Latest news with #PorterCountyCouncil
Chicago Tribune
24-07-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Lakes of the Four Seasons fire department calls for aid for financial situation
The Lakes of the Four Seasons Volunteer Fire Force answered nearly 1,500 calls for help in 2024. Now it's issuing one of its own. With this year's Senate Enrolled Act 1 promising to choke revenue to the West Porter Township Fire Protection District, combined with a decline in volunteerism, fire protection and EMS service straddling the Lake and Porter County line is facing financial peril. The fire department and fire protection district jointly approached the Porter County Council on Tuesday to make its case for assistance. The cuts don't begin until 2027, but the time to cry out is when the knife first appears, not when the slashing begins. Last year, the district began offering EMS service. Fire department attorney Nathan Vis said the department's response time for EMS calls is four to five minutes, which is faster than average. With a third-party provider, it would be seven to 15 minutes, he guessed. 'We're requesting this evening as much support as you can give us,' he told the council. The department has three ambulances, two of which are staffed by full-time employees. 'We need to hire more persons to assure we have a higher response time,' he said. Providing EMS service costs about $240,000 a year, Vis said. 'We've maxed out the revenue opportunities' the department has, he said. Winfield rents space to the department for $1 a year, about a $10,000 value, he said. Until last fall, the department hadn't had a formal contract nor any government dollars from a Porter County agency, he said. The fire protection district is looking at becoming a fire protection territory, something Porter County Council members have discussed as an option for funding EMS service and fire protection throughout the county's unincorporated areas. 'Unfortunately, it's going to have to come from the (township) trustees. It's going to have to be the townships coming together,' said Council Vice President Ronald 'Red' Stone, R-1st. West Porter Township Fire Protection District Chairman Craig Klauer said aging infrastructure, increasing call volume and equipment costs are taking a toll. For now, however, capital expenditures have been put on hold to focus on providing EMS service. Porter County officials are working on providing ambulance service throughout the county. That includes determining how many ambulances might be needed to serve areas not covered by fire departments that currently provide EMS service. One option might be to add an ambulance in the Boone Grove area, Stone said. For Lakes of the Four Seasons, the closest ambulance would be from either Hebron or Wheeler if not for the fire department. 'When you're thumping on someone's chest for three to five minutes, you're saying where the hell is that ambulance. When are they going to be here,' Klauer said. The county currently contracts with Northwest Health to provide EMS service. 'I will never disrespect NW Health ambulance technicians vs. a regular fire department,' Stone said. 'They're great, but they're spread so thin. They're covering mostly northern' Porter County, Klauer said. And while Northwest Health ambulances traditionally transport patients to the hospital at U.S. 6 and Ind. 49, the nearest hospitals for Lakes of the Four Seasons are in Crown Point and Hobart. 'We've got to sit down and go over all this,' said Councilman Greg Simms, D-3rd, who serves on the EMS committee. 'Right now, we're thinking five ambulances throughout the county, but now I'm thinking maybe six.' Complicating the issue is that Lakes of the Four Seasons, which the fire department serves, straddles the county line. The department also serves the town of Winfield and unincorporated Winfield Township, as well as west Porter Township. The department and fire protection district have a spreadsheet that separates the call volume by geography to help guide financial decisions by local government entities that could help support fire protection and EMS service.
