Northwest Indiana Discussion

This car has sat here for 3 years.














The last two are of the same building, I guess if you put up a McDermott sign,
you get a pass. The sign was up long after the election.

Maybe this is why Hammond looks so bad, if you contribute to Tom's Campaign in
some manner, you get special treatment.

35666

So should the city condemn this guys house because he cant afford siding? This is in one of the poorest neighborhoods in the city, maybe you could set them up with some cheap rent Chuck.

Hey Mike, no problem Councilman. Had you not been so busy spending $32,000 on 79 dumpsters in the 5th district the week before the 2011 election, bearing your yellow and black signs, which appeared to be oh so similar to your campaign re election signs, and paying more attention to how Tom spent HUD rehab money, there might have been more money available to low income individuals like this to rehab their home.

But apparently Councilman, the income standards you set for this program are such, Tom's friend, who owns this house doesn't qualify for assistance, making too much money, not eligible for a low income rehab loan.

Or is it one of your rentals Mike?


So apparently this property got like this overnight, until it's attention surfaced in pictures and torn down in 2012.

So Mr Councilman, it is acceptable to have low income or poor people exploited by a sitting City Council person earning $107,000 a year, who then abuses his position and spends $32,000 of public funds, renting 79 dumpsters, plastered with their name, a week before the 2011 election, to get themselves re elected. Some might say that is a cheap sob. Still other might say it is criminal!

Councilman, when people are living in such squalor you abuse your position and authority? What about misuse of public funds so their rank and file fire department brothers and sisters earning $44,000 a year, work on understaffed fire rigs, placing themselves at risk? All because of mis used funds are not available for safe fire department rig staffing?

The Councilman holds the second highest paid salary in the city.

Mike, maybe you can sell them one of your listings?

Top 10 salaries in Hammond:
1.GOLEC, ROBERT: FIRE PENSION -$121,948.92
2.OPINKER, MICHAE:L ELECTED OFFICALS -$107,737.85
3. UNGER, MICHAEL: DISTRICT MANAGER CLASS IV-$107,395.70
4.MILLER, BRIAN: POLICEMAN - $103,442.30
5. MCDERMOTT, THOMAS MAYOR AND OTHER COMP $103,398
6. DOUGHTY, JOHN: POLICEMAN $102,813.71
7. CARDWELL, ROGER: POLICEMAN $100,600.86
8. KRUSA, EDWARD: CHIEF EXECUTIVE $100,312.63
9. SMITH, JEFFERY: FIREMAN -$98,962.61
10. BOJDA, JOHN: FIREMAN $94,641.56


Rock on Mike, Rock on!

I think you should star in a video Mike, while your still an elected official.

35788

should the city just allow these homes to rot and fall to the ground? if we can't expect someone to maintain their property why even have a code enforcement department? there are people in the city who can't even put their garbage in the garbage can and that doesn't cost anything.

The City builds $200,000 homes, but yet has no money to help out the homeowners, who through no fault of their own in some instances, need a helping hand. What the heck ever happened to the Paint Program? What about "Hammers For Hearts"??? What happened to the "Outdoor Security Light Program"?

Keeping neat and clean doesn't involve money. I agree with you Bert. Poverty is no excuse for being a pig.

And people that behave like pigs should get a ticket from Code Enforcement. People that cant afford to put siding on their house or repair their garage should not.

As for you Chuck you can go on believing I am whomever you want but that wont solve the problem. I guess your answer is give everyone money to fix their house, maybe you can even come up with the guidelines, Hell you can even pick the ones that get it. Just let me know what you will say to the ones you don't pick. Sorry you voted for the Mayor you dont qualify, oh you voted for Sanchez then sign right here.

So being poor gives one the right to drag everyone else's property values further down the drain? If you are poor and a pig what are the ramifications if any? Just how poor do you have to be in order to have no fear of a knock on the door from CE?

I am sure there are people with money that trash their property and there is still no excuse for it but how do you make someone side or roof their hose when they dont have the money? JCMT says give it to them, what do you say?

when you can't afford a roof or siding you can't afford a house. Either sell it or risk condemnation.owning a home and not being able to afford to maintain it is like buying a car and not being able to afford gas.lack of standards is what causes our problems today.

xmpt asks "how do you make someone side or roof their house when they dont have the money?" Well, how do you make someone pay their property taxes when they don't have the money? xmpt also says when referring to home maintenance costs that, "JCMT says give it to them, what do you say?" Well, Tommy McDermott says give it to them when it concerns seniors' property taxes whether they have the money or not. Tommy McDermott says give it to them (College Bound) whether they have the money or not. I wonder if xmpt has ever expressed his unease about giving tax dollars to voters as a matter of course? Of course not.

Pure poetry.

Ok got all that now answer the question. How do you make someone roof or side their house when they cant afford to do so? bert says tear it down for lack of standards. No one really cares about LAL because he lives in Eutopia.

it is painfully obvious the city is impotent to enforce even the most basic of standards. let's shut down CE and give the money to the homebound program. with every passing day we losing our tenuous grasp on the opportunity to turn this dilapidated ship around.

Just hire more inspectors that can't read or write, pay them a generous salary with benefits all out of proportion to their contributions to the welfare of Hammond, and when Hammond residents wonder why they are paying more taxes for the same lack of results, accuse them of starving local government.

And you ask how you make someone roof or side their house when they can't afford to do so. As LUBU said, they can get the money from the same place they will tap to pay their brand new county income tax, and the wheel tax all Democrat hacks are praying comes their way.