Unknown Speaker
Hello and welcome to ask the mayor on WFIU. I'm Joe Hren today we're back in Nashville, Indiana, with town council President Nancy Crocker. Hello. Welcome back to the show. It's good to have you. Yeah,
Unknown Speaker
we've been gone for a couple months. Yeah, I've
Unknown Speaker
been busy. It's been a busy summer and I but it's been really busy for you. It has, we'll get to a lot of that stuff in just a bit. But I want to let everyone know that we're outside again today and picked out another great spot and you tell us where we're at, especially for the radio people who can't see right now.
Unknown Speaker
Right we are right outside salt Creek Winery, where I just told one of the visitors here that this is where I buy the sweet wine for when I take a bath. I have their wine when I'm taking a bath there. So we're outside the salt Creek Winery in the background behind me is our brand new mural that was funded through the Indiana tourism division. And we have the artists that is working on it right now. And it's just such a great pop of color. I love it. We also have I'm looking at the coffin poor house, which just reopened and Big Woods pizza is also in my vision. So we're we're kind of in an alley, but our alleys or walkways to different stores and things like that. So lots lots going on around us. You might see motorcycles, there's my friend Tanner, you might see Motorcycles go by or hear them. So if they do you know that's just Nashville?
Unknown Speaker
Yeah, we're outside. So we're taking it all in. We talked about how busy it's been. Right now, what's kind of top of your list priority wise as president of town council right
Unknown Speaker
now. Right now we're kind of look into the future and seeing, you know, what, what do what we're listening to the people, we've started that but when I was elected, we're still doing a lot of that figuring things out looking at, you know, things like pedestrian walkways and safety and things like that for our pedestrians and, and we've got a pretty big bicycle community happening now. So we're going to have to take that into consideration too. So right now we're kind of looking toward the future. We're working on utilities. And again, we're always talking about utilities and infrastructure. I'm excited because our utility workers, we've gotten some new people, they're great, they're working very hard. They're finding leaks in our water system and repairing them. And so every time they find a leak, it saves us money, and makes our water system better. We're still waiting on our grant to come in to upgrade the sanitary sewer. But the utilities are really on track. And we've got, again, a great utility board and they're really doing a lot for this. For the utilities, they just increased prices or in not prices, increased the wages. So our utility workers are making a little bit more money. And that's always a good thing to
Unknown Speaker
have our funding mechanisms coming through on all this. We're we're just waiting,
Unknown Speaker
we're waiting. That's yeah, we're waiting it because it kind of changed from a state grant to a federal grant. And it kind of changed from where the money was going to come. So now we're still waiting on how they're going to distribute the money.
Unknown Speaker
So the repairs and upgrades of the sewer system are working without having to dig up everything I think last time you mentioned how they can just kind of push through right the pipes right and that's that's happened
Unknown Speaker
a lot of it now there I mean, there is some digging but but you know, when they find leaks, then they can use their technology and repair them right there on the spot and all of a sudden we have you know, less water that we're losing. So that's really great. Yeah.
Unknown Speaker
Any updates on the DNR water project I know that that's a year long thing. It's more it's more with the state but the town is working think adjusting some claims and things as well.
Unknown Speaker
And again, we're basically the middleman here so we're not doing anything other than passing money through so I know we just approved some things to be passed through you know it's just all in the works I don't they I don't think they've done any digging they haven't actually started the project yet. So financial phase yet know that Yeah.
Unknown Speaker
And of course this connects the town water to the State Park. Get you a big new customer.
Unknown Speaker
That's right. That's Right. So we're excited excited about that, in its final phase.
