(La Porte, IN) - The attorney for the 39 North Conservancy District is accusing the mayor of throwing more gas on the fire of a proposed annexation after he recently called for a “ceasefire” of the inflammatory rhetoric.  

 

Shaw Friedman also expressed a belief the city will fail in its attempt to annex the conservancy district by not obtaining the required amount of signatures from property owners.

 

Friedman said multiple use of the word “safety risk” in terms of fire protection unless the water capacity of the system is increased goes against the ceasefire the mayor called for when both sides met at the end of March.

 

Safety risk was in quotes contained in the latest press release from the mayor’s office about the results of a study describing the system as inadequate for fighting a major industrial fire and providing for future growth.

 

“Alarmist statements does nothing to aid calm, deliberate debate on an issue of public importance,” Friedman said.

 

The study estimated the cost of upgrading the system at more than $10.5 million dollars, a cost district property owners couid face unless the city annexed and paid for the work.    

 

Friedman said the city setting a May 31 deadline for district property owners to submit signatures in favor of annexation also seems to stoke the flames.

 

“Compare this hyberbole and inflammatory statements with the careful, reasoned call by our Board President asking residents to simply wait patiently before making decisions on annexation.  I think it’s quite clear who is abiding by the “ceasefire” and who is not,” he said.

 

Friedman said the city seems to be on the attack again in an effort to regain momentum in its annexation effort and meeting an October 1 deadline for filing annexation petitions.

 

“Now, with support for annexation lagging and reports surfacing of those who previously filed consents wanting to revoke such consents…the city has apparently chosen to go on the attack again,” he said.

 

He said the district is waiting for action on a formal complaint it filed with the Indiana Public Access Counselor in February to try and force the city to release the findings of the study.

 

He said what the city just released from the study only seems to be “an edited, scrubbed version” of the original report.

 

Friedman said the district has ordered a study of the water system by another engineering firm and, in contrast, intends to release all of the findings so property owners have all of the facts to make an informed decision.