[0:00] I pledge allegiance to the flag of the
United States of America,
[0:04] and to the republic for which it stands,
one nation under God, indivisible, with
[0:10] liberty and justice for all.
>> If you would all still remain standing
[0:16] for a moment of silence,
uh in honor of Joe Bogusevich, who was
[0:22] on our Disabilities Commission. He
passed away this past week. And also
[0:29] Susan Alexander, who was a part-time
secretary in our council office, who a
[0:36] couple of years ago, who passed away
this week. Thank you.
[0:45] Thank you.
[0:55] All righty, Carmen. Roll call vote,
please.
[0:58] » Alexander?
>> Present.
[1:00] » Spadatelli?
>> Here.
[1:02] » Kolwinski?
>> Here.
[1:04] » Salinas?
>> Here.
[1:06] » Tyler?
>> Here.
[1:08] » Emerson?
>> Here.
[1:10] » Warpole?
>> Here.
[1:11] » Racos?
>> Here.
[1:13] » Banez?
>> Here.
[1:15] » Uh nine in chambers, zero absent.
Moving on to mayor's address.
[1:23] Good evening, mayor.
>> Good evening. Thanks, Councilwoman. Good
[1:26] to see you all. It's good to be back.
Um it's keeping in the spirit with
[1:31] the remembrance and the moment of
silence you just discussed. I was at a
[1:35] wake for
a former employee, Ty Edwards. He worked
[1:40] in the park department for a long time.
He retired a few years ago. And then his
[1:44] wife, Andrea, who worked for us up until
a few weeks ago and retired, as soon as
[1:50] she retired, she lost her husband. So,
I attended on behalf of the city.
[1:56] Um you know, we're all thinking about
you, Andrea. It's very sad and she's a
[1:59] great lady and they're a great couple.
They've been together a long time, so
[2:03] you know,
it's a been a rough couple weeks in City
[2:06] Hall, so thank you for recognizing them,
Councilwoman.
[2:09] » thank you.
>> Uh other meetings I've held, I don't
[2:11] have a lot today, so if you have
questions, I'm open, but I don't think
[2:15] my report's going to be very long. I met
with US Senator Jim Banks municipal
[2:19] liaison, Leanne Engerman. Leanne used to
uh I know her from a previous life. When
[2:25] I was the chairman of the Democratic
Party, I met her and she was always one
[2:28] of the leaders of the Republican Party
on the election board and she was
[2:31] promoted to become Jim Banks'
area liaison, basically. So, it's nice
[2:36] to have good contacts with the senators.
Um attended Okay, attended a meeting at
[2:42] Central Firehouse with my executive team
and shift one.
[2:45] Uh we have those meetings usually once
every couple months. All chiefs as well
[2:48] as multiple captains were in attendance
at that meeting. Real good meeting.
[2:53] Um
We were We learned at that meeting that
[2:56] we're having issues with one of our
truck one of our engines and one of our
[2:59] trucks and we got to do something about
radios, also uh police and fire and
[3:05] that's something we're going to be
discussing with you guys in the near
[3:07] future cuz it's a public safety issue,
but it's nice to have meetings with the
[3:12] men and the women of the fire department
and the police department find out, you
[3:15] know, what's going on on the ground. You
know, I talk to the chiefs a lot and I
[3:19] talk to the bosses sometimes. Talking to
the men and women that work every day
[3:23] for us is much better for me cuz I learn
a lot more. So, uh also met with the
[3:27] captains, the chief and the assistant
chief of the Hammond Police Department
[3:30] for our regular monthly meeting. We do
that often at the Police Department. Um
[3:35] Met with the meeting with the Festival
of Lakes team, discussed the particulars
[3:39] of the Jelly Roll concert. We announced
Jelly Roll on Friday. Not a country
[3:43] music guy, but from what I understand,
he's going to sell out and it's
[3:47] um our previous biggest concert we've
ever had at the Festival of Lakes was
[3:51] Lil Wayne.
Uh Lil Wayne, excuse me. It's not Lil,
[3:54] it's Lil Wayne. Lil Wayne sold over
100,000 tickets in the first 24 hours
[3:59] they went for sale. And Jelly Roll
sold that in 2 hours and 50 minutes. He
[4:05] already set the record for the first
day. He sold over $250,000 worth of
[4:09] tickets in the first day. So, that that
show is going to sell out. So,
[4:13] so I
advise the people that are listening,
[4:17] I wouldn't wait till the last second for
this one. This one's going to sell out.
