Ponzi [pon-zee] noun A swindle in which a quick return, made up of money from new investors, on an initial investment lures the victim into much bigger risks. Have you ever stopped to think about the real reason behind Carmel mayor Jim Brainard’s quest to maximize the Assessed Valuation (AV) and tax revenue potential […]
Category: Debt
‘Strong Towns’ Author: Local Governments Bear The Weight of Imprudent Growth
The outlook is not good for the nation’s cities if current trends continue. (Podcast on site) That’s according to Charles Marohn Jr., the author of the new book “Strong Towns: A Bottom-Up Revolution To Rebuild American Prosperity.” He’s also the head of Strong Towns, a not-for-profit organization that talks about urban issues. In his book, Marohn writes […]
Hotel Carmichael Mock ups
Opening May 2020, Hotel Carmichael will emerge as Carmel’s first lifestyle boutique hotel. Follow along as we reveal sneak peeks of how we bring this beautiful masterpiece to life! So what ostentatiousness can be built when taxpayers have all their skin in the game? Quaint study And for the weary traveler arriving by bicycle, […]
The Rent is too damn high!
Latest About Events Podcasts Community The Book Join the Movement The Paradox of Persistent Vacancies and High Prices November 27, 2017 by Charles Marohn Last month in our social feed, I shared an interesting piece from Greater Greater Washington on the glut of vacant office space in Washington DC. In a city with explosively high […]
A Former Derivatives Analyst gives the true state of Carmel’s current finances
Derivatives Analyst gives 2020 update on Carmel finances and S&P rating. This chart would represent the impact of the City of Carmel if it were to spend no more Public Taxpayer funds for re-development. The chances of that happening are zero. The far-right column shows Total Debt obligations. Additional information below added […]
2020’s First City Council Meeting!
On Monday, 01/06/2020, look for the Mayor to be talking dollars and cents ($200M+?) as he has in the first year after every election since 2000. How long will the meeting go? Less than 4 hours would be an improvement over 2016. He knows only a few are paying attention and he is emboldened by […]
PART 2: Just how does Carmel keep tax rates low while spending more and more each year?
In Part 1, we described the delicate balance of municipal government finance – revenues, expenses and the tax base. We also discussed how any increase or decrease in one requires an offsetting increase or decrease in the others to keep thing in balance. Since first elected as mayor of Carmel in 1995 – nearly […]
PART 1: Just how does Carmel keep tax rates low while spending more and more each year?
A major talking point of Carmel mayor Jim Brainard and those councilors aligned within him on the City Council is how Carmel’s taxes have remained low, even as the city and demand for its services have both grown substantially. Even as they make this claim, the city budget — and spending — grows year after […]
$60 million courtesy of Clay Township: Carmel’s debt addiction keeps growing
“Where there is no accountability, there will also be no responsibility.” ― Sunday Adelaja The Carmel City Council has approved an interlocal agreement with Clay Township for the latter to fund $60 million in community projects. In the process, the agreement has raised several eyebrows and many questions. As reported on June 4, 2019 in […]
Looking past the carefully-crafted talking points of incumbents
As the clock counts down the final three weeks until the municipal primary election on Tuesday, May 7th, there is a lot being said by candidates in order to convince you to vote for them. While this is certainly not new, some of those things being said lately make for popular talking points but also […]