RDA has friends, foes among area politicians

The most vocal critics of the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority see the government body as expensive and unneeded, if not downright subversive.

"What has the RDA done in three years and $90 million that is a game changer?" Porter County Commissioner Bob Harper growls. "It can't work. It doesn't get enough money for its stated missions, so it will be tax on tax on tax."

Like-minded Porter County Council members voted last April to withdraw from the RDA and are embroiled in litigation to cancel the county's $3.5 million annual contribution.

However, a survey of other political leaders in Lake and Porter counties indicates a more measured response to the RDA's mission to extend the reach of the South Shore commuter train, upgrade the Gary/Chicago International Airport, consolidate the area's public bus service providers and turn the area's Lake Michigan shoreline into a recreational mecca, among other things.

The RDA has committed millions of public dollars it receives from casino revenues and taxes in urban areas where leaders praise its work, while suburban and rural leaders remain skeptical.

Portage Mayor Olga Velasquez, whose city in April opened a new public lakefront park made possible with $9 million in RDA funds, was among several officials who appealed to the Porter County Council to reconsider its opposition.

"Consider the positives the RDA has brought to our region, particularly opportunities for jobs by leveraging their dollars to bring valuable projects, and from what I've seen of the people visiting it," she said. "Certainly the Portage lakefront and river walk is a great project for people all the way from Kouts and Lowell, north."

Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. said, "I believe in the RDA. We got a really great award ($31 million for recreational public works) in the city of Hammond that will become a great project that will benefit the entire region.

"One of the problems in Lake County is we are so parochial, so cut into so many different pieces, it's hard to have a common vision. While Porter County is causing problems, they have done well. They've got the Portage Lakefront Park, the bus depot in Valparaiso, and they are about to get millions of dollars of improvements in their bike trails," McDermott said.

"These are projects that are hard to fund for local governments, particularly when they are between more than one city. This is what the RDA is for, having the bigger picture for the region."

Lowell Town Council President Phillip Kuiper said he has previously been enthusiastic about the RDA's plan to extend the South Shore to his city. "I was going to jump on that train, because maybe I can have some input, and I don't think I can stop the outcome," Kuiper said.

However, he is tempering his support until he sees the result of a Nov. 3 referendum in Lake, Porter, LaPorte and St. Joseph counties on creating a Regional Transit Authority, which would have the power to levy a tax to unify bus services in Porter and Lake counties into one regional entity. "I'm going to wait and see," he said.

Although the RDA will continue, whatever the outcome of the transit referendum, Porter County's Harper believes a voter rejection would provide more public support for RDA opponents.

"I think there are a lot of people in Porter County leery about getting into a series of income taxes for these project and Porter County getting tied up in this regionalism concept," Harper said.

Lake County Council President Larry Blanchard, R-Crown Point, said, "When you mention RDA, it seems like everyone thinks only transportation and that more buses would be a waste of money. I tend to agree to a point. We see the folks in Porter County saying, 'What are we getting out of this?' Because they are kind of not getting anything out of it. You can't blame them. That is what I hear from my people. I say, do your economic development and get your businesses in here that will create the jobs that are the prerequisite for a public transportation system."

Lake County Councilman Ted Bilski, D-Hobart, said, "I think RDA is a worthwhile endeavor, but there is more to it than busing. We have factories closing down and a displaced work force out there. Some of that money needs to be concentrated on economic development, not just bus transportation."

Hebron Town Council President Donald Ensign said the RDA rarely comes up in local conversations unless it's concern about its generating higher taxes.

However, he sees a lot of potential upside in an RDA plan to extend the South Shore to Valparaiso, 15 miles north of his rural community.

"There would be employment during its construction, and people who work in Chicago are going to want to relocate to a little ways away from the end of the rail line. That could be a huge benefit for Hebron. We could be a wonderful suburb to locate in."