[4:20] Twice as many gold tickets were going as
opposed to silver tickets. Gold tickets
[4:24] are right on the stage. Those are the
expensive ones. Once that sells out,
[4:27] people are going to start focusing on
silver.
[4:30] And then they're going to be gone. So,
that one's going to sell out. Which is
[4:33] good news for us. That means it'll be a
free night for us cuz
[4:37] if it sells out, that means we're doing
well.
[4:39] Um
Uh took three interview requests over
[4:42] the possibility of the Bears moving to
Hammond. Three out of like 50 requests.
[4:46] I'm literally picking and choosing. One
of them was for students from Crown
[4:50] Point Public High School. I thought that
was a cool one to do and it was really
[4:53] great interview. It's pretty impressive.
Uh met with Brian Howey from Howey
[4:57] Politics, talked about it with him and
Fox 32 News Chicago. I've been turning
[5:01] down 90% of the requests I get cuz
really there's no update. I'm willing to
[5:05] talk to you all if you have a question,
but
[5:07] um read to Miss Cindy Heinz's second
grade class at Saint Casimir School in
[5:11] North Hammond.
Great school, great kids, great teacher.
[5:15] Uh it was fun. Represented the city of
Hammond at Taste of the Region event in
[5:18] Hobart. I was there with Scott and a few
other people from the city. And that's a
[5:22] fundraiser benefiting the Service League
of Northwest Indiana.
[5:25] Um I know resolutions that you guys are
hearing tonight, uh I'm going to go
[5:30] ahead and cover this if you don't mind
about the Core Weaver extension.
[5:34] I don't ever want to extend it. If you
guys approve this,
[5:37] I don't want to ever come back to you
and and say I need another extension.
[5:40] I'm done.
They I think it's
[5:43] We said, "What do you need?" They told
me June 30th. I don't want to come back
[5:47] in. I've done this two times already.
This is the third time I'm asking you
[5:50] guys for extension. We've been in this
project a long time. [clears throat] I
[5:54] It's hard to close the door. It's hard
to say goodbye. If they're not here by
[5:58] June 30th, I'm going to say goodbye and
we're going to go on and I'm going to
[6:01] try to emulate what the mayor of Hobart
did with the data center in Hobart
[6:05] because Hobart's the richest city in
Northwest Indiana now. And we have a
[6:09] great data center location
where the residents aren't complaining.
[6:13] It used to be a coal plant. And if we
close the deal, it could help us out
[6:17] with SB1 and a lot of the financial
pressures we're facing. So,
[6:21] guys,
if you give us this 4-month extension,
[6:24] this is what they're saying they need. I
promise you I will close the door if
[6:28] we're if [laughter] we're not done by
June 30th. I'm done with this. I've been
[6:31] This has been
three, two and a half years. It's been a
[6:34] long time. So,
um
[6:37] They're asking for a 4-month extension
cuz we didn't want to keep coming back
[6:40] one month to one month. They said it's
more than enough time to get the power
[6:43] agreement done with NIPSCO. They need to
also work on the lease agreement between
[6:47] Court Reeve and Diceniel. Once Once the
power agreement's done, the lease
[6:51] agreement could be done. Planning and
Development's monitoring this closely
[6:54] cuz I told them I'm done. It's
embarrassing to keep coming back at to
[6:58] you asking for extensions. I don't like
doing this. But I There's lots and lots
[7:03] of money at stake. I feel like it would
be negligent if we close the door on
[7:06] them at this phase. It's literally from
what they're saying, we're like right
[7:09] there. So, I hope you please accept that
extension request and that'll be the
[7:15] last time hopefully we have to talk
about this. I don't have any other thing
[7:18] else, Madam President, unless you all
have questions. I'm more than happy to
[7:21] answer them.
>> I do have a question.
[7:25] » Wow, I don't know.
>> Uh
[7:27] I'm looking for
uh your comments on the
[7:32] Grand Avenue pedestrian bridge.
>> Oh, the pedestrian bridge. Thank you. I
[7:36] should have put that in my report. I
apologize, Councilwoman.
[7:38] » That's okay.
>> So,
[7:40] this goes Now, we had two projects going
in Nashville. Governor's Parkway, which
[7:44] is being funded by the state, and we're
on the long list, obviously, before
[7:48] they're going to commence work on it.
That's the vehicular and pedestrian
[7:52] bridge uh that gets you basically from
173rd to 171st. And then this other
[7:57] project was in response to an article
that came out in ProPublica. I know you
[8:00] guys remember this.
Hammond was all over the national news
[8:04] cuz they showed kids that were going to
Scott Middle School, and they were
[8:07] crawling through stopped trains. Now, if
you remember correctly, the world came
[8:11] to an end in Hammond when that happened.
