The Board of Works Votes to Go Forward with  Purchase of New Ambulance

With St. Francis Hospital Emergency  Department closing sometime between March 12th and March 17th, the Board of Works has voted to allow the Fire Department to purchase a new ambulance without delay, in accordance with IC 5-22-04. This state statute allows the city to go forward and purchase necessary equipment to protect the public's health. I'm sure everyone is aware that Medic One (our newest of the two ambulances that the city  owns) was involved in a terrible accident, through no fault of their own. Beech Grove has been relying on one ambulance that is a 2000. Out of concern for the safety and well being  of  the Citizens of Beech Grove it is imperative that the city move forward with this purchase as quickly and responsibly as possible. To the left you will see a link to the letter presented to the city by attorney Craig Wiley.

02/16/2012

City of Beech Grove Town Hall Meeting
Wednesday, March 28, 7:00pm
City Hall Council Chambers

Mayor Dennis Buckley will be hosting a Town Hall Meeting on Wednesday, March 28 as the first step in planning for Beech Grove’s participation in Faith, Hope and Love Week, July 22-28. 

Merlin Gonzales, founder of Faith, Hope and Love Ministry (FHL) will be on hand to give a brief history of the organization and its mission, and introduce Neighborhood Makeover. FHL has been connecting volunteers and resources to meet community and neighborhood needs in the Indianapolis area since 2005.

Participants will be asked to help identify neighborhood needs and resources for addressing those needs. All interested community members, businesses and organizations are invited and encouraged to attend.

For more information about FHL, visit http://fhlinternational.org/.

Parks Board Declines Proposal From St. Francis

The Parks Board voted Monday night to decline the offer from St. Francis Hospital. Many Citizens attended to voice their comments and concerns. The Parks Board determined that the offer from St. Francis would require the loss of too much space in the Community Center and would not allow the facility to continue serving the public as intended. The Board also decided to review and acquire more information regarding the proposal from Community Health Network. Community Health Network is proposing a less intrusive Wellness Clinic in the Community Center. They also plan to acquire property on Emerson Avenue for a 24-hour Urgent Care Center to be opened in 2013. The Parks Board, Board of Works and Mayor Buckley have been reviewing these proposals for Emergency Medical Services for the City of  Beech Grove. St. Francis Hospital is planning to move from it's Beech Grove facility March 12th - March 17th.  Mayor Buckley has stated that plans for alternative Emergency Services for the Citizens of Beech Grove should have been in place a year ago.

A Letter to the Citizen's of Beech Grove Concerning the City Court,

At the council meeting on Monday February 6th  Judge Well's presented  a financial report on the City Court.
Although, it seemed contrary to everything I have looked at, I wanted to double check to be sure.I am giving a report on the City Court per numbers obtained out of the Clerk Treasurer's Office. One conflict I want to resolve right away is the City Court has it's own checking account. I, as Clerk Treasurer of Beech Grove do not write checks from that account. However, I want to note that the City Court does not pay it's own expenses. The taxpayers pay that out of the City Budget... the General Fund. The salaries of the Judge and Court Clerk along with most expenses are paid out of the General Fund. Before I took office the Court was reporting to the City once a month. Since, I have taken office, I have insisted that the City Court be in compliance with IC 33-35-3-2 (e) which states the court shall report weekly, not monthly to the Clerk Treasurer's office, and deposit with the Clerk Treasurer monies that are due each week. Last week the City Court agreed to become compliant with this. About a month ago Judge Well's brought it to my attention that the City Court had been collecting fines for Ordinance Violations. This too is in direct conflict with State Law. Those fees should have been paid to the City.The link to the left is the official numbers we have on file in our Budget System. As Clerk Treasurer I have a responsibility to report the numbers that are reported in our system. Thank you.

Dan McMillan
Clerk Treasurer
City of Beech Grove

_Community Hospital Network Presents Their Proposal.

Yesterday, Community Network  presented their proposal for the use of a portion of Hornet Park Community Center. Community Network has stated they are interested in eventually opening a 24 hour/ 7 day a week/ 365 days a year Out Patient Care Facility in a free standing building on Emerson Avenue close to Beech Grove. Mayor Buckley has been in negotiations with both Community Network and St.Francis Hospital/Franciscan Alliance  trying to maintain some kind  Emergency/Med-Check Services here in the City of Beech Grove. You can listen to both meetings by clicking on  the arrows to the left.

Medic 102 City Employees Recovering From Terrible Accident. Let's Keep them in our Prayers.

On Monday January 30th Medic 102 was returning from St. Francis South, North-bound on Arlington Ave.  A passenger vehicle traveling South suddenly crossed over two lanes of traffic and struck Medic 102 head-on with severe damage impacting the passenger side of our Ambulance.  One of our employees was transported emergent to I.U (Methodist) and the other released on-scene and sent to Methodist for evaluation.  The driver of the other vehicle stated to Police Officers on-scene that she fell asleep.  Our employee’s are sore but are doing well. We are very thankful they were able to walk away from this terrible accident without permanent injury.  Thanks for your concern and continued support to the Beech Grove Fire Department and its members.

Chief Robert Cheshire
Beech Grove Fire Department

 Mayor Buckley Delivers his First  "State of the City Address"

Tonight Mayor Buckley delivered his first  "State of the City Address". While Beech Grove has no Capital Investment's listed because no inventories have been done, Mayor Buckley gave a description on property owned by the city such as ambulances, fire apparatus, police vehicles, public works vehicles and more.  For your convenience we have provided a download of his complete address.  You don't want to miss reading it! In accordance with Mayor Buckley's commitment to Open, Honest, Transparent government we will continue to provide you with updates as we progress throughout the year.

