Unique opportunity for Indy – the Eiffel Tower is coming to town
In the run-up to the US Olympic qualifying swim, a replica of the Eiffel Tower is erected at the corner of Georgia Street and Capitol Avenue.
Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett’s 2025 budget proposal, unveiled on Monday, calls for tax increases despite the loss of federal funding from the Covid period.
The $1.65 billion budget is a proposed increase over the $1.5 billion budget approved last year.
City Treasurer Sarah Riordan said some programs funded by the American Rescue Plan Act would be supported with city funds, while others, including a $195 million rental assistance program, would expire.
Planned infrastructure improvements include further transforming Georgia Street in downtown Indianapolis into a pedestrian-friendly zone, funded with $50 million in TIF funds.
“We can continue to use our creditworthiness to make significant changes in our downtown while reserving our budget funds for neighborhood improvements,” Hogsett said in his budget presentation Monday.
Vision Zero – the movement to prevent pedestrian fatalities – will receive the first proposed budget allocation, according to Hogsett’s chief of staff Dan Parker, a senior program manager position with broad authority to work across departments to bring about safety changes.
The budget proposal allocates $1 million to each county and district council to improve up to three of the most dangerous intersections. The money can also be used to improve parks.
“This gives you the power to make the changes you want to see in the neighborhoods you represent,” Hogsett said.
The city also plans to put $1 million into a forest-related stormwater fund to preserve some forests, an effort to strategically capture stormwater, according to Brandon Herget, director of public works.
Public safety initiatives account for 41%, or $637 million, of allocated spending.
Hogsett’s budget also includes $313 million for criminal justice costs.
The budget includes money for 1,743 officers, a goal the department has tried but failed to achieve since 2019. To meet that goal, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department will increase the number of new recruit classes from two to three.
Hogsett’s administration boasted during his speech about his proposed eighth consecutive balanced budget. His administration has stated that he inherited a $50 million structural deficit when he took office in 2016. By his second budget, the city had eliminated it.
The committees of the city and district councils will examine the budget before voting on it in the autumn.