Everybody is like, "We need to fix this
[8:14] now." It was one of those rare times
where
[8:17] Norfolk Southern was calling up saying,
"What can we do to help?" City Hammond
[8:21] was like, "Where have you guys been all
of our life?" And then I got a phone
[8:24] call from the Secretary of Department of
Transportation, who I used to know as
[8:27] Mayor Pete, Pete Buttigieg. He wanted in
on the action. Everybody wanted to help
[8:31] Hammond.
So, if you remember correctly, guys,
[8:35] at that time, I talked to the CEO of
Norfolk Southern. He said, "Mayor, I
[8:38] want to help. What can I do?" I said,
"We can build a bridge and get us over
[8:42] it, and the kids will take the bridge,
and they'll never have to cross the
[8:45] stopped trains again." He said, "I got
you, Mayor. I'm going to pay for that."
[8:49] God bless America.
So, we hired an engineering firm. We
[8:53] designed the pedestrian bridge.
And then when the Department of
[8:56] Transportation jumps in, Buttigieg wants
some action out of this. It was a big
[9:00] story. Everybody wanted to help. So,
we're like, "Hey, we can pay for 80% of
[9:04] it, and the 20% will be paid
by Norfolk Southern."
[9:08] And I was thinking to myself, "This is
going to slow it down from a one-year
[9:11] project to a five-year project." But
Norfolk Southern was really excited
[9:14] about 80% being paid for by Mayor Pete
and Department of Transportation. So, we
[9:19] agreed to go along with it. So, they
designed this project. Norfolk
[9:22] Southern's paying it, and 80% coming
from the feds, 20% coming from Norfolk
[9:28] Southern. And then the guy I talked to
from Norfolk Southern got fired.
[9:33] And the new guy had amnesia.
What? I don't remember anything about
[9:37] that, Mayor. I don't remember ever
saying we were going to pay for this,
[9:40] Mayor.
So, we're sitting there and now we're
[9:42] stuck. Engineering's been paid for by
Norfolk Southern. 80% being paid for by
[9:47] Mayor Pete and the Feds. 20% of a $5
million project is like $2 million.
[9:52] Excuse me, our local match ends up at
around $2 million.
[9:57] So, we start doing some analysis.
Is this worth $2 million
[10:02] of city [clears throat] money that's
hard to come by for a bridge that's
[10:05] going to be used
once a year, maybe?
[10:09] And then 364 days a year sitting there
unused. And I talked to the Councilman,
[10:14] Councilman Scott, this guy I could see
it already, Mayor Tom's bridge to
[10:17] nowhere. The bridge that nobody ever
uses. We paid $2 million for. Feds paid
[10:22] for the other 80%. And we just made a
decision. It's
[10:27] when Governor's Parkway is built, it
will solve a lot of these problems in
[10:30] itself.
And we made the decision that the
[10:32] pedestrian bridge wasn't worth it. We
got all of the partners that were
[10:36] partnering with us bailed on us. One got
fired. The other one's got amnesia. And
[10:40] it would have cost us $2 million for a
bridge that's used maybe once a year.
[10:44] So,
I gave up on it. I made the decision.
[10:47] It's not easy. But, that's how it went
down, Councilwoman.
[10:51] » Okay. Thank you. I think it's just good
for
[10:56] some of the people who come and ask
questions about that every Council
[11:01] meeting to be aware of exactly what the
situation
[11:05] » I'm glad you asked me. I should have put
it in my report that came out last week.
[11:08] So, I should have caught that. Thank you
for asking.
[11:10] » Mhm.
>> So, any other questions?
[11:12] » Councilwoman
Benas.
[11:14] » Yes, Councilman.
>> to elaborate on that because this is in
[11:18] response to what we hear a lot after we
can't say nothing. And um
[11:25] over the years that I've been on the
Council since this project started, this
[11:28] has gotten so convoluted with the the
the public are telling us.
[11:33] This started out as a way
to get cars around trains.
[11:40] People have taken it
taken it in 19 different directions. At
[11:46] one point they said, "Well, no, this is
a pedestrian bridge and a pedestrian
[11:49] bridge only."
It's not.
[11:54] This, you know, being a lifelong
resident of Hixson
[11:58] and
65 years in Hixson, I don't remember a
[12:02] time when trains weren't a problem in
Hixson.
[12:07] You know, I stated a long time ago my
opinion on it, but
[12:12] it just it gets old after a while when
we just after the meeting's over
[12:17] we're asked, "When we going to vote?"
when we already have.
