Council should OK housing measure

Editorials

Discussion

October 22, 2009

Anonymous Pharos-Tribune Thu Oct 22, 2009, 08:46 AM EDT

The Logansport Plan Commission’s proposal clearing the way for homes to be built in the city’s older neighborhoods is great public policy.

The city’s current ordinances were drafted at a time when the older neighborhoods were filled with houses. They were intended to regulate subdivisions on what were then the outskirts of town.

Now, some of those older neighborhoods are showing their age. Some of the old houses have fallen to the ravages of time and neglect.

It only makes sense for the city now to take another look at its restrictions and make way for new houses to fill those vacant lots now scattered throughout the city.

The amendment approved by the planning commission last week would allow for houses to sit closer together, as they do in the city’s older neighborhoods.

Nationwide, cities have had a tendency to sprawl in the last 60 years. In the years after World War II, families began a move toward the suburbs, abandoning those older neighborhoods where they grew up. They traded the small yards of the central city for the big yards on the edge of town.

Logansport is clearly not a big city. It has not seen the devastation experienced by some of the older neighborhoods in Indianapolis.

But time and the migration away from older neighborhoods have taken their toll. Week after week, city officials work to eliminate the blight created as homeowners give up on their dilapidated houses. To their credit, city officials have been tearing many of these structures down, eliminating eyesores that have turned into magnets for criminal activity.

The good news is that families are beginning to reclaim some of those older neighborhoods. They’re restoring some of the older homes and trading a 15-minute drive to work for a 15-minute walk.

Now, it simply makes sense for city officials to clear the way for property owners to put houses on those empty lots. That’s what this measure was designed to do.

The ordinance now moves to city council for consideration. The council should add its approval and take another step toward redevelopment of some of Logansport’s core neighborhoods.

Want to go?

What: Logansport City Council meeting

When: 5 p.m. Nov. 2

Where: City council chambers on the third floor of the City Building, 601 E. Broadway

Text Only | Photo Reprints

Editorials

An outstanding community effort
United Way of Cass County announced this week that it had raised more than $600,000 in its most recent campaign. The campaign’s success is a testament to the generosity of local residents and to the great work of the United Way and its member agencies.

February 9, 2012
Another step forward for local trails
Local officials broke ground this week on the planned Eel River Run from downtown to Riverside Park. The project will expand a trail system of which the community can be proud.

February 8, 2012
White should not return to office
The conviction of Indiana’s secretary of state on charges of voter fraud has left Republicans and Democrats fighting over who will hold the office. No matter how the fight comes out, Charlie White’s ouster from office should be permanent.

February 7, 2012
A grand success for Indianapolis
The just-ended Super Bowl was the result of decades of preparation. Indianapolis left a great impression on the thousands of visitors who descended on the city.

February 6, 2012
Should schools teach creationism?
The Indiana General Assembly is considering a measure that would allow public schools to teach creationism as long as they include instruction on other reliigious theories. Broadening the instruction to include other religions might address constitutional concerns, but the result might be a class the law’s supporters didn’t envision.

February 4, 2012
Giving every child a chance
Students from Columbia Middle School delivered a message of inclusion in a play last weekend. The message is one that can’t be repeated too often.

February 2, 2012
Testing lawmakers a good idea
A measure requiring drug testing for welfare recipients would also require drug testing for legislators. If lawmakers are going to impose such a requirement on welfare recipients, they should be willing to stand up to the same measure.

February 1, 2012
Peru delivers important message
The city of Peru collected $20,000 last year from property owners who failed to keep their yards mowed. An aggressive enforcement effort can help the city’s finances, but the benefits go beyond dollars and cents.

January 31, 2012
Jail GED program a great step
The issue
The Cass County Sheriff’s Department has begun offering GED
classes for its prisoners.

Our view
The department, and society at large, will see a huge return on that
investment.

January 30, 2012
Ambulance services aren’t cheap
Cass County commissioners are looking at alternatives to the ambulance service provided by Logansport Memorial Hospital. Commissioners will be fortunate to find a less expensive alternative.

January 29, 2012
More Editorials Headlines

Editorials

Search Results

Discussion

Council should OK housing measure

The Indiana Senate last week approved a bill that would allow public schools to teach creationism in science classes as long as they included origin of life theories from other religions. Would you support such a measure?

Site Map

Contact Us