SPECIAL VOTE FOR AN INCREASED TAX TO DEVELOPE THE NORTHERN INDIANA TRANSPORTATION DISTRICT

JUST IN CASE YOU MISSED THIS---
SPECIAL VOTE FOR A TAX TO FUND A NORTHERN INDIANA TRANSPORTATION DISTRICT
_________________________________________________________

Opposition is organizing for Michiana regional transportationSpecial election to decide transportation measure slated for Nov. 3.
By ERIN BLASKOTribune Staff Writer
As a vote on it draws near, a measure that would create a regional transportation district encompassing St. Joseph and surrounding counties is facing organized opposition on at least two fronts.On Thursday, Ron Cenkush, an Osceola resident and member of the Libertarian party, will host a public meeting in Mishawaka to discuss ways to get the word out about the vote and its potential negative impact on St. Joseph County and its residents.He has already created a Web site, www.no-rta.com.

And in Porter County, county Commissioner Robert Harper has been campaigning against the measure for several weeks, spreading the word with mailings and yard signs and through a Web site, www.stoptherta.com.Both question the necessity of the proposed RTD, as well as the potential cost to taxpayers. "Our goal is mainly about awareness," Cenkush, who is seeking his party's nomination for 5th District state representative, said. "We want people to know about (the vote). I don't think many folks know what's coming. It sort of has the stench of being snuck under our noses."What is coming is a Nov. 3 special election that will put to voters in St. Joseph, LaPorte, Porter and Lake counties a single question:"Shall there be created the Northern Indiana regional transportation district ... to provide a regional rail system serving Lake, Porter, LaPorte and St. Joseph counties and regional bus public transportation system serving Lake and Porter counties with (insert county name) County becoming a member of the district."For it to pass, two of the four participating counties would need to vote in favor of the measure.Those counties would then be taxed up to 0.25 percent to fund the district. The stated purpose of the RTD is to provide oversight of the South Shore Railroad as well as regional bus services in Lake and Porter counties.The Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District, which operates the South Shore, supports the measure, as does the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority, which has some oversight of the commuter railroad as well as regional bus service in LaPorte, Porter and Lake counties.Representatives of both groups did not immediately return calls seeking comment.'Just another tax'But the proposal, and even the election itself, has proved unpopular among some residents and county officials. In LaPorte and Lake counties, officials have gone so far as to refuse to fund the special election, objecting that it was ordered by the state with no regard for cost and should be delayed until the May primary.In each county, cost estimates to conduct the election ran into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.What, if any, ramifications election officials in those counties might face for failing to perform their elected duties is not known.Meanwhile, in St. Joseph and Porter counties, where the election is to proceed as scheduled, some question whether the purported benefits of the RTD justify the costs to taxpayers.In St. Joseph County, where officials recently voted to double the local option income tax, inclusion in the RTD would mean an additional tax to fund regional transportation projects that might not benefit the county, Cenkush said. One such project is the proposed expansion of the South Shore to cities in central Lake and Porter counties."It is our understanding that little, if any, of the expansion will be in St. Joseph County," Cenkush said. "Why would we vote for yet another county income tax increase to provide expansion in adjacent counties?"Even in Porter County, which would conceivably benefit from the RTD, Harper questions its need."The demand (for public transportation) just isn't there, and it's just another tax," he said.Cenkush agrees, and is confident voters will, as well. "I kind of think the issue will take care of itself if people know about it," he said.Staff writer Erin Blasko:eblasko@sbtinfo.com(574) 235-6187