[12:20] We're asked,
"Why are you guys doing this with kids
[12:24] crossing the railroad tracks?" and
I've gone over those tracks a lot during
[12:30] school hours and everything and
you might see a kid every now and then
[12:36] do something like it wound up on the TV,
but it's not a huge issue. I mean,
[12:42] any one kid's a huge issue,
but it's not like there's 20 kids a day
[12:46] doing that.
[12:49] And
it just frustrates me as a council
[12:52] person that has been in support of this
from day one
[12:56] to hear that hear this get all twisted
around and you guys don't care about the
[12:59] residents cuz I know what my residents
want.
[13:03] And it's a way to move around Hixson
when the trains are blocking like they
[13:09] still do
[13:13] 3 4 hours a day.
>> Councilman Dev, I don't want to like cuz
[13:17] the pedestrian bridge and Governor's
Parkway go I'm still 1000% committed to
[13:22] Governor's Parkway and we're going to
get that project done once the state
[13:25] green lights it, so
>> I'm making the comparison. Yeah, we
[13:29] since we passed this twice, three times,
whatever it was.
[13:33] It's just the story changes every
meeting on what we're supposedly doing
[13:36] and how we're not listening to the
residents and there's no truth to that.
[13:41] » So, the bottom line is
there was a press release Hammond
[13:47] suspends Grand Avenue pedestrian bridge
project project Hammond, Indiana.
[13:52] » That's how it went down.
>> That's it.
[13:54] » I didn't think it was worth $2 million
of city money. And you when you consider
[13:58] I if I remember correctly the local
match on the the bridge that holds
[14:02] traffic is around $3 million.
And we would have to pay $2 million for
[14:05] a bridge that's hardly ever going to be
used. It wasn't worth $2 million. It was
[14:09] worth it if Norfolk Southern was paying
the bill like they initially told me,
[14:12] but that guy got fired.
So.
[14:16] » Right.
>> Any other questions?
[14:20] » Any other questions for the mayor?
>> Great to see you. Have a nice meeting.
[14:24] Thank you all.
>> All righty.
[14:28] Uh moving on to approval of minutes.
>> Make a motion that we approve the
[14:33] minutes from the February 23rd meeting
and place them on file.
[14:37] » Second.
>> Motion by Councilman
[14:39] uh
Selena, second by Councilman Emerson.
[14:43] Any discussion?
Any discussion?
[14:46] Any discussion?
All those in favor?
[14:50] » Aye.
>> Aye.
[14:50] » Opposed?
Motion passes.
[14:55] Moving on to approval of claims.
>> Madam President.
[14:59] » Yes, Councilman Reikos.
>> I move to approve register of claims
[15:03] beginning with claims dated 22726
and ending with claim
[15:07] dated 3426.
Claim number 1655
[15:13] through claim number 2011 inclusive
in the amount of $7,954,604.22.
[15:24] » Second.
>> Motion by Councilman Recos, second by
[15:28] Councilman Warpel. Any discussion?
Any
[15:33] Was that you?
>> I heard my voice.
[15:36] » Oh, I'm sorry.
>> [laughter]
[15:39] » Uh
and the second was by Councilman Tyler.
[15:42] Any discussion?
Any discussion?
[15:46] Any discussion?
Carmen, roll call vote, please.
[15:51] » Alexander?
>> Yes.
[15:53] » Spatelli?
>> Yes.
[15:54] » Kelwinski?
>> Yes.
[15:57] » Salinas?
>> Yes.
[15:59] » Tyler?
>> Yes.
[16:00] » Emerson?
>> Yes.
[16:02] » Warpel?
>> Yes.
[16:04] » Recos?
>> Yes.
[16:06] » Velez?
>> Yes.
[16:09] » Um claims passed nine in favor, zero
opposed.
[16:13] Moving on to public hearings, there are
none. Communications.
[16:18] » Madam President.
>> Yes, Councilman Warpel.
[16:21] » I would like the statement on the
suspension of the pedestrian bridge made
[16:24] part of the record and
recorded.
[16:28] So I'll
>> Okay.
[16:29] » No vote's needed.
>> Is there a second?
[16:32] » I second.
>> Okay. Motion by Councilman Warpel,
[16:35] second by Councilman Salinas to make the
uh press release about the
[16:42] uh
Hammond suspends Grand Avenue pedestrian
[16:46] bridge project part of the record.
Any discussion?
[16:51] Any discussion? Any discussion? All
those in favor?
[16:54] » Aye.
>> Aye.
[16:55] » Opposed?
Motion passes. Carmen.
