Kokomo Mayor Greg Goodnight (Joe Hren, WFIU/WTIU News)
Are other cities thinking about the new scooter service popping up across the country? We hear more about the recently passed city budget and emphasis on parks funding. And a quick update on the relocation of a new downtown bus terminal.
On this week’s installment ofAsk The Mayor, Kokomo Mayor Greg Goodnight addresses these issues and more. Listen to the full conversation withIndiana Newsdeskanchor Joe Hren by clicking on the play button above, or read some of the questions and answers below. A portion of this segment airs 6:45 and 8:45 a.m. Wednesday on WFIU.
This conversation has been edited for clarity and conciseness.
Hren: We've been reporting on the new scooter service called Bird. I can't help but think Kokomo might be the next city the scooters are dropped off. Have you thought about this and the impact is has on long-term transportation planning?
Goodnight: We don't have many guidelines other than motorized vehicles are not allowed on our trails system which my limited knowledge of this subject, I think there's a place for them. They seem to be recreation rides and not a transportation mode. But I think it could happen. I think they should be on the road, not on sidewalks.
Most cities are playing catch-up to this. We're not quite ready for this. It's happening quickly, we're going to have to adapt quickly, and some of the decisions city's make will have to be tweaked. But it's going to be fun to watch.
The scooters are not permitted on Bloomington sidewalks, but may be docked on bike racks. (Tyler Lake, WTIU/WFIU News)
Joe: This is the time of year we talk city budgets. Kokomo passed next year's budget recently, what’s new?
Goodnight: The biggest increase we had was in the parks department. We're looking at adding an ammentiy or two to Kokomo Beach, our city's water park and we're looking to upgrade that. We think we should make some large investments every four to five years and that's what we're focusing on.
Joe: The majority of a city budget is made up of employee salaries. Do you keep salaries in check with other cities, or is the pay structure here more in line with others locally?
Goodnight: We try to look at other cities. When we do this, we look at the entire package. The entire benefits package. So going into 2019, this is two years in a row, we haven't had to make any increases to the city employee contribution to the healthcare plan. The majority of employees are represented by different unions so those are negotiated.
The new transit center is located next to City Hall. (Joe Hren, WFIU/WTIU News)
Joe: How about a conference center update? There are still some preliminary construction projects that need to happen, correct?
Goodnight: Right next to City Hall was our traffic building. We had to move it out to the street department. That has taken place. Now we're revamping the old traffic building and we're getting ready to move the bus station over here in the next few weeks. Then the identified parcel for the hotel and conference center - all tennants will be out of that, and we'll have to demo that before winter hits, prepare the site and break ground in the spring.
This is the shortest distance to move it we had to. The city already owned this property. This was a good fit. We may have to do minimal tweaking with the bus routes.
Rendering of a new Kokomo City Line transit center near City Hall.
