New Chauncey Politics 2020

Having been sworn in to the West Lafayette City Council for my fourth term, and then elected President of the council once again, it seems about time for me to take a guess as to what our political life will be like in 2020.

First, we should probably all take a nap.

We’ve been busy over the last several years. The State Street Project. A start on Downtown/Riverfront redevelopment. Scooters. A new city code. An reinvigorated city court. Saab.The Kalberer Wellness Center. Morton/Margerum City Hall. Bicycle rules and snow routes. City Hall moves and moves again. A rental housing inspection save. Climate change. Provenance. Aspire. Rise. Hub. 300 W. State. The comings and goings of Chauncey Hill Mall. Redistricting. Annexation. Redistricting. Historic Preservation. A New Chauncey Land Use Plan.

Wow.

The 2019 election cycle looked like a snooze in January of 2019, but a quixotic mayoral race and a series of curious decisions by the Republican establishment made it livelier. The result was Democratic victories in 8 of 9 council districts. Now the council looks more like the city.

This year?

Riverfront Redevelopment
Hopefully Downtown/Riverfront Redevelopment will make its way from the APC to the West Lafayette City Council in March. This is the city’s “next big thing”.
Take a look.
https://www.tippecanoe.in.gov/DocumentCenter/View/24349/West-Lafayette-Downtown-Plan-12-2019-FINAL

An Urban Density Review
Have the new high rises changed occupancy rates or rents? This winter’s data
didn’t provide the answers we had hoped for. We will look at it again.
https://www.tippecanoe.in.gov/DocumentCenter/View/24159/2019-Tippecanoe-County-Student-Rental-Report-
https://www.tippecanoe.in.gov/DocumentCenter/View/24336/2019-Tippecanoe-County-Student-Rental-Report-ADDENDUM

Council Housekeeping
With so many new members it is time to look at council member responsibilites, the structure of city committees, and council compensation. Everybody else in  similar positions makes much more than we do in West Lafayette ($6276). Lafayette is at $14,846. Bloomington pays $15,811 (2019). Tippecanoe County offers council $13,988 (2019). This is not a hobby.

Wellness Center and Margerum City Hall
These will open in 2020. It should be fun.

2020 Census Data
This was my sleeper during the election campaign. We will redistrict - again - in 2022.
Will we keep districts where under 100 or 200 people vote? Will revenues collected per capita go up substantially?

The census will pose particular challenges for our New Chauncey neighborhood, which will likely lose the natural advantage it long enjoyed by being compact and densely populated. There will no longer be a “New Chauncey” district. It barely survived the last redistricting.

New Chauncey will need to reorganize. Its structures will need to be transparent, accessible to the public, open to citizen input, and accountable.

These include but are not limited to some or all of the following:
New Chauncey Leadership Team Meetings
New Chauncey Neighborhood Annual Meetings
New Chauncey Housing Inc.
New Chauncey Rebound/Housing Redevelopment Entity
New Chauncey Foundation
An Historic Preservation Foundation ?
CHAUNC-PAC (Community Homeowners and University Neighbors Committee for Political Action)
 
I would like these to work. The dayliles are dead. The neighborhood, in the years ahead, cannot depend on the protection offered by a dedicated council seat.

Here we go.