[17:02] Carmen.
>> There we go.
[17:05] » Okay.
Thank you.
[17:08] Any other communications?
>> [clears throat]
[17:11] » Any other communications?
>> Madam President.
[17:14] » Yes, Councilman Recos.
>> Uh EC3 is having annual St. Patrick's
[17:18] Day parade on Saturday at 1:00. We're
starting
[17:23] at Hessville Park at Orchard Drive at
Kennedy and going to 165th.
[17:28] It'll be at 1:00 on Saturday, March
14th.
[17:32] » Thank you.
Any other communications?
[17:39] » Madam President.
>> Yes.
[17:40] » The Hammond Sports Hall of Fame is
having their 40th annual
[17:43] » your pardon?
>> The Hammond Sports Hall of Fame is
[17:45] having their 40th annual
indiction tomorrow night at the Hammond
[17:51] Civic Center beginning at 5:00. Um I
don't remember all of them. I do know
[17:55] that former fireman um Ray uh
Cook
[18:00] not Ray. Um
Charlie Cook's being inducted and um
[18:06] Dave Sitkowski, I think everybody knows.
He's long-time baseball guy around here
[18:10] and whose team's never beat us, but
that's a different story.
[18:13] And uh
there's
[18:17] close to being sold out of 350 people.
So
[18:21] » Nice.
Nice.
[18:24] » All ready. Any other communications?
I I just wanted to remind everybody that
[18:30] their
animal license is due by March 31st. Uh
[18:37] $5
uh unless your pet is not neutered or
[18:42] spayed, it's $10. Uh after March 31st,
there will be um a $10 fee. So, any
[18:51] other communication?
[18:54] Councilman
uh Kilwinski.
[18:57] » Thank you.
Yes. Uh fish fries are happening
[19:00] everywhere in my district. Uh St. John
Baptist in Robertsdale on Fridays from
[19:06] about 3:30 till 7:00.
St. Cas, same thing about that same
[19:11] time. And the Hamon Mohawks also are
having their fish fry every Friday
[19:16] throughout Lent
from 3:45 to 7:00. Thank you.
[19:23] » Thank you. Any other communication?
Any other communication?
[19:29] Any other communication? Communications
are now closed.
[19:34] Uh committee reports.
>> Madam President.
[19:38] » Councilman Salinas.
>> The Capital Improvement Board met on
[19:41] March 2nd
and we had three funding allocations
[19:45] that I'll cover right now.
>> [clears throat]
[19:47] » The first funding allocation number 307
is to replace benches and trash
[19:52] receptacles on Homan Avenue.
This includes the forms and the surfaces
[19:57] in the amount of $18,567.
[20:03] Second funding allocation number 308
J.F. Mahoney ditch improvements
[20:10] to construction uh since construction
engineering. This is to Nice
[20:14] uh engineering in the amount of $16,425.
[20:20] The third and final funding allocation
number 309
[20:23] is to restore the street lighting on
Sibley supplemental to Homan to the Nick
[20:28] D line to Hawk Enterprises in the amount
of $1,985.55.
[20:36] » Thank you, Councilman.
Uh and uh I would like to read off the
[20:41] upcoming community and crime watch
meetings.
[20:45] Uh community watch at Mount Zion
Pleasant View Plaza will meet tomorrow,
[20:50] Wednesday, March 11th.
Not tomorrow. That's Wednesday.
[20:55] Wednesday, March 11th uh at 1:00 p.m.
Harrison Park Crime Watch will meet
[21:02] Tuesday, April 7th, 6:00 p.m. at the VFW
on Homewood Avenue, across from Harrison
[21:10] Park. Jefferson Crime Watch will meet
Wednesday, March 11th uh 6:00 p.m. at
[21:18] Jefferson School.
Hessville Crime Watch will meet
[21:22] Thursday,
March 19th, 6:00 p.m. [cough]
[21:27] at [clears throat] the HC3 Community
Center.
[21:30] Irving Community Watch will meet
tomorrow, Tuesday, March 10th, 9:30 a.m.
[21:37] at Irving School.
And the Whiting-Robertsdale Crime Watch
[21:42] will [clears throat] meet Thursday,
March 12th, 6:30 p.m. at uh Calumet
[21:48] College. Uh I always say, community is
not just about me, it's about us. And I
[21:57] just want to say, over the weekend, we
had an incident in our neighborhood that
[22:03] the the the police were notified by a
911 call, and they came and addressed
[22:11] the issue. So, it is not just about me,
it's about all of us working together to
[22:19] keep our city safe. So, thank you, Madam
President.