Unknown Speaker
Human Rights Ordinance has been a work in progress. Last time we talked in June, we'll leave there's going to be a second reading. Some people had concerns about it, some groups came to you or came to the town council, what were there concerns,
Unknown Speaker
individuals came, I don't really think any actual group came, individuals came, I think the biggest, the biggest concern was, do we really need this. And if you listen to the town council meeting, the thing I said last was, you know, a lot of people have said, we don't need it. But there's been a whole bunch of people that say they want it. And so I think that people were afraid, I think a lot of it is based on fear, sorry, there's big flying around me. There's some fear going on what's happens, change is hard. And we have to also make sure that the people that get appointed to this commission are trustworthy. And that's going to be on the council, we have to make sure of that. And so I think there's fear in that, that, you know, making sure that the right people get in the right places. But the good news is, we did pass it three to two. And we had some amazing people in some amazing groups stand up in favor of it. And the library sent a representative, the League of Women Voters sent a representative, the Methodist church pastor spoke for it, we had a lot of really amazing people. And our advisory committee that we started with worked very hard to talk to people about gaining support for it and making it clear of really what it was. And despite or the sparring said the right word. The rumors about what it wasn't, we had to work hard at, you know, making sure people really knew exactly what what it was.
Unknown Speaker
So it's just about it's just about centralizing incidence complaints. Is that part of
Unknown Speaker
it? Yes. That's what we're hoping for that we have a central location as central commission. That way when somebody comes in to the visitor center, or they go to the health department or the police department, and it is a human rights complaint, that they will refer them to our commission, our commission will listen to them and say, You know what, this is what you need to do, you need to go to the Indiana human rights, our commission is not about counseling them. Other than that, just getting them to the right place. And then the commission is also going to work on education, educating the council, possibly putting on workshops, talking about new things that happen, things change so rapidly anymore. And in this, the Human Rights Forum changes constantly. So there'll be educating us and learning. And then they're also going to get education from the Indiana Civil Liberties Union, so that they can better help people in our community when when there's infractions. They're not going to be proactive, they're not going out and seeking things and looking for things. It's totally a reactive group.
Unknown Speaker
And I'm sure there's a legal aspect to this too. That could be tricky.
Unknown Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Again, confidentiality is huge. And, but what we want to say is, we're going to put together people, a group of people that you can trust, they get some, some complaints at the Visitor Center, and then people won't give their name. Because they don't know the person that they're talking to. They're just an employee of the visitor center. And not to say anything bad about them. The Visitor Center, of course, you know, wants to help people. But there's got to be that element of trust. And if we have people that are trained, and officially marked, as we are people here to help you, then I think more people will be more comfortable when when infractions do happen. And hopefully, we can educate so I what my my hope is that between now and next year, we won't have any problems. You know, there'll be sitting there doing nothing. And there's great people in this community. I don't think that's a lot to hope for.
Unknown Speaker
So what's the next step is form the commission? So the
Unknown Speaker
commission the ordinance has been approved to form the commission. So between now and December, we'll kind of lay out some groundwork as far as our ground rules as far as how do we vet these people, when we'll work with the state on all of this? How do we vet these people to make sure these are the right people in this position, and then we'll have a letter of interest or a form of interest that people can fill out, and they'll have to have references. It'll be a lot more vetting than our other commissions that we have, like, like the arts and entertainment commission. You know, you say, I love art. And so we say okay be on our commission. So it'd be a little bit more tricky than that.
Unknown Speaker
I did see town council agenda had an area, it's called Woods lane. It's a residential economic development area. What does that mean for people who don't understand?
Unknown Speaker
So what's ln is a private Lee owned development that two of the gentlemen from the town are working on it. Steve Miller and Scott mills are their names. And they found this little pocket that's beautiful, and they are going to be building houses. My understanding, I think, houses that 300,000 ish, I don't know for sure about that. But and so what we did was we created we're creating a TIF district there so that the money that they pay in taxes goes to the town, specifically infrastructure, and it doesn't just go to the state and get distributed all over the state. So investing that's a real simple definition of TIF district and don't ask me to be
Unknown Speaker
I just noticed that Brown County Music Center booking shows are they filling seats? How's it Have you heard? How's it going over?
