Tuesday, October 25, 2022

Did We View The Same Meeting?

Fort Wayne City Councilman Jason Arp's attempt at a political stunt died a quick death at the Council table. But, local media seems to have a difference of opinion on just how that happened. 

According to the kids at WANE 15:

WPTA 21Alive/Fort Wayne NBC also got it wrong: (there was no vote, kids)


Here's what the Journal Gazette reported (and what the Media Maven witnessed at the meeting):


Maybe, Robert's Rules of Order is not required reading at Ball State for the TV folks.

The WANE-15 story was updated to reflect the correct information. Bravo.

And for those who missed it, the original WANE TV story is posted below followed by the WPTA ABC21Alive/Fort Wayne NBC story (since the Maven has been accused of making this stuff up).

‘Totally inappropriate:’ City Council shoots down Arp

by: Clayton McMahan

Posted: Oct 25, 2022 / 04:53 PM EDT

Updated: Oct 25, 2022 / 11:10 PM EDT

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FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) — Fort Wayne City Council President Jason Arp announced plans to propose cuts to Mayor Tom Henry’s operating budget ahead of Tuesday’s City Council meeting.

Arp’s statement said under the proposition, the budget would not be restored until “all of the information requests have been fulfilled.”

Although Mayor Henry recently answered a list of questions previously posed by Councilman Arp, Arp and WANE 15 have requested video evidence from the Oct. 8 crash, which still has not been released.

Mayor Henry responds to questions posed by Councilman Jason Arp

Here is Councilman Arp’s full statement regarding the city budget:

“At tonight’s Council meeting I am putting forth cuts to the Mayor’s operating budget.  As City Council President, I have been working with our attorneys and staff to ensure questions related to the incident that occurred October 8th have been answered.  Many of the questions we have asked were answered in a timely manner, however we have asked that the video evidence from the night of the event be preserved for Council’s review in order to conclude our inquiry into the matter.  We have been told that the video evidence will not be available until the case is closed upon sentencing.  While I have confidence that our request will be granted in a timely manner, I am requesting a cut of the Mayor’s Office operating budget. The budget would then be restored once all of the information requests have been fulfilled.  Budgetary action is one of the Council’s few means of recourse to ensure accountability.  We are hoping we will know the week of November 9th and that we will be able to promptly restore these budget items.”

At the meeting, City Council voted 8-1 to not move forward with Arp’s proposal to cut Mayor Henry’s operating budget.

Arp was the only one who voted in favor of the proposal.

Multiple councilmembers, including Geoff Paddock and Michelle Chambers, expressed their feelings on the proposal at the meeting and felt that it was not necessary.

“I will not support any effort that would hold the Mayor’s office or his staff or his operations hostage,” Paddock said.

Chambers said she would not support a proposal that would use the budget as a “weapon.”

“I don’t believe that it is our place to leverage and weaponize a budget to deal with a situation that is not related to the budget,” Chambers said.

Mayor Henry released a statement after the meeting concluded:

Fort Wayne continues to experience growth and success, and tonight’s passage by City Council of the budget for 2023 demonstrates we’re positioned for even better days ahead for our community. Fiscal discipline is critical as we work together to meet the needs, wants and desires of residents, neighborhoods and businesses. We’re looking forward to a productive 2023 with initiatives planned for every quadrant that will make a lasting and meaningful difference. Next year will bring record investments for neighborhood infrastructure and a continued commitment to public safety and our parks. By working together, we’ll be able to continue the positive momentum that we’ve built in Fort Wayne as a point of destination to live, work and play.

The WPTA ABC21Alive/Fort Wayne's NBC Story:

By Alex Null

Published: Oct. 25, 2022 at 11:42 PM EDT|Updated: 2 hours ago

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WPTA) - Late Tuesday afternoon, City Council president Jason Arp released a statement saying he proposed budget cuts for the mayor’s office, because, he says, more evidence from the mayor’s recent crash and OWI arrest needs to come out. Namely, police body camera video.

Arp recently penned a letter to the city attorney, asking that several questions be answered that primarily had to do with whether taxpayers would have to foot the bill for damages caused by the crash.

The mayor later said he would pay for all damages involved.

Read Arp’s statement, in full, below:

“At tonight’s Council meeting I am putting forth cuts to the Mayor’s operating budget. As City Council President, I have been working with our attorneys and staff to ensure questions related to the incident that occurred October 8th have been answered. Many of the questions we have asked were answered in a timely manner, however we have asked that the video evidence from the night of the event be preserved for Council’s review in order to conclude our inquiry into the matter. We have been told that the video evidence will not be available until the case is closed upon sentencing.

While I have confidence that our request will be granted in a timely manner, I am requesting a cut of the Mayor’s Office operating budget. The budget would then be restored once all of the information requests have been fulfilled. Budgetary action is one of the Council’s few means of recourse to ensure accountability. We are hoping we will know the week of November 9th and that we will be able to promptly restore these budget items.”

- Councilman Arp

The mayor’s sentencing date is set for November 7th.

City council discussed and voted on Arp’s proposal Tuesday evening, with most council members voting against it. They said budget cuts normally take place while approving budgets, and this move was not necessary.

“For me, the budget cut to cut the mayor’s entire budget was not appropriate.,” Democratic Councilwoman Michelle Chambers said. “I felt like that was being used as a weapon to achieve some answers to questions that have been answered already. I don’t believe it is our place to leverage and weaponize a budget to deal with a situation that is not related to the budget.”

Chambers also said for any council member to ask for the police body cam video is inappropriate, because it’s not their responsibility to do so. Fellow democratic councilman Geoff Paddock said he agreed.

“I did disagree with his cuts tonight. I think obviously a majority of us did, feeling it was not appropriate to go through line item by line item on the mayor’s budget, particularly when there is no rhyme or reason to that,” Paddock said.

Council did approve the overall city budget for next year at the meeting. Following the vote, a statement from Mayor Tom Henry was released, and says in full:

“Fort Wayne continues to experience growth and success, and tonight’s passage by City Council of the budget for 2023 demonstrates we’re positioned for even better days ahead for our community. Fiscal discipline is critical as we work together to meet the needs, wants and desires of residents, neighborhoods and businesses. We’re looking forward to a productive 2023 with initiatives planned for every quadrant that will make a lasting and meaningful difference.

Next year will bring record investments for neighborhood infrastructure and a continued commitment to public safety and our parks. By working together, we’ll be able to continue the positive momentum that we’ve built in Fort Wayne as a point of destination to live, work and play.”

- Mayor Tom Henry

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