     Memorandum of Understanding Between Indianapolis and the City of Beech Grove

“Attached is the Agreement and subsequent amendments between the City of Indianapolis and the City of Beech Grove regarding sewage transportation and treatment services. This agreement was recently amended as of August 22, 2011. “

 

             Saint Francis Hospital, Board of Works & Parks Board Meeting Today

Today St.Francis will present their proposal for the use of a portion of Hornet Park Community Center.   St. Francis Hospital has stated it will be moving their Beech Grove Campus in late March. Mayor Buckley has been in negotiations with both Community Hospitals and St. Francis Hospital trying to maintain some kind  Emergency/Med-Check Services here in the City of Beech Grove.
The meeting today is at 3:00pm in City Hall - Council Chambers. The public is welcome.

_The Beech Grove Promoters Club would like to announce the 2012 Citizen of the Year is Warren Whittaker and the Promoter of the Year is Derek Blice. Thank you both for your dedication to the city of Beech Grove! On behalf  of the City of Beech Grove we would like to congratulate both these fine men. 

                             Change is coming across the State of Indiana

Last week I attended a three day conference sponsored by IACT for newly elected Clerk Treasurer's. It was a great opportunity for me to network with Clerk Treasurers across the state. Charlie Pride from the Department of Local      Government and Finance (DLGF) reported that the conference had a ninety percent turnout of newly elected Clerk Treasurer's across the state. The hot topic criss crossing our state today with small towns and cities is the issue of Sewer Billing - Landlord vs. Tenant. With rentals on the rise this has become a nightmare for Clerk Treasurer's across the state. The tax payer dollars are increasingly being spent trying to collect on delinquent sewer bills from rentals. Many cities and towns have already adapted ordinances that specify "only the property owner" can be billed for sewer charges, many others are in the process, and many are just beginning to investigate. Clerk Treasurer's across the state are networking on this very important issue. The city of Beech Grove has passed an ordinance on "First Reading" that will dictate to the Clerk - Treasurer's office to bill the “property owner". General Ordinance No. 1, 2012. It will come before the Council for the second and third reading on February 6, 2012.  I encourage you to investigate the issue and contact your Councilor with your thoughts. You can email the entire council @ citycouncil@beechgrove.com or individually at the  addresses  listed to the left. For your convenience, I have also included a link to Beech Grove District map. It can always be located in the drop-down list under Government -Beech Grove City Council -District Map.

Respectfully Submitted,

Dan McMillan
Clerk Treasurer
City of Beech Grove

                                      State Board of Accounts Audit Request

Mayor Buckley and Clerk Treasurer Dan McMillan submitted an audit request to the State Board of accounts
on January 3, 2012. Clerk Treasurer Dan McMillan received a telephone call from the State Board of Accounts
stating that the request has been denied.
He was told questions and concerns can be brought to the attention of the auditors  when they perform their annual
audit this year. It is against state law to bring an outside agency in to perform an audit. All questions and concerns will be submitted to the State Board of Accounts upon our next audit.

 Police on the Lookout for Fake Officer in Beech Grove.

Click on the link below for additional information.
http://www.wishtv.com/dpp/news/local/marion_county/police-on-hunt-for-fake-officer

  This File is the Board of Health Report for City Hall dated 12/14/2012.

_Here is a link to:  Beech Grove City Ordinances. You can always look up ordinances by clicking on the heading "Government" on the city website. Then click on  " Beech Grove Council " and a drop down list will appear. If you click on " Ordinances " it will then link you to American Legal Publishing. They publish the ordinances for the city of Beech Grove. Click on "Frames" and begin your search. I have been told that these ordinances are up to date through April 1, 2011. I will be sending in the remainder of ordinances for 2011, and I intend to do that quarterly going forward, or monthly if needed. For the time being, I am going to create a link on the homepage. That should make it easily accessible for everyone.

I  also encourage everyone to watch the Board of Sanitation & Works Meetings from January 3, 2012. Public Works Director Brad Meriwether gave an update on  the city sewer system and trash trucks. Wessler Engineering also reported that in the past Beech Grove  performed a Sewer Preventative Maintenance Project each year. The projects included sewer linings, replacing manhole covers, and upgrading manhole covers. This stopped in the early 2000's, reported Brent from Wessler Engineering.  Wessler Engineering has been with the city for over 2 decades. Mayor Buckley stated" the past is the past". He also said we're going to work on our sewers and we're going to fix it.

_Elected Officials
Dennis Buckley.....Mayor
Dan McMillan.......Clerk-Treasurer
Andrew Wells........Judge
City Council:
At Large.................Kathy  Coates
At Large.................David Mobley
District 1...............Mary Stewart
District 2...............Ed Bell
District 5...............David Harrison

*City Council District 3 member Anthony Davidson previously took the oath of office, was unable to attend.

_Department Heads
City Attorney..........Craig Wiley
Chief of Police.....Mark Swartz
Fire Chief...............Robert Cheshire
Director of Public Works.........Brad Meriwether
Director of Parks..................Tom Hannon
Building Commissioner........Michael Fitzgerald
Director of Senior Services......Carla Marchbanks

_Boards & Commissions
Board of Works.and Safety......David Harrison
                                               .......Sandra Seward
Marion County
Alcoholic Beverage Commission......Mike Jarvis

Parks Board..............Cindy Montgomery

Redevelopment Commission...Eric Withem
                                                    ...Stephanie Hubbard

Greenscape Commission...............Jacki Brown