martin Nero Oliver Paul Quincy Randolph Sherman Thomas Uncas Victor William Xerxes  Yancy Zeus Wolfeschlegelsteinhausenberdorft Sr., Germany; had a Christian name for every letter in the alphabet, shortened it to Mr Wolfe Plus 585 Sr. The world's longest name officially used by a person.
• 1904  Jimmy Dorsey (James Francis Dorsey) - Legendary saxophonist, conductor, songwriter and composer.  He formed an orchestra with his brother, Tommy Dorsey, lasting from 1933 to 1935, and then led his own orchestra, rejoining Tommy's orchestra in 1953 and taking over the orchestra at Tommy's death. (d. 1957)
• 1916  Dinah Shore (Frances Rose Shore) - USA, Actress, Singer, Talk Show Host.
  Some sources list her birth date as March 1, 1917.
• 1936  Jack Lousma - Astronaut; was a crew member of the Skylab 3 flight in 1973.
  and Columbia Space Shuttle in 1982.
• 1944  Dennis Farina, USA, Actor.
• 1960  Anthony Robbins - American Motivational Speaker.
• 1960  Heidi Henriksen -The 1st of 3 siblings born on consecutive Leap Days.
• 1964  Olav Henriksen -The 2nd of 3 siblings born on consecutive Leap Days.
• 1968  Leif-Martin Henriksen -The 3rd of 3 siblings born on consecutive Leap Days.

So there's a bit of trivia you can have some fun with today.

Ken Kingshill

Westfield, Indiana

Santorum's Bus Spotted in Westfield

Westfield's Jill Mead reports that she was driving through Village Park Plaza last Wednesday morning when she saw Rick Santorum's bus in the Walmart parking lot.  Being somewhat of a political junkie, it piqued her interest.

"I wonder if we actually have a presidential candidate here in little old Westfield?", she asked herself.

Determined to get some answers, Jill stopped and went into Walmart to investigate.  Of course, she knew the greeter, so she asked if Rick Santorum was in the store.  No, he wasn't.  But the greeter suggested that Jill go get her sister to knock on the bus door.

"Heck," Jill thought as she marched out of the store and up to the bus, "I don't need my sister."

She knocked on the door and waited.  When the door opened, she respectfully inquired if the candidate was in. Unfortunately, he wasn't.  He was in Arizona for the debate that evening.  The bus was simply on its way up to Michigan for some intense campaigning after Arizona.  And yes, this is the only Rick Santorum bus of its kind.

Satisfied that she knew what was up, Jill snapped a picture to memorialize her sighting.  And here it is.

In the Westfield Walmart Parking Lot

Jill wonders how many other people saw the bus.  Let us know if you or someone you know saw it last Wednesday.

Ken Kingshill
Westfield, Indiana

Rotary Club Celebrates 3rd Anniversary

The Rotary Club of Westfield met tonight at Keltie's Restaurant to celebrate it's 3rd Anniversary.

For such a young club, we have accomplished a great deal.  I'll name just a few:

• named  the 2010 Outstanding Service Organization by the Westfield Chamber of Commerce
• received Rotary International's Significant Achievement Award for 2010-2011
• received both the Presidential and Governor's Citation in 2010-2011

This year alone we have:

• hosted a Youth Exchange Student from Spain
• sponsored an out-bound Youth Exchange Student
• continued adding to the Sensory Gardens at Freedom Trail Park
• worked on sending an R-Tractor to Haiti
• provided volunteers for Hamilton County Meals on Wheels
• assisted the Open Doors Food Pantry
• volunteered at the Midwest Food Bank
• participated in the Westfield Farmers Market, Westfield Rocks the 4th, Westfield In Lights, and the Grand Junction Derby

Although we sometimes don't quite believe it, many visiting Rotarians have told us that in our club's infancy, we have accomplished more than many veteran clubs have in ten years.

If you'd like to be more involved in local or international community service, please come visit us at the Bridgewater Club every Tuesday at noon.  We'd love to see you there.  You can also visit our website at www.westfieldrotary.net.


Ken Kingshill
Westfield, Indiana

Susan Brooks will be at Jan's on Saturday

Susan Brooks, Republican primary candidate for Indiana's 5th Congressional District (Dan Burton's old seat) will be holding a "Meet and Greet" at Jan's Village Pizza in Downtown Westfield on Saturday, February 25th from 1:00 to 2:30 pm. For those of you who don't know, Jan's is located at 108 South Union Street, just north of Keltie's Restaurant.