[22:23] » Thank you, Madam President.
>> Uh
[22:28] Committee reports are now closed.
Oh, Councilman, you need to speak up.
[22:34] » Yes, the Finance Committee that I'm the
president of did not meet this week.
[22:39] » Okay.
>> has nothing to report.
[22:41] » Okay.
>> But being a standing committee, we
[22:44] should report out every meeting.
>> Yes, we should.
[22:48] » So, I will have something next next
meeting.
[22:50] » We will begin that in earnest next uh
Council meeting. So, thank you.
[22:56] » Madam President.
>> Yes.
[22:59] All righty. Any other committee reports?
Committee reports are now closed.
[23:06] Moving on to ordinance third reading
final passage, there are none.
[23:11] Uh introduction of ordinances.
>> 2607
[23:18] an ordinance establishing electric
vehicle EV charging rates for an EV
[23:23] charging station owned and operated by
the city of Hammond.
[23:30] » Councilman Spatali
>> Yes. Vote for first and second reading.
[23:34] Referred to finance committee.
>> Second.
[23:37] » for March 23rd at 5:15.
>> Second.
[23:44] » Thank you. Motion by Councilman Spatali,
second by Councilman Rikos for first and
[23:50] second reading of 2607,
referred to finance with a uh
[23:58] committee meeting on March 23rd 5:15
p.m.
[24:04] Any discussion?
Any discussion?
[24:08] Any discussion?
Clerk, I'll do roll call vote, please.
[24:13] » Alexander
>> Yes.
[24:15] » Spatali
>> Yes.
[24:16] » Kelwinski
>> Yes.
[24:19] » Salinas
>> Yes.
[24:20] » Tyler
>> Yes.
[24:22] » Emerson
>> Yes.
[24:24] » Warpel
>> Yes.
[24:25] » Rikos
>> Yes.
[24:26] » Vance
>> Yes.
[24:30] Uh 2607
passes nine in favor, zero opposed.
[24:39] » 2608
an ordinance amending ordinance number
[24:43] 4508
and amended ordinance 7023,
[24:48] otherwise known as section 30.25
of the Hammond municipal code regarding
[24:54] common council order of business.
>> Madam President.
[24:58] » Councilman Warfel.
>> I move for first and second reading with
[25:02] no committee hearing on this.
>> Thank you. Is there a second?
[25:07] » Second.
>> Motion by Councilman Warfel, second by
[25:11] Councilman Spatola [clears throat]
for first and second reading of 2608.
[25:17] Any discussion?
>> Madam President.
[25:19] » Yes, Councilman.
>> This is a change to the actual ordinance
[25:23] on
the putting together of the agenda for
[25:27] Council meetings.
Um
[25:30] we are adding, I think it's line 13 for
the special zoning action adopted under
[25:36] IC code 36-7 and we are also making the
mayor's address part of the ordinance.
[25:43] The only thing I will say is
[25:47] just because we're doing it this way,
that we never have to really go in
[25:51] order. If we have somebody that has to
leave or whatever, there's really no
[25:54] suspension of rules needed. That we can
go in whatever order we need.
[25:59] But other than that, it's just a
changing it by ordinance.
[26:03] » Thank you.
Thank you.
[26:05] Uh
who was the second on that? Was there a
[26:09] second?
>> Yes.
[26:11] » Yes. Motion by Councilman Warfel, second
by Councilman Spatola.
[26:17] Uh
uh for first and second reading of 2608,
[26:22] no committee meeting. Any discussion?
Any discussion?
[26:27] Any discussion?
Clerk, can you roll call that on that,
[26:31] please?
>> Alexander.
[26:32] » Yes.
>> Spatola.
[26:34] » Yes.
>> Kelwinski.
[26:36] » Yes.
>> Salinas.
[26:38] » Yes.
>> Tyler.
[26:39] » Yes.
>> Emerson.
[26:40] » Yes.
>> Warfel.
[26:42] » Yes.
>> Racos.
[26:43] » Yes.
>> Velez.
[26:45] » Yes. 2608
passes on first and second reading, nine
[26:50] in favor, zero opposed.
[26:55] Moving on to resolutions.
[27:00] » 26 R-4
A resolution of the Hammond Common
[27:05] Council approving the second amendment
to development agreement among the city
[27:10] of Hammond, Indiana, the city of Hammond
Redevelopment Commission,
[27:15] 301 Digital Crossroads LLC,
Decennial Group LLC, and Coreweave
[27:21] Incorporated regarding the project at
100 Digital Crossroads Drive.
[27:27] » Madam President.
>> Yes, Councilman Worpell.