Chicago Tribune
25-06-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Wheel tax, income tax boost likely for Porter County as burden of government support shifts
Discussion of the impact of property tax reforms passed by the Indiana General Assembly taxed Porter County Council members' brains Tuesday. 'Understand that nobody up here wants to pass an increase in taxes,' Council President Andy Vasquez, R-4th, said. 'We're stuck between a rock and a hard place.' Putting local government on a property tax diet, something Gov. Mike Braun strongly urged the Legislature to do, leaves two choices: Reduce services or raise income taxes and other taxes to make up the difference. 'We're getting pushed from property taxes to local income taxes,' said consultant Jason Semler, a principal for Baker Tilly Municipal Advisors, as he walked the council through the long, complicated math of the new state law. The result ends up shifting more of the burden of financing local government from businesses to individuals, Semler said. A wheel tax for Porter County is virtually a certainty as a way to get the full amount available in the state's Community Crossings matching grant program. Technically, the wheel tax remains optional, but the new law requires it for the county to receive the full amount of matching grant money. And although the county's income tax rate is the lowest in the state, at 0.5%, that's likely to increase as the property tax revenue shrinks. 'If you have to raise the income tax, this is a good time to do it,' Semler said. 'They're kind of forcing us to increase LIT (local income tax) anyway,' so consider gradual increases to cushion the blow, he suggested. 'We know we're going to need it down the road.' Under the new law, cities and towns with more than 3,500 residents could adopt their own income tax in the future, up to 1.2%. Based on current population statistics, that would include Portage, Valparaiso, Chesterton, Hebron and Porter. If those municipalities enact their own income tax, their residents would be taxed twice – by the county and by the municipality, Councilman Andy Bozak, R-At-large, said. That would be the case for the wheel tax, too. Councilman Jeremy Rivas, D-2nd, speculated that Porter County might eventually see people moving into unincorporated areas from cities and towns to avoid this double taxation. 'Everybody's looking to escape the tax,' Vasquez said. One option might be for the county to work with the municipalities to give them a share of the county's income tax in exchange for not enacting their own tax, Semler said. For Porter County, $3.5 million a year in dues for the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority has to come from income tax revenue, so that needs to be factored in. After that, the county can figure out where the income tax revenue should be divvied up. The county has been pondering some important needs for information technology, road repairs and EMS service. Councilman Red Stone, R-1st, said on his way from Portage to Valparaiso, driving on county roads for Tuesday's meeting, his vehicle was bouncing up and down because of the poor road conditions. Porter County's roads are in worse shape than the state average. Among the drawbacks of shifting to more reliance on income tax revenue is that it's less stable. 'If there's a downturn in the economy, we're going to feel it much more than with property taxes,' Semler said. The county shouldn't hoard money, but healthy fund balances are important when revenues plunge but needs increase. Rivas and others blasted state legislators for setting themselves up as heroes for lowering property taxes even as they knew local officials would look like bad guys for raising income taxes to make up for the lost revenue. 'The legislators, this was a disingenuous action they took,' he said. The council has until Oct. 31 to decide what direction to take. 'I think that's why some counties are looking at increasing their income taxes. They know they're going to have to do it eventually,' so they're acting this year so it goes into effect next year, Semler said. Stone said in his meetings with department heads, he's looking for ways to reduce spending. 'I would strongly urge the council to put the work in,' he said. Some funds and areas can't be touched, under state law, but he wants to dig deep to see what can be cut. 'I think this would be a good exercise for the public. If there's places to cut, let us find them,' he said. Bozak disagreed with Stone's approach. 'We don't want to get too much into the weeds,' he said. A better way would be to tell department heads to decide where to make 3% cuts, hopefully not in salaries. That might be the result of cleaning less often or other ideas, Bozak said. 'Let's get in the weeds. Let's look at take-home cars,' Stone said. If there are people taking cars home who don't need to take them home, stop that. 'As far as who's taking cars home and all that, that's the commissioners,' Bozak said. Rivas said the council has been cautious for years, which is why cash balances are high and tax rates are low. 