I'm reporting on this because I think it's a good opportunity to meet and maybe get to know one of the serious contenders in this important congressional race. It also represents a significant event for downtown Westfield--a chance for people to visit the Grand Junction area.

I recently met Susan at a Chamber of Commerce luncheon. I found her to be conversant on the progress that Westfield has made in recent years and the related issues. She seemed to be genuinely eager to get to know more people in Westfield.

She certainly has credentials. Former Indianapolis Deputy Mayor in the Goldsmith administration; former United States Attorney, appointed by President George W. Bush; former Vice President and General Counsel of Ivy Tech Community College.

For more information on Susan's campaign, visit her website at www.SusanBrooks2012.com.

Although I haven't yet committed to supporting a particular candidate in this race, I believe it's important for voters to get to know as much as they can about candidates and to meet them face-to-face if the opportunity arises. Therefore, I strongly recommend that you attend this function if you can.

KK

P.S. Don't expect to see me there as my son has WYSI baseball evaluations at the very same time.

Hold the Wrecking Ball

Pretty soon you'll start seeing Westfield firefighters swarming all over certain buildings along U.S. 31. Well, maybe not swarming. How about crawling, or traversing, or gingerly making their way. So, before you see this and ask, "What gives?", I'll tell you . . . .

With the imminent transformation of U.S. 31 into a limited access highway (think freeway), there are a number of properties that first had to be purchased by the state. You may have already seen some empty buildings, particularly on Greyhound Court south of Wendy's. Well, rather than simply bulldozing paradise and putting up a parking lot (OK, freeway), the state (INDOT) has agreed to allow the Westfield Fire and Police Departments to conduct traning exercises on, in, and around the condemned buildings.

This partnership between the City and INDOT is a great idea because it allows our public safety personnel to engage in some training that's pretty close to the real thing. It's one thing to train on a mocked up structure or in a big tin can, but it's something entirely different when you're chopping a hole in the roof of a commercial building (or so I'm told).

According to a city press release, more than a dozen structures on the West side of 31 between Greyhound Pass and 161st street are part of this agreement--with potentially more to come as the highway consruction proceeds.

So, as you're driving on 31, don't be too concerned when you see a flurry of public safety activity in the next couple of weeks. But please, heed the sirens and pull over as the emergency vehicles pass. Who knows, they might be responding to the real thing.

KK

Joint City Council and School Board Meeting

This past Monday evening, the Westfield City Council and the Westfield Washington School Board held a joint meeting.  Such meetings are not unprecedented, but they are pretty rare.  During my four years on the City Council I can remember only one such meeting.  

The purpose of the joint meeting is to maintain an open line of communication between the two organizations and to ensure that all are aware of the major issues.  They really ought to be at least an annual affair.

Although I didn't attend, I have spoken with participants and audience members and can relay some of the highlights.

This meeting was hosted by the City Council and so it occurred in the City Hall meeting room where the City Council customarily meets.  Generally, the home court advantage alternates from meeting to meeting.  I'm told the room was fairly full, but the audience was primarily school and city employees. Only two members of the general public attended.

Not surprisingly, the School Board's major concern involved budget constraints.  Declines in assessed valuation coupled with property tax reform have made things very difficult for the school corporation. Moreover, state mandated, all day kindergarten will add to operating costs.  

A significant issue discussed involves the allocation of TIF revenues.  Westfield had been one of a very few Indiana communities that did not absorb 100% of the revenue generated from TIF districts.  Until recently, our practice had been to split that revenue in such a way that the city received 75% and the remaining 25% flowed through to all the other local taxing authorities such as the school, the library, the township, etc.  However, with some major infrastructure needs looming in the near future, the city decided that it needed the full amount of the revenue created by the TIF districts.

The school naturally questioned that decision.  The Mayor explained that the only way Westfield will be able to grow its AV (assessed value) is to make road and infrastructure improvements to attract businesses to locate here.  The city needs the full amount of the TIF revenue to do that.

Growth in AV will result in growth in revenue.  The property tax rate is applied to the assessed value of all the real estate in the township to come up with the amount of property tax owed by each parcel owner (subject to tax caps, of course).  If AV declines (as it has during these troubled economic times) and the tax rate remains steady, then revenue will decline.  