Unknown Speaker
I think they're filling seats. Okay. We've had a couple of shows that are were a little bit less, but I think it was little feet I think is what it was called. I was not there. And but they were they were of a sold out show. And then we have Ricky Skaggs coming in. And gosh, I forget the gal that's coming in next after him. Another country music singer. I forget who it is. So they're plugging along and they've survived the COVID craziness, which says a lot about them.
Unknown Speaker
Well, I asked because they they're getting pregnant as the county innkeepers tax to
Unknown Speaker
helping them until they until they don't need it. Yeah, basically. Yeah.
Unknown Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Earlier this, I think last time I was or two times ago, we were at the Brown County Playhouse. Right. They were looking for a portion of that innkeepers tax. Have you heard anything about that?
Unknown Speaker
The Visitor Center and the the boards that work on the visitor center, they've changed a little bit since you and I have talked, and they don't have an immediate director right now. And so the board is doing things. So everything's different. So the Playhouse didn't get any money directly to them. But they're restructuring everything and trying to use their money wisely. So a lot of good people working hard on that too. One of our council people is one that she saw on that board and she's really working to really make sure our visitors center is all it can make.
Unknown Speaker
And I've noticed there's some new paving going on. More striping. So a lot of town improvements also happening right now
Unknown Speaker
I'm very proud of our staff for all of this because we've been able to we got to community crossings grant. And so we paved every road that was below a certain like, they rate the road roads and below a certain rating. We paved all of those roads. And then now we're waiting on the stripers to have time, and we're gonna have the whole town restriped and all of our crosswalks. We we sandblasted them a couple years ago thinking we were going to do this, and it didn't happen. And so it's happening now and so that's good. So by October when we get our great big crowd of people, our town is going to look brand spankin new.
Unknown Speaker
That was all I had. Is there anything else you'd like to add? No?
Unknown Speaker
Well, just the artwork that's going on and we've got other art installations going on around town. So if you haven't been here in a while, come back and see us and see our new artwork and, and the new things that are going on.
Unknown Speaker
Thank you so much. Hope to see you in September. Yes. See
Unknown Speaker
you in September. Okay.
Hello and welcome to ask the mayor on WFIU. I'm Joe Hren today we're back in Nashville, Indiana, with town council President Nancy Crocker. Hello. Welcome back to the show. It's good to have you. Yeah,
Unknown Speaker
we've been gone for a couple months. Yeah, I've
Unknown Speaker
been busy. It's been a busy summer and I but it's been really busy for you. It has, we'll get to a lot of that stuff in just a bit. But I want to let everyone know that we're outside again today and picked out another great spot and you tell us where we're at, especially for the radio people who can't see right now.
Unknown Speaker
Right we are right outside salt Creek Winery, where I just told one of the visitors here that this is where I buy the sweet wine for when I take a bath. I have their wine when I'm taking a bath there. So we're outside the salt Creek Winery in the background behind me is our brand new mural that was funded through the Indiana tourism division. And we have the artists that is working on it right now. And it's just such a great pop of color. I love it. We also have I'm looking at the coffin poor house, which just reopened and Big Woods pizza is also in my vision. So we're we're kind of in an alley, but our alleys or walkways to different stores and things like that. So lots lots going on around us. You might see motorcycles, there's my friend Tanner, you might see Motorcycles go by or hear them. So if they do you know that's just Nashville?
Unknown Speaker
Yeah, we're outside. So we're taking it all in. We talked about how busy it's been. Right now, what's kind of top of your list priority wise as president of town council right
Unknown Speaker
now. Right now we're kind of look into the future and seeing, you know, what, what do what we're listening to the people, we've started that but when I was elected, we're still doing a lot of that figuring things out looking at, you know, things like pedestrian walkways and safety and things like that for our pedestrians and, and we've got a pretty big bicycle community happening now. So we're going to have to take that into consideration too. So right now we're kind of looking toward the future. We're working on utilities. And again, we're always talking about utilities and infrastructure. I'm excited because our utility workers, we've gotten some new people, they're great, they're working very hard. They're finding leaks in our water system and repairing them. And so every time they find a leak, it saves us money, and makes our water system better. We're still waiting on our grant to come in to upgrade the sanitary sewer. But the utilities are really on track. And we've got, again, a great utility board and they're really doing a lot for this. For the utilities, they just increased prices or in not prices, increased the wages. So our utility workers are making a little bit more money. And that's always a good thing to
Unknown Speaker
have our funding mechanisms coming through on all this. We're we're just waiting,
Unknown Speaker
we're waiting. That's yeah, we're waiting it because it kind of changed from a state grant to a federal grant. And it kind of changed from where the money was going to come. So now we're still waiting on how they're going to distribute the money.