'The reason we are the lowest-tax county is because of the work we put in,' he said. 'I think the rubber's going to meet the road,' Stone said. 'If someone can come up with an extra $7 million for paving the roads, I'm all ears.' 'We are going to have to be very creative and work together the best we can and come up with some solutions,' Vasquez said. Councilwoman Michelle Harris, R-At-large, has high hopes for department heads. 'I think they're going to come up with ways to be so efficient, I think they're going to just wow us,' she said. Vasquez said he would be open to a data center being located in an area already zoned for light industrial, bringing a big boost to the county's tax coffers. 'Like all things, time will tell, and I pray God we will hold the line the best we can,' he said. Semler walked the council through the implications of Senate Enrolled Act 1 to see how Porter County will be affected as the property tax reforms are phased in. 'A lot of these are going to be phased-in impacts, and a lot of the significant impacts are going to hit us two, three years down the road,' he said. The math is long and complicated, but the upshot is that the property tax base will shrink, and as tax rates increase, more and more properties will qualify for the circuit breaker that caps the property's total tax bill. For a single-family, owner-occupied home, that's 1% of the home's value. Rental properties, utilities, assisted living homes and some other types of property have bills capped at 2% of the property's value. 'You can see how those tax bases are going to be greatly reduced' in downtowns and other areas where these properties are concentrated, Semler said. County government loses $1.8 million a year to circuit breaker relief for property owners, Semler said, but that will increase in the future. 'You lose about 3.5% of your revenue because of the circuit breaker cap,' he said. For business personal property, the tax currently begins after the first $80,000 in value. But that's changing, too, with only the value above $2 million being taxed. It's a boon to corporations but not to local government and citizens who will pay more in taxes to make up the difference. Stemler said he expects this new law to result in some discussion about consolidation. 'I can see some small cities and towns throughout the state have some difficulty surviving,' he said. Schools don't get any income taxes under this new scenario, so they'll face difficulties, too. The massive, sweeping changes resulting from the new law have increased demand for advisors like Baker Tilly. 'We don't need a marketing department. We've got legislators,' Stemler said. 'This is not what we prefer to be doing, but we're happy to help out.'
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Community news: Jazz enzemble, native plant sale, kindergarten roundup, health fair
Chesterton High School will host its 52nd Annual All That Jazz, an annual jazz festival at 7 p.m. Saturday in the CHS Auditorium, 2125 S. 11th Street in Chesterton. Enjoy an evening of music performed by Chesterton High School's Jazz Ensemble, with special guests Bonzo Squad. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at The Friends of Indiana Dunes 29th Annual Native Plant Sale takes place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at the Friends' office, at 1000 West Oak Hill Road in Porter. The sale is just north of Indiana Dunes National Park's Chellberg Farm. There is ample parking in the adjacent lot or immediately to the north at Indiana Dunes National Park's headquarters complex. Admission is free, and more than 80 native plant species will be for sale. The Porter County Council is seeking citizen applicants for position(s) on the Library Board of Trustees, a four-year appointment. Individuals interested in being considered can obtain an application at the Porter County Council office, 155 Indiana Ave., Suite 207, Valparaiso, or online at under the Citizen Board Appointments tab. Depending on the vacancy, certain requirements, such as residency, and/or certain political party affiliation, must be met to qualify for a particular appointment. Applications must be received via post, email at council@ or in person no later than 4:30 p.m. June 16. The Council will make the appointments at the June 24 Council meeting at 5:30 p.m. The city of Valparaiso has proclaimed the first full week of May as International Compost Awareness Week. Valpo Parks has partnered with Porter County Recycling & Waste Reduction for a pilot program to promote composting. Through the program, residents may bring their compostable food and garden waste to the Farmers Market (beginning June 3 for the 2025 season) at Central Park Plaza, 63 Lafayette St. on Tuesdays and Saturdays from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. The materials are collected and composted at a Valpo Parks site. Last year the program