Self-Incorporation gains traction

The first neighborhood meeting of citizens interested in self-incorporation of White River Township took place Tuesday evening. About a dozen citizens gathered in a home off of Stones Crossing Road to hear Ryan Rhoten, who edits the CenterGroveTown.org web site,  explain the advantages and challenges of self-incorporation compared to the other options. By the end of the meeting all the property owners represented signed the petition supporting moving forward on self-incorporation.

Rhoten reviewed details concerning the location, size and assessed value of the area in question. While it is a largely residential area, it’s assessed value is one of the highest in the county at $2.2 billion with about 144 miles of road. These factors, among others, affect the amount of tax revenues that could be made available to a new city. One of the attendees mentioned that “an industrial base is much more beneficial to an area than a retail base. We should bring in light industry.” The east side of State Road 37, along other ares, would be ideal locations for this type of development.

The group learned about the Reorganization effort, self-incorporating and annexation, voluntary or involuntary. Attendees asked questions concerning the scope of the Reorganization effort and the impact of the proposed Bargersville annexation effort.

Rhoten’s current intent is to file for incorporation the day after the vote on the Reorganization, assuming it fails.

Ryan said he was very pleased with the service that was being provided by the members of the Reorganization committee, when he attended those meetings as an alternative sub-committee member, but he came to the conclusion that he would prefer WRT become its own town. He discussed how it would provide the citizens more self-control, and be able to determine for themselves the level of services and the size of the government.

While formal discussions have not begun, he envisions a significant number of inter-governmental agreements with the County and other governmental entities.

Rhotan’s goal is to continue holding neighborhood meetings where people can talk one-on-one with their neighbors and ensure that all their questions are answered. Anyone interested in hosting such a discussion can sign up on the web site CenterGroveTown.org.

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