Quote:
Originally Posted by Al Skierkiewicz
Tristan,
On the surface it would certainly look this way. However, in the context of the surrounding area, this ordinance serves nothing but to suppress local business people. Hammond is completely surrounded by other urban areas, notably Chicago, Calumet City, Gary and Munster. So much so that it helps form a continuous urban industrial corridor bordered on Lake Michigan that extends from the Wisconsin border to the Indiana Dunes National Seashore. It has two Interstate Highway systems running through the city and it's western boundary forms the border with Illinois. This ordinance will do nothing to stop the scavengers. It will merely close down businesses, jobs and tax revenue. Certainly this is a complex issue for Hammond and other urban centers, however, shutting down recycling centers is not, in my opinion, a viable response to the problem.
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May I play devil's advocate momentarily? I certainly can't dispute your extensive knowledge of their geography, but I did want to offer the
City Council's side. For instance:
- "Gleason [Streets Department Commissioner] estimated city workers scrapping the material would generate between $50,000 to $100,000 per year for the city's general fund." Note I don't have the full story on general fund uses, but I did find an article that mentions having to potentially lay off teachers, charge insurance companies for ambulance mileage, and close redevelopment areas, all in just the past few months. I know nothing more than linked, but maybe this is the lesser of evils?
- "...It becomes a huge drain on my [speaks the Hammond Police Chief] manpower ... while taking care of those problems, we're not taking care of businesses and residences.”And "We have numerous incidents of subjects portraying to be scrappers stealing from yards and garages or casing houses for further crimes" According to NeighborhoodScout, Hammond has a significantly higher crime rate than Bloomington and Evansville (didn't check others). Again, if you're one of these more likely victims of violent crime in Hammond (whose violent crime rate is 1 in 121; Indiana is 1 in 318), maybe you consider it worth the tradeoff?
I'm not saying they've handled it in the best way possible. (
Actually, I really don't think they did.) Just that there's always more to the story.
As far the 71 itself, not to mention the well-respected Beatty International, I hope they can put this all in context (whatever the correct context is) and pull through. We'll definitely miss this should-be HOF if they can't make it, but something tells me they will!