collected more than 8,000 pounds of organic waste, diverting it from the landfill. Several branches of the Lake County Public Library need teen Summer Reading volunteers to help throughout the programs. Teens will earn volunteer hours toward their silver card. Those interested will need their parents' permission and must attend an orientation session to participate. Register for the Dyer-Schererville orientation on May 14 at or on May 17 at The following branches will host one-on-one orientations. Call or visit your branch to register: Griffith-Calumet Twp., 219-838-2825; Hobart, 219-942-2243; Lake Station-New Chicago, 219-962-2409; or Merrillville, 219-769-3541. Register for the Munster orientation on May 13 at on May 21 at or May 29 at Register for the St. John orientation on May 19 at or on May 28 at Cedar Lake and Highland branches will not need teen volunteers this year; teens from those branches are welcome to sign up at other branches. Ivy Tech Community College's Lake County campus will celebrate Commencement ceremonies at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday at the Dean and Barbara White Community Center, 6600 Broadway, Merrillville. Ivy Tech Lake County's Class of 2025 includes approximately 1,200 graduates earning more than 1,600 degrees and certificates during the 2024-2025 academic year. The event will be live-streamed on the campus Facebook page, which can be accessed at or @IvyTechLakeCounty. Gary Community School Corporation will host their Annual Kindergarten Round-Up from 1 to 3 p.m. May 14 at the Bethune Early Childhood Development Center, 2367 E. 21st Ave., Gary. Registration for kindergarten is now open to all children who will turn 5 years old on or before Aug. 1, 2025. In addition, those who will be age 3 or 4 will have the opportunity to register for Bethune Early Childhood Development for the 2025-2026 school year. Highlights will include: meeting principals, teachers and staff from elementary schools across the city; information sessions about programs and resources; on-site registration for kindergarten; and family-friendly activities and refreshments. The F.A.C.E. (Family and Community Engagement) team will be onsite to help with registration for all grades Pre-K through 12th for the 2025-2026 school year as well. Be sure to bring the following documents: parent/guardian ID; birth certificate; proof of residency (Gary residency not required); and updated immunization record. For more information about the Kindergarten round-up, contact the Bethune Early Childhood Development Center at 219-886-6542. To enroll your child in any of the Gary Schools, visit Gary Mizpah Health Ministries will host a health fair from noon to 4 p.m. May 18 at the Hudson and Campbell Sports and Fitness Center, 455 Massachusetts, Gary. The event will include free blood pressure checks, home health information, blood sugar checks and refreshments. Be sure to bring your insurance information for on-site diagnostic testing, interpretation and free faxing. For more information, call 219-301-9722. In recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, New Beginnings Clubhouse will host 'Stomp Out the Stigma,' a 5K Color Run Fundraiser, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on May 24 at the Lake County Fairgrounds, Shelter No. 4 Pavilion East, 889 S. Court St., Crown Point. The 5K is open to all ages. Register at Proceeds from the event will benefit New Beginnings Clubhouse in Merrillville. New Beginnings offers people living with mental illness opportunities for community, employment, housing, education and access to medical psychiatric services. More information can be found at or call 219-794-1004.
Chicago Tribune
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Community news: Jazz enzemble, native plant sale, kindergarten roundup, health fair
Chesterton High School hosts All That Jazz Chesterton High School will host its 52nd Annual All That Jazz, an annual jazz festival at 7 p.m. Saturday in the CHS Auditorium, 2125 S. 11th Street in Chesterton. Enjoy an evening of music performed by Chesterton High School's Jazz Ensemble, with special guests Bonzo Squad. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at Friends of Indiana Dunes Native Plant Sale is Saturday The Friends of Indiana Dunes 29th Annual Native Plant Sale takes place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at the Friends' office, at 1000 West Oak Hill Road in Porter. The sale is just north of Indiana Dunes National Park's Chellberg Farm. There is ample parking in the adjacent lot or immediately to the north at Indiana Dunes National Park's headquarters complex. Admission is free, and more than 80 native plant species will be for sale. Porter County seeks applicants for library board The Porter County Council is seeking citizen applicants for position(s) on the Library Board of Trustees, a four-year appointment. Individuals interested in being considered can obtain an application at the Porter County Council