[27:30] » I move for adoption of ordinance 26
R-04.
[27:34] » Second.
>> Motion by and that is a resolution.
[27:39] » Yes.
>> Okay.
[27:40] Uh motion by Councilman Worpell
uh
[27:44] and second by Councilman
Spitalli uh for approval of 26 R-04.
[27:52] Any discussion?
>> Madam President.
[27:55] » Yes, Councilman.
>> Thank you.
[27:57] I was happy to hear
the mayor speak during his presentation
[28:02] at the council meeting uh strongly about
this will be our last uh likely our last
[28:08] uh
uh time that we grant an extension uh up
[28:14] to and including June 30th. So, I'm glad
to hear that and glad to see that that's
[28:18] on record. Thank you.
>> Thank you, Councilman. Any other
[28:23] discussion?
>> I think the mayor covered it all during
[28:26] his speech.
>> adequately, yes. Any other discussion?
[28:31] Any other discussion?
Carmen, roll call vote, please.
[28:36] » Alexander
>> Yes.
[28:38] » Spitalli
>> Yes.
[28:39] » Kelwinski
>> Yes.
[28:41] » Salinas
>> Yes.
[28:43] » Tyler
>> Yes.
[28:45] » Emerson
>> Yes.
[28:46] » Worpell
>> Yes.
[28:48] » Raikos?
>> Yes.
[28:49] » Pena? [clears throat]
>> Yes.
[28:52] Uh 26
R-04
[28:57] passes, nine in favor, zero opposed.
Moving on to new and unfinished
[29:03] business.
Any new and unfinished business?
[29:08] Any new and unfinished business?
Any new and unfinished business? New and
[29:14] unfinished business is now closed.
Moving on to special zoning action
[29:21] adopted under Indiana Code 36-7.
Uh we do not have anything.
[29:29] Public expression.
We have
[29:34] uh one guest, Mary Shones. You have 3
minutes.
[29:39] » Yes, I'd like to give public expression.
>> Uh
[29:43] » Or
>> On my first.
[29:45] » Okay, I cannot see. Uh Mary, if you will
hold one moment, please.
[29:51] Uh
who is that?
[29:54] » Who am I talking to?
>> Uh Champion. I'm on the Zoom.
[29:57] » Oh, I see that.
>> Did you tell driving? You look like
[30:00] you're driving.
>> name and address?
[30:04] » Um
I uh
[30:08] I don't want to give my address
publicly.
[30:10] » And
do you live in Hammond?
[30:16] » Um
I don't want to I want to uh value my
[30:20] Fourth Amendment right to be secure in
my person's papers and effects, and I
[30:24] just like to petition um and um give uh
my public comment.
[30:29] » Uh may we have your name?
>> A Champion.
[30:34] » Okay, Champion, go right ahead.
>> Thank you. Uh thank you, everyone, for
[30:40] your service. I was just going to and
you know, great meeting, uh great
[30:43] information. It seems like
the gentleman who was discussing he got
[30:48] lied to, that was the mayor.
Um, and he was lied to and told that he
[30:53] would, um, you know,
the organization group was going to pay
[30:56] for the bridge. I was going to say what
would have been great to hear cuz it
[30:59] seemed like, you know, possibly
we moved forward as a city off of that
[31:05] word and maybe missed the step of
securing that word, um, contractually,
[31:09] you know, so before we go to B, C, D, E,
F, G,
[31:13] you know, uh, this individual told me
this, if we had secured it
[31:16] contractually,
just as a step,
[31:19] um, then,
you know, that's why we take steps to,
[31:22] you know, secure things so that, you
know, obviously if this happened, now,
[31:27] you know, it's what he say, she say. Not
saying I don't believe, uh, the mayor,
[31:31] but, uh, just, uh, I thought that would
have been a great, uh, just in in in in
[31:35] pointing out maybe what could have been
done better or what we'd look to do in
[31:39] the future should we find ourself in
this situation to make sure that we take
[31:43] that step. And I didn't hear that and I
just wanted to share that and thank you
[31:46] so much for taking my comment.
>> Thank you.
[31:51] » [clears throat]
>> Already, Mary Shones.
[31:55] » Oh, there's also somebody else that has
their hand raised on the on the
[31:59] » George
>> online.
[32:01] » George Stoya. Stoya.
>> Uh, Evelyn, would you like to speak?
[32:06] » George Stoya.
>> George Stoya?
[32:09] » Yes.
I would after Mr. Stoya.
[32:12] » We're going to go with Evelyn first.
>> Fair enough.
