Vanderburgh County Council Meeting and 2027 Budget Hearing Day 1 – August 12, 2026

The Vanderburgh County Council met on August 12, 2026, at 8:33 a.m. in Room 301 of the Civic Center Complex with President John Montrastelle presiding. All seven councilmembers were present for a full quorum. The agenda combined the regular County Council meeting with Day 1 of the 2027 county budget hearings, which followed after a short recess. The minutes packet indexes the regular council meeting; the transcript also contains the budget hearing, where 15 department heads presented 29 line-item budgets.

Consent Calendar

• Approved minutes: July 29, 2026 Personnel & Finance meeting; later, June 24, 2026 Personnel & Finance and July 1, 2026 County Council minutes were also approved.
• Personnel requests approved 7-0 as items A through G and I through J; item H (Health Department part-time Medical Director) was withdrawn by Joe Gries. Requests included Circuit Court, Superior Court Protective Order Assistance, Clerk, Public Defender, Community Corrections Treatment Court, County Highway, Legal Aid, Health Department-Lactation, and TANF/Evansville Promise Neighborhood Community Health Worker positions.
• Appropriations approved 7-0: Surveyor $3,930; Circuit Court $62,000 (food and petit jurors); Public Defender $335,000 (reduced from $445,000 requested, with investigative services set at $60,000, pauper expense $200,000, appeals $75,000, and transcripts at $0); County Highway $188,317; Riverboat/Commissioners $200,000; Recorder $58,000.
• Transfers approved 7-0 as listed for Assessor, Commissioners, Circuit Court, Superior Court, Legal Aid, Cumulative Bridge, and Surveyor Corner Perpetuation.
• Salary ordinance amendments approved 7-0 as listed in the four-page document.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Shawn Pepper, owner of the old Dogtown Tavern at 6109 Old Henderson Road, described hurdles reopening the property: a DNR delay, permit and site-plan costs, a 55-person occupancy limit, and a $50,000 budget that he said is already half spent. He asked for advice on alternatives such as an RV site, event center, or using an existing garage as a new Dogtown. Councilmembers advised him to start with the County Commissioners and to contact the Southwest Indiana Small Business Development Center, specifically Art McDonald.

Discussion Items

• Amended parcel number for SEZ Holdings, LLC/Polyram USA (Resolution CO.R-03-26-007): approved 7-0 after staff described it as an administrative correction of a parcel number discovered by the Auditor’s Office. Patrick Hickey was absent.
• Poet Square TIF payment (Resolution 2026-VCRC-03): approved 7-0 subject to appropriation from the U.S. 41 Expanded Economic Development Area TIF funds. Mike Schopmeyer, Redevelopment Commission counsel, explained the emergency: a SWIRDA/READI 1.0 grant deadline was approaching and Poet Square completed a housing project in record time to preserve the funds; the resolution releases $250,000 after foundation completion.
• Old Farm Reserve bond ordinance (CO.08-26-014): first reading approved 7-0 on a roll-call vote. Developers Chip Altstadt and Ryan Lewis presented the project on 110 acres off University Parkway near USI: about 70 acres residential, 10 acres for 240 apartment units, and 30 acres commercial; total project budget $130–$150 million; average homes estimated at $400,000–$500,000; homeowner lots expected after the end of the year. Councilmembers described it as the first development on University Parkway and said the TIF area needs growth; the second reading is scheduled for September 2, 2026.
• Property tax levy limits letter: approved 7-0. The letter recommends that 2027 budgets stay under the 6.0% maximum levy growth quotient, prioritize operational and contractual obligations, explore cost-saving opportunities, and work toward conservative budgets.
• Municipal Unit Strategic Taskforce (MUST): Brian Gerth, former County Auditor and current Treasurer, was appointed 7-0 as the Council’s representative. Gerth said the taskforce is non-binding and will work with the City of Evansville and Town of Darmstadt on Local Income Tax allocation under SEA 1-2025; he wants to keep the county rate at 1.25% and distribute funds fairly. He cited concerns about the $5.8 million Property Tax Replacement Credit going away, circuit-breaker pressure, 7% gross assessed-value growth but only about 1% net assessed-value growth, and the $2.5 million Homestead Supplemental Credit loss.