Unknown Speaker
So the repairs and upgrades of the sewer system are working without having to dig up everything I think last time you mentioned how they can just kind of push through right the pipes right and that's that's happened
Unknown Speaker
a lot of it now there I mean, there is some digging but but you know, when they find leaks, then they can use their technology and repair them right there on the spot and all of a sudden we have you know, less water that we're losing. So that's really great. Yeah.
Unknown Speaker
Any updates on the DNR water project I know that that's a year long thing. It's more it's more with the state but the town is working think adjusting some claims and things as well.
Unknown Speaker
And again, we're basically the middleman here so we're not doing anything other than passing money through so I know we just approved some things to be passed through you know it's just all in the works I don't they I don't think they've done any digging they haven't actually started the project yet. So financial phase yet know that Yeah.
Unknown Speaker
And of course this connects the town water to the State Park. Get you a big new customer.
Unknown Speaker
That's right. That's Right. So we're excited excited about that, in its final phase.
Unknown Speaker
Human Rights Ordinance has been a work in progress. Last time we talked in June, we'll leave there's going to be a second reading. Some people had concerns about it, some groups came to you or came to the town council, what were there concerns,
Unknown Speaker
individuals came, I don't really think any actual group came, individuals came, I think the biggest, the biggest concern was, do we really need this. And if you listen to the town council meeting, the thing I said last was, you know, a lot of people have said, we don't need it. But there's been a whole bunch of people that say they want it. And so I think that people were afraid, I think a lot of it is based on fear, sorry, there's big flying around me. There's some fear going on what's happens, change is hard. And we have to also make sure that the people that get appointed to this commission are trustworthy. And that's going to be on the council, we have to make sure of that. And so I think there's fear in that, that, you know, making sure that the right people get in the right places. But the good news is, we did pass it three to two. And we had some amazing people in some amazing groups stand up in favor of it. And the library sent a representative, the League of Women Voters sent a representative, the Methodist church pastor spoke for it, we had a lot of really amazing people. And our advisory committee that we started with worked very hard to talk to people about gaining support for it and making it clear of really what it was. And despite or the sparring said the right word. The rumors about what it wasn't, we had to work hard at, you know, making sure people really knew exactly what what it was.
Unknown Speaker
So it's just about it's just about centralizing incidence complaints. Is that part of
Unknown Speaker
it? Yes. That's what we're hoping for that we have a central location as central commission. That way when somebody comes in to the visitor center, or they go to the health department or the police department, and it is a human rights complaint, that they will refer them to our commission, our commission will listen to them and say, You know what, this is what you need to do, you need to go to the Indiana human rights, our commission is not about counseling them. Other than that, just getting them to the right place. And then the commission is also going to work on education, educating the council, possibly putting on workshops, talking about new things that happen, things change so rapidly anymore. And in this, the Human Rights Forum changes constantly. So there'll be educating us and learning. And then they're also going to get education from the Indiana Civil Liberties Union, so that they can better help people in our community when when there's infractions. They're not going to be proactive, they're not going out and seeking things and looking for things. It's totally a reactive group.
Unknown Speaker
And I'm sure there's a legal aspect to this too. That could be tricky.
