Do Our County Politicians Have Our Best Interest In Mind

Once again, the contentious subject of Shelly Ditch is about to flood our community’s print and social media networks. It was built in 1911 to drain farming grounds on the east side of Crawfordsville. What once was 95 percent farming and 5 percent residential. Today’s numbers are reversed. In the last 60 years, the east side of town is now residential and business related. 

Our community has spent over $100,000 funding studies and engineering plans for the past 20-plus years.  We are not counting the monies paid by Raybestos to clean up the contamination of PCB levels found along Shelly Ditch. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management found the highest concentration near Raybestos, particularly in the Pleasant Meadows subdivision. 

After years of passing the buck from one group of elected officials to another, Montgomery County Commissioners, city officials and the Montgomery County Drainage Board are attempting to find a solution by seeking monies from any resource.

The Shelly Ditch Watershed covers more than 750 acres. It is divided into 976 parcels of land. Montgomery County Surveyor Tom Cummins wants to pass the total bill of $2,876,341.27, not including land acquisition and engineering costs, onto the taxpayers inside the Shelly Ditch Watershed area. That means an estimated $3 million will be assessed to those living inside the city limits along the William Shelly Ditch 706#.

The Montgomery County Drainage Board is Montgomery County’s Elected Official Surveyor Tom Cummins, Chairman David Rhoads, Vice Chairman John Frey, Secretary Matt Mitchell and members Lance Sennett and Doug Mills. All board members live outside the city limits and will “NOT” be assessed for the Shelly Ditch projects.

Cummins wants to begin reconstruction in August without further research to seek options for other grants or state / federal funding and place the total amount of reconstruction squarely on the taxpayer.

Montgomery County Commissioners will meet at the Government Center on Monday at 8 a.m. The amount of monies to set aside for Shelly Ditch is on the agenda.

The Montgomery County Drainage Board will meet at the Government center on Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. The primary item on the agenda will be the William Shelly Ditch 706#

Members of the First Baptist Church have expressed concerns and have sought information regarding the Shelly Ditch project. In addition, many have expressed concern about the upcoming assessment.

I, too, have heard rumors about who will pay the bill for such an extensive reconstruction project. The numbers quoted in the board minutes were $2.4 million, plus unforeseen land acquisition and engineering expenditures. However, after meeting with County Administrator Klein, the price went from $2.4 million to $2.8 million overnight.

My first inquiry was to obtain the minutes and review them. I wanted to give my church members as much information as possible to put their minds at ease. The minutes for the last three months, January, February and March, were shared upon request. Believing the remainder would be posted on the county’s website. Nothing has been published since March 2022. Not one printed word about the workings of the Montgomery County Drainage Board. Nor was there a listing of its board members, nor any contact information or phone or email address. Absent as well were any meetings listed on the Montgomery County government calendar. Transparency promotes accountability and provides information for the citizens.

Was this an oversight or a purposeful intention to hide the workings from the public of a continuous subject? Having questions seeking answers, an appointment was set to meet with Vice Chairman John Frey. He agreed to meet but failed to keep the meeting.

The community is well aware of the need to replace this drainage ditch. On Traction Road, residents have fought for 40 years to get the county to fix the flooding issues. So this inquiry is reasonable; who and how will we pay for such a project?

As a resident, I have become an unofficial advocate for those who feel uncomfortable asking tough questions or knowing who will give straight and honest answers in city government.

Delaying this project another six to eight months will not affect the 20-plus years we have waited. Reviewing the project and seeking additional options to acquire funding is in the best interest of local taxpayers. Question; do our county politicians have our best interest in mind when managing our tax dollars?

The community has kicked this can around the drain for the past 20-plus years. Grant monies, nor the state government’s 80 / 20 applications, will be accepted after work has begun. Despite what others may say — doesn’t it make sense to delay the project by six to eight months and exhaust every possibility of finding grants to offset the tax assessment? Is the question, do our elected officials have the people’s best interests in mind?

Having spent 30-plus years working with the Materials & Test Division with INDOT, my neighbors know I understand the planning, construction and execution of such projects. I’m sure some will view my inquiries as insignificant, but neither my neighbors nor my husband and I can afford such expenses. The absence of the board’s minutes for the past 13 months is a fundamental question of the transparency of the Montgomery County Drainage Board.

-DeAntha Wright-Thornburg worked for the Indiana Department of Transportation for more than 30 years and is also a freelance journalist.