The way to increase revenue is to increase either AV or the tax rate (or both).  Clearly, increasing AV is the preferred course.  If AV is grown enough, it's possible for both tax rates and tax payments to decline.  That's why it's so important to attract economic development to Westfield.

Unless you are knee deep into local government finance on a daily basis, it's very difficult to really understand the nuances involved.  I've only ventured into these waters up to my ankles and the breadth of my knowledge (or lack thereof) certainly reflects that.

I believe it was good for the School Board and the City Council to have a face-to-face discussion.  It should probably happen more often.

What Should Replace Queso Blanco?

Now that Queso Blanco is gone, what business would be on your wish list to go into the old Picket's Cafeteria building?  When considering this question, keep in mind that the building is not likely to be there in five years.  When the state eventually widens Main Street (State Road 32), it's going to expand to the south and take out the building.

I've heard that Jan's Pizza has extended their dining room to the north into what was the back room area of Queso.  When we first moved here in 1997, those two spaces were connected, so it seems to make sense to me that Jan has done that.

So, back to what I want to see on the corner.  I'd love to see a microbrewery in downtown Westfield. Maybe one could start out in that space and then move when the road and intersection are expanded. Someone told me recently that Indiana is home to the most microbreweries in the country.  I haven't confirmed that with any research, but it's interesting to note that we indeed have quite a few.  

Downtown Westfield has zero night life, as far as I can tell.  I imagine the folks that live there now probably like it that way.  But when the Union Flats Apartments are built later this year, there will be a lot more people living in the downtown area that may want to spend some dollars nearby.

Another quality restaurant like Keltie's would be great.  I think Keltie would agree that more good restaurants downtown add up to more business for her.  If there are three or four restaurants of her caliber within walking distance of each other, customers are more likely to want to come back and try another one in the future.  And then keep coming back.  Think Broad Ripple.

Best wishes to whatever or whoever decides to move into that space.  I hope it happens sooner rather than later.  If you know anyone who has a business that could benefit from being on Westfield's main downtown corner, don't hesitate to play economic development professional and sing the praises of Westfield and the Grand Junction.  Let's see if we can land a winner.

Don't forget to add a comment with your wish list!

KK

Downtown Vacancy Light is On

We need to attract some more quality businesses to downtown. There's been a fairly high turnover in downtown Westfield businesses over the last four or five years. I don't know that it's all that unusual to see such attrition in the downtowns of bedroom communities or edge cities around the country. Factor in the state of the national and world economies and it's certainly understandable.

I don't foresee too much downtown new construction in the immediate future. There's just too much uncertainty, given the economy and the change and disruption soon to be caused by US 31 construction and its overflow effects on SR 32. I also don't see small businesses being able to afford the kinds of rents they'd have to pay for new construction. So in order to see some growth in downtown, it'll have to be achieved by businesses moving into existing structures.

Did you know that there are roughly 25 existing properties in Westfield's downtown that are vacant and available for sale, lease, or rent? I didn't--until recently. Anne Poynter, Executive Director of the Downtown Westfield Association, did the research and came up with a list. It would be great if we could entice some nice little restaurants like Keltie's and the late, Queso Blanco to relocate to the Grand Junction area. Other boutique businesses, some catering to the young-at-heart trail using crowd, would be ideal as well.

It'll take a concerted effort to attract such "talent." We can't just wait and hope that another Jan's Pizza will magically appear. The mayor has asked the Grand Junction Task Group to actively market our downtown to potential businesses. That effort is under way.

You too can help by talking up downtown Westfield to any business owners that you might know. Highlight the various activities that occur here during the year like the Grand Junction Derby, the Farmers' Market, Westfield Rocks the 4th, Westfield in Bloom, and the Christmas Tree Lighting. Also mention the Midland Trail, Old Friends Cemetery Park, the Natalie Wheeler Trail, the Red Man, and the mural on the Westfield Pharmacy building. There's also the City's Facade Improvement program that offers matching grants to encourage property owners to make improvements to their buildings.

I truly believe that a successful and vibrant downtown is an amenity that benefits all residents of Westfield. Businesses are much more likely to relocate to Westfield as a whole if there is a "happening" downtown. (See the previous post about economic development.) People like to live in communities that have a certain buzz to them. So lets get buzzing.