Unknown Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Again, confidentiality is huge. And, but what we want to say is, we're going to put together people, a group of people that you can trust, they get some, some complaints at the Visitor Center, and then people won't give their name. Because they don't know the person that they're talking to. They're just an employee of the visitor center. And not to say anything bad about them. The Visitor Center, of course, you know, wants to help people. But there's got to be that element of trust. And if we have people that are trained, and officially marked, as we are people here to help you, then I think more people will be more comfortable when when infractions do happen. And hopefully, we can educate so I what my my hope is that between now and next year, we won't have any problems. You know, there'll be sitting there doing nothing. And there's great people in this community. I don't think that's a lot to hope for.
Unknown Speaker
So what's the next step is form the commission? So the
Unknown Speaker
commission the ordinance has been approved to form the commission. So between now and December, we'll kind of lay out some groundwork as far as our ground rules as far as how do we vet these people, when we'll work with the state on all of this? How do we vet these people to make sure these are the right people in this position, and then we'll have a letter of interest or a form of interest that people can fill out, and they'll have to have references. It'll be a lot more vetting than our other commissions that we have, like, like the arts and entertainment commission. You know, you say, I love art. And so we say okay be on our commission. So it'd be a little bit more tricky than that.
Unknown Speaker
I did see town council agenda had an area, it's called Woods lane. It's a residential economic development area. What does that mean for people who don't understand?
Unknown Speaker
So what's ln is a private Lee owned development that two of the gentlemen from the town are working on it. Steve Miller and Scott mills are their names. And they found this little pocket that's beautiful, and they are going to be building houses. My understanding, I think, houses that 300,000 ish, I don't know for sure about that. But and so what we did was we created we're creating a TIF district there so that the money that they pay in taxes goes to the town, specifically infrastructure, and it doesn't just go to the state and get distributed all over the state. So investing that's a real simple definition of TIF district and don't ask me to be
Unknown Speaker
I just noticed that Brown County Music Center booking shows are they filling seats? How's it Have you heard? How's it going over?
Unknown Speaker
I think they're filling seats. Okay. We've had a couple of shows that are were a little bit less, but I think it was little feet I think is what it was called. I was not there. And but they were they were of a sold out show. And then we have Ricky Skaggs coming in. And gosh, I forget the gal that's coming in next after him. Another country music singer. I forget who it is. So they're plugging along and they've survived the COVID craziness, which says a lot about them.
Unknown Speaker
Well, I asked because they they're getting pregnant as the county innkeepers tax to
Unknown Speaker
helping them until they until they don't need it. Yeah, basically. Yeah.
Unknown Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Earlier this, I think last time I was or two times ago, we were at the Brown County Playhouse. Right. They were looking for a portion of that innkeepers tax. Have you heard anything about that?
Unknown Speaker
The Visitor Center and the the boards that work on the visitor center, they've changed a little bit since you and I have talked, and they don't have an immediate director right now. And so the board is doing things. So everything's different. So the Playhouse didn't get any money directly to them. But they're restructuring everything and trying to use their money wisely. So a lot of good people working hard on that too. One of our council people is one that she saw on that board and she's really working to really make sure our visitors center is all it can make.
Unknown Speaker
And I've noticed there's some new paving going on. More striping. So a lot of town improvements also happening right now
Unknown Speaker
I'm very proud of our staff for all of this because we've been able to we got to community crossings grant. And so we paved every road that was below a certain like, they rate the road roads and below a certain rating. We paved all of those roads. And then now we're waiting on the stripers to have time, and we're gonna have the whole town restriped and all of our crosswalks. We we sandblasted them a couple years ago thinking we were going to do this, and it didn't happen. And so it's happening now and so that's good. So by October when we get our great big crowd of people, our town is going to look brand spankin new.
Unknown Speaker
That was all I had. Is there anything else you'd like to add? No?
Unknown Speaker
Well, just the artwork that's going on and we've got other art installations going on around town. So if you haven't been here in a while, come back and see us and see our new artwork and, and the new things that are going on.
Unknown Speaker
Thank you so much. Hope to see you in September. Yes. See
Unknown Speaker
you in September. Okay.