office, 155 Indiana Ave., Suite 207, Valparaiso, or online at under the Citizen Board Appointments tab. Depending on the vacancy, certain requirements, such as residency, and/or certain political party affiliation, must be met to qualify for a particular appointment. Applications must be received via post, email at council@ or in person no later than 4:30 p.m. June 16. The Council will make the appointments at the June 24 Council meeting at 5:30 p.m. Valparaiso announces Compost Awareness Week The city of Valparaiso has proclaimed the first full week of May as International Compost Awareness Week. Valpo Parks has partnered with Porter County Recycling & Waste Reduction for a pilot program to promote composting. Through the program, residents may bring their compostable food and garden waste to the Farmers Market (beginning June 3 for the 2025 season) at Central Park Plaza, 63 Lafayette St. on Tuesdays and Saturdays from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. The materials are collected and composted at a Valpo Parks site. Last year the program collected more than 8,000 pounds of organic waste, diverting it from the landfill. Call for teen summer reading volunteers Several branches of the Lake County Public Library need teen Summer Reading volunteers to help throughout the programs. Teens will earn volunteer hours toward their silver card. Those interested will need their parents' permission and must attend an orientation session to participate. Register for the Dyer-Schererville orientation on May 14 at or on May 17 at The following branches will host one-on-one orientations. Call or visit your branch to register: Griffith-Calumet Twp., 219-838-2825; Hobart, 219-942-2243; Lake Station-New Chicago, 219-962-2409; or Merrillville, 219-769-3541. Register for the Munster orientation on May 13 at on May 21 at or May 29 at Register for the St. John orientation on May 19 at or on May 28 at Cedar Lake and Highland branches will not need teen volunteers this year; teens from those branches are welcome to sign up at other branches. Ivy Tech Lake County to celebrate graduation Ivy Tech Community College's Lake County campus will celebrate Commencement ceremonies at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday at the Dean and Barbara White Community Center, 6600 Broadway, Merrillville. Ivy Tech Lake County's Class of 2025 includes approximately 1,200 graduates earning more than 1,600 degrees and certificates during the 2024-2025 academic year. The event will be live-streamed on the campus Facebook page, which can be accessed at or @IvyTechLakeCounty. Gary Community School Corporation to host Kindergarten Round-Up Gary Community School Corporation will host their Annual Kindergarten Round-Up from 1 to 3 p.m. May 14 at the Bethune Early Childhood Development Center, 2367 E. 21st Ave., Gary. Registration for kindergarten is now open to all children who will turn 5 years old on or before Aug. 1, 2025. In addition, those who will be age 3 or 4 will have the opportunity to register for Bethune Early Childhood Development for the 2025-2026 school year. Highlights will include: meeting principals, teachers and staff from elementary schools across the city; information sessions about programs and resources; on-site registration for kindergarten; and family-friendly activities and refreshments. The F.A.C.E. (Family and Community Engagement) team will be onsite to help with registration for all grades Pre-K through 12th for the 2025-2026 school year as well. Be sure to bring the following documents: parent/guardian ID; birth certificate; proof of residency (Gary residency not required); and updated immunization record. For more information about the Kindergarten round-up, contact the Bethune Early Childhood Development Center at 219-886-6542. To enroll your child in any of the Gary Schools, visit Gary Mizpah Health Ministries to host health fair Gary Mizpah Health Ministries will host a health fair from noon to 4 p.m. May 18 at the Hudson and Campbell Sports and Fitness Center, 455 Massachusetts, Gary. The event will include free blood pressure checks, home health information, blood sugar checks and refreshments. Be sure to bring your insurance information for on-site diagnostic testing, interpretation and free faxing. For more information, call 219-301-9722. New Beginnings Clubhouse hosts 5K Color Run fundraiser In recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, New Beginnings Clubhouse will host 'Stomp Out the Stigma,' a 5K Color Run Fundraiser, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on May 24 at the Lake County Fairgrounds, Shelter No. 4 Pavilion East, 889 S. Court St., Crown Point. The 5K is open to all ages. Register at Proceeds from the event will benefit New Beginnings Clubhouse in Merrillville. New Beginnings offers people living with mental illness opportunities for community, employment, housing, education and access to medical psychiatric services. More information can be found at or call 219-794-1004.
