Kokomo has been faces setbacks in rolling out its curbside recycling program, is continuing efforts to mitigate flood-prone areas even in the midst of record flooding this summer, and is working to diversify its economy to avoid falling victims to perpetual ups and downs in the economy.
On this week's installment of Ask The Mayor, Mayor Greg Goodnight addresses these issues and more. Listen to the full conversation with host Gretchen Frazee by clicking on the play button above, or read some of the questions and answers below.
This conversation has been edited for clarity and conciseness.
Q: The Howard County Recycling District recently voted to remove nine of the 13 recycling bins (leaving only one in Kokomo city limits but saving $360,000). How does that affect Kokomo as its trying to get a curbside recycling program off the ground?
A: I think this will hurt the whole recycling process in Howard County. It's cheaper to recycle and have drop-off bins in the city rather than in the county, so I don't think they're making a good financial decision.
Q: The Howard County Recycling District has said if Kokomo does not implement the curbside recycling program by Aug. 1, it will take back the $200,000 it has promised toward that program. Does that put any added pressure on the city to get the program up and running?
A: It has no bearing whatsoever. We can physically pick up the recycling. We have the totes, the equipment and personnel. Picking up the recycling is the easy part. Making sure we have a viable place to take it is the concern, and those concerns are being raised by those exact members of the recycling board. They don't think the private company they contract now will be able to keep doing what they're doing and be able to process even a larger volume if we go to curbside.
Q: Gov. Pence is allowing the National Guard to carry firearms at recruiting facilities and armories, including one in Kokomo. What do you think about Pence's decision?
A: It doesn't bother me in any way that army personnel are able to carry firearms.
Q: Duke Energy and Inovateus Solar plan to put in 21,000 solar panels at the old Continental Steel site, which the city recently purchased. Do you think this is a good use of the land?
A: Yes. There are limited uses for this side of property. We think this is probably the best use for that. WE have a plan together. We have sent a plan to IDEM and are waiting for their stamp of approval. It's no cost to city taxpayers. We're working out an agreement that will actually get some money to the city of Kokomo. It won't be a huge amount, but we're taking tens of thousand dollars of year.
Q: Kokomo has been working to mitigate flooding over the past several years, with the recent rains, has everything been holding up?
A: It's done better than it has in the past. We have had to go into a couple of parks, but we haven't had the same bridge or road closures we've had in the past. It will hopefully be fixed in the next five to ten years.
Q: Taste of Kokomo is being held Aug. 15. Has the restaurant industry been growing?
A: We've seen an uptick in local restaurants int he last five years. Part of it is the Riverfront district we've put into our downtown, which gives discounted liquor licenses. [Taste of Kokomo] is a great community event, and I would we're on par with any city our size with the amount of items that would be available.