KK

Super Bowl Impact

Now that the Super Bowl is over, it's time to start tallying up the resultant economic impact on Indianapolis and Central Indiana.  By all accounts, Indianapolis hit the ball out of the proverbial park (pardon me for using a baseball cliche when discussing the Super Bowl).

Many of the 68,000 people in the seats at Lucas Oil Stadium were corporate decision makers.  They came here from all over the country, if not the world.  Most of them were blown away by Hoosier hospitality and exuberance while they were here.  Who knows?  The next time they decide to build a national distribution center, open up a mid west regional office, or move their corporate headquarters, maybe they'll seriously consider Indianapolis because of the experience they had here during Super Bowl XLVI.  It could happen.

It is called economic development.  It's the reason Indianapolis wanted to host the Super Bowl.  It's why Lucas Oil Stadium was built and partially funded with public money.

Likewise, economic development is why we do a lot of the things we're doing in Westfield.  Take Grand Park, for instance.  Although it'll be nice to have plenty of playing fields for Westfield youth to play soccer, football, and baseball, it's the businesses that locate around the sports campus that we're really after.  Those businesses will construct buildings, create jobs, and pay taxes.  They will help shoulder the tax burden that now rests so heavily on residential homeowners.

The Grand Junction and a revitalized downtown are also economic development generators.  Just like our budding trail system and Grand Park, they are amenities for people who live and work in Westfield.  Amenities improve quality of life.  That's what people and businesses look for when they relocate.

So the next time you hear a public official utter the phrase "economic development,"  just think "Super Bowl" and you'll know exactly what they're talking about.

KK

I took this photo of the Super Bowl Ring display at the NFL Experience

What's Up?

Welcome to What's Up, Westfield?  As far as I can tell, there are no other blogs dedicated to all things Westfield, Indiana.  So let's get on this train they call social media.

There's lots going on in Westfield these days.  The Grand Park Sports Campus is underway.  The Grand Junction is moving along.  US 31 freeway construction has started.  We have a new City Council.  There's a little thing called the Super Bowl happening a bit south of us. . . . Just to name a few.

However, one of the difficulties that we endure here in Westfield is that there really is no dedicated 20th Century form of media to adequately inform the public.  Sure, there's the Indianapolis Star, but really, how much energy do they expend reporting on life in Westfield?  There's actually a Carmel,/Zionsville/Westfield weekly edition of the Star that I get for free in the mail.  For a while it made an attempt at reporting some local content.  There would be one story on the front page focusing on one of the three municipalities.  The rest of it was ads and recipes.  Now the sole story is gone and the ads don't even make an attempt at being local.  It's a waste of paper as far as I'm concerned.

"But, Ken," you say, "we have the Current in Westfield."  To which I counter that a good third of Westfield residents don't get Current in the mail because they don't have a Westfield address.  Current mails its Westfield edition only to 46074 addresses.  That means if you live in Village Farms or Bridgewater you get Current in Carmel and if you live in Brookside, you get Current in Noblesville.  When I was writing my column in Current in Westfield, some of my biggest fans lived in Carmel.  Go figure!

What about The Noblesville Daily Times (or whatever it's called these days)?  What's their circulation in Westfield?  Maybe 500?  Enough said.

The City tries to communicate with residents by stuffing fliers in the utility bill, but I've never found that to be an effective way to communicate.  I'd guess that most people throw out stuff that's stuffed in the bill.  Believe it or not, there are still some Westfield residents who are on well and septic.  For a long time they never received a utility bill from the city.  (That may be moot now with the storm water utility and the garbage collection service that I believe is charged to every resident.)

Recently, the City has been mailing a monthly newsletter titled Westfield Matters to residents, highlighting some of the goings on in Westfield. It's a nice four page glossy piece that looks a bit like an over sized post card.  I think I accidentally threw it in the garbage the first time it came in the mail--and I was expecting it!  It's a good attempt, but it too, has its limitations.

So maybe in the year 2012, we should start utilizing new media.  That's where this blog comes in.  I'll do my best to talk about things that are relevant to Westfield, just like I did on a weekly basis at Current in Westfield for over three years.  Except that I won't be restricted by their schedule (or their editing).  I'll write as things happen.  It'll be part reporting and part opinion.  Hopefully, you'll read and maybe even comment.  But please keep the interaction civil and clean.  And don't be anonymous.  I'm putting my name on this product for all the world to see.  If you feel moved to respond to what I've said, please identify yourself.

Thanks for reading.

KK