[32:17] » Uh, okay, good good evening, everybody.
Um, I I've been coming to the meetings
[32:23] for a couple of times.
Um, okay, start my video. Sorry about
[32:26] that. Uh, good evening, everybody. Uh, I
wanted to just say thank you for taking
[32:30] my question. I've been listening and
I'll keep coming in in order to listen
[32:34] to everything that's been transpiring in
my, uh, neighborhood and and in the
[32:39] city. But, I did have a question with
everything happening the way that it's
[32:43] happening, not just the war that's going
on, but previous to this, all the
[32:50] the prices of food and everything like
that. And I know it's probably a simple
[32:54] question, but I just want to know, why
are we not allowed to have chickens or
[32:59] rabbits for meat in in this particular
area?
[33:05] » Evelyn, this is your opportunity to ask
questions of us. We do not respond to
[33:14] questions
in this portion of the meeting.
[33:18] I I suggest that you
write an email, contact one of us, and
[33:26] we'd be more than happy to have a
discussion on it.
[33:31] » Okay, thank you for elaborating on the
rules. I didn't know that. Thank you so
[33:35] much.
>> Thank you.
[33:38] George Stroia.
>> Can you guys hear me?
[33:42] » Yeah.
>> Yes.
[33:44] » Okay, cuz I don't know I I usually mess
up the mic.
[33:48] Just uh one quick note,
well, two quick notes. I'm personally
[33:52] still opposed to turning Hammond into a
barnyard, but that's me. Uh
[33:56] all those little critters and animals,
this is a city, not a farm. Anyway,
[34:01] um
we still have week weeks to go of
[34:04] meetings to go. Mark Kalwinski mentioned
uh
[34:08] uh something about we were going to get
some of the ordinances and resolutions
[34:12] posted before the meeting, so we could
review them, and nothing's happened
[34:16] about that. What's going on with that?
Anything
[34:19] you guys going to do anything with that,
or that's just
[34:21] cuz I caught you red-handed doing that
one thing,
[34:25] and you know, you just said a few words
and abracadabra, and and now it's in the
[34:30] you guys forgot all about it, and don't
give a damn about informing us of uh
[34:34] cuz you guys got it on computer and I
all this stuff about all it's going to
[34:39] cost too much to put it online. I don't
buy a word of it. Anyway,
[34:43] that's all.
>> Thank you.
[34:46] » Thanks, George.
>> Thank you.
[34:51] Is there anyone else there?
No. Okay.
[34:55] Mary, thank you for being patient.
[35:06] » Hi, good evening. Hope you're all doing
well.
[35:09] » Thank you.
>> So I saw the I saw the same you know
[35:14] press release from from Hammond about
the about the bridge.
[35:19] And and then then late like later like
like in the last paragraph of the
[35:26] um
of the press release it says that the
[35:29] governor's
the governor's Parkway bridge is fully
[35:33] funded.
So the governor's
[35:37] pedestrian bridge
that's not located near Morton High
[35:41] School is fully funded.
But we're about what two
[35:47] not quite three million dollars short of
a pedestrian bridge where it's actually
[35:51] needed. So it turn So do we have the
money or don't don't we?
[35:57] You can answer me. I won't
>> I'm sorry. No, I cannot answer you. But
[36:02] I yeah. Is anybody ever happy? That's
all I have to say.
[36:06] » Well, people usually don't come to
public expression because everything is
[36:11] going great, right? I mean that's if you
don't want the job, I have a simple
[36:16] solution for you.
I mean it's it's your choice.
[36:20] So So if we have the bridge, if we have
the money for the bridge, why Why we put
[36:25] it where it makes the most sense?
Where the kids are going to cross, but
[36:30] we know we need the
but we need the pedestrian bridge and
[36:34] the mayor's condo scheme. I'm never
going to call it you know, Governor's
[36:38] Parkway, whatever.
Mike Brown's not going to be tooling
[36:41] around Hammond, okay? It's it's this is
all the mayor's pipe dream to create
[36:47] condos where we don't need them and
spend millions of dollars putting a
[36:52] pedestrian bridge in the wrong place and
call that all in the name of safety.
[36:57] That's just not that's not serving the
residents of Hammond well at all.
[37:02] I have I have more to say, but I'll
leave it on that and again, I do I do I
[37:08] do wish you well, but I do have serious
concerns.
[37:11] » Thank you.
I appreciate
[37:14] » And yeah.
>> All right.
[37:15] » Thank you.
Have a good evening.
[37:17] » skill.
With that, I make a motion we adjourn.
[37:21] Second.
>> Second.
[37:24] » All those