2027 Budget Hearings – Day 1

• Legal Aid: Kevin Gibson presented a flat budget with only salary-ordinance and rent increases; he said this was his final Legal Aid budget before retiring after 40 years.
• CIO/Computer Services: Vernon Luce reported the county portion at $5.5 million (including $500,000 requested in CCD), with overall reductions of $927,000 versus $512,000 in increases. Savings included a cybersecurity grant covering CrowdStrike (~$170,000/year), a state-funded training tool (~$12,000), a new printer contract (~$40,000), and lower cyber-insurance costs (~$40,000–$50,000). An RFP for a major contract was still pending.
• Health Department: Joe Gries presented the general fund health fund at $3,863,000, an increase of less than 1%. The department receives $5–$6 million in grants annually; about 40–45 of its 100 employees are grant-funded. Lead testing is being expanded, and a potential $7 million lead-remediation grant with the city is being explored. Local public health services (HFI) was down about 5%; pre-to-three Medicaid includes $200,000 for a new electronic medical record; non-reverting communicable disease and lead prevention funds were also reviewed.
• Assessor: Bill Flutie presented a flat budget; staffing has been reduced by 10–11 positions over 16 years through attrition. Sales disclosure, reassessment, and personal property funds were adjusted to reduce levy pressure; website/GIS maintenance is about $18,000/year.
• Area Plan: Ron London had one main increase, about $17,000 for a scanner/plotter and computer replacements. Two zoning enforcement officers cover east and west of I-41; enforcement is complaint-driven.
• Coroner: Brian Underwood’s budget is down about $23,000; part-time deputy coroner pay was adjusted upward in the personal-services line. The new facility is expected to be ready by the end of the month; about 1,500 deaths have been handled so far; fee revenue was over $10,000.
• County Commissioners: Postage was a major discussion, with a $150,000 request and year-to-date circuit court/clerk postage over $108,000. Laura said she tracks postage and legal fees by department; Council debated moving postage back into department budgets. A 16% building rent increase was questioned and tied partly to the new coroner’s building. Legal fees were described as variable, with $230,000 spent in six months.
• Opioid unrestricted fund: Discussion focused on low balances (unrestricted roughly under $500,000; unappropriated about $48,000) and prior funding for Jacobs Village, Youth Services, and Aurora at $45,000; Council indicated these funds should be used carefully and could help replace general fund spending.
• Drainage Board and Superintendent of County Buildings: Brief presentations; the coroner’s move to the new building is expected in Q4; the old coroner’s building may be sold. Dave Rector requested $35,653 for Coliseum maintenance; the rent increase will be revisited with him.
• Cooperative Extension: Megan Solomon explained Purdue’s move to a population-based regional service model. Contractual services increased, with Councilmembers asking about a 12% adjustment and later referencing a 59% figure in a question; Solomon said Purdue pools funds and had not provided itemized detail. County-based offices and dedicated 4-H educators will remain.
• Weights and Measures: Jacob Murphy presented a flat budget and offered to give up about $200 in rarely used postage.
• Veterans Administration: Tanya Weber asked to keep postage because of Indiana’s new 100% disabled veteran property tax exemption. She cited $125 million in county economic impact, $62 million/year in pension and disability claims, and just under 10,000 veterans in the county.
• Burdette Park: Zach Watham presented a roughly $50,000 increase for linen contracts, a streaming/communications overhaul, security, and supplies. The aquatic center exceeded 80,000 visitors for the first time; season pass revenue was $93,781; park-wide revenue was nearly $1.1 million.
• County Highway: Jeff Byrd requested more than the prior ~flat budgets due to rising costs. Aging equipment includes a 20+ year-old paver, a 35-year-old distributor, and five 20+ year-old dump trucks; a replacement paver was estimated at about $300,000. The department has an unappropriated balance of about $2.5 million. Upcoming bridge projects include Darmstadt, Wimberg, Hogue, and Old State Road