Chicago Tribune
19-04-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
State of Porter County tourism: Indiana Dunes Tourism generates $25.6 million in state and local taxes
A commitment by Indiana Dunes Tourism to work with its regional tourism counterparts and local communities is going well as reported in Thursday evening's State of the Indiana Dunes 2025 presentation. Christine Livingston, CEO of Indiana Dunes Tourism, shared the stage with leadership from both Indiana Dunes State Park and Indiana Dunes National Park. She said one recent highlight of the effort was Indiana Dunes National Park Superintendent Jason Taylor inviting all the counties and affected organizations together for a brainstorming session. 'It was just a really refreshing change in our process,' Livingston said. She and the park directors addressed a full crowd at the Indiana Dunes Visitors Center in Porter. Local officials in attendance included Porter County Commissioner Barb Regnitz, R-Center, Porter County Council President Andy Vasquez, R-4th, and County Councilman Greg Simms, D-3rd. Funded by the Accommodation Tax, Indiana Dunes Tourism spearheads branding. 'This is a powerful economic engine,' Livingston said, mentioning products ranging from special sand-colored chocolate bars to Sand + Steel themed mugs. 'A lot of businesses are starting to realize when you brand something with Indiana Dunes it sells.' Businesses are not the only shareholders top of mind. Livingston said work is constantly underway to figure ways to keep the local communities happy with the impact of four million visitors a year, 'which, frankly, I don't think, historically, tourism has done,' she said. Indiana Dunes Tourism generates $25.6 million in state and local taxes. The Visitors Center alone sees 230,000 visitors per year. 'People can't really visualize 6,000 people in one weekend,' Livingston said. 'We have lines out the door.' It's a symbiotic relationship with the state and local parks, where all those folks are eventually headed. 'These people have been in a pressure cooker trying to deal with all the recent changes and they are killing it,' Livingston said before turning the mic over to Doug Lang, park manager for Indiana Dunes State Park. He lead with an announcement that the park was honored with the 2024 Property Achievement Award that only goes to one of the state's 36 state parks each year. 'That goes out to our great staff, our volunteers, residents, visitors,' Lang said. The park is celebrating 100 years in 2025. A birthday celebration is planned for the summer. Lead Naturalist Becky Hughes has created a 100-year Challenge. 'You're going to visit a lot of historical sites in the park in order to do it,' Lang said. The Nature Center, which sees about 115,000 visitors per year, will get a full scale gift shop in three weeks. 'One of the goals this year is to educate the public,' Lang said of efforts to impact responsible park use, such as asking people to carry out what they bring in. Lang also spoke of collaboration, giving credit to the national park and the town of Porter for assisting with a water main break at the state park last week. Various entities are also joining forces for prescribed burns. State park staff helped national park staff with a burn and Shirley Heinze Land Trust assisted the state park with one. Jason Taylor, superintendent of Indiana Dunes National Park, gave a wide overview of the park, including new attendance trends. 'Visitation is increasing in the summer months and also in the shoulder months, so our visitation season is increasing,' he said. That led to $140 million in direct local spending in 2023 with $206 million in economic output in the gateway communities generated annually. These figures come in the wake of $15 million in annual operating expenses. Taylor gave a shout out to Friends of the Indiana Dunes and Save the Dunes, two non-profits that he said 'are hugely important to things that we do at the national park and the state park.' He reported national approval to move forward with Phases 2 and 3 of the Marquette Greenway Trail. 'This is really a partnership of activity,' Lang said. 'It's one big, happy family trying to build this trail.' Structure preservation is also in full swing with a complete renovation of the Goodfellow Lodge underway as well as exterior preservation to Bailly Homestead. Cypress House is now available for rental a week at a time and 'there's some hope that House of Tomorrow and some other structures can fit that bill and people can have more access in future,' Lang said. He added that since becoming a national park in 2019 the staff has been doing a lot to try to 'live into the name.' Right now that encompasses everything from providing more in-park housing for staff to focusing on the Back to Beach Strategy with such additions as roving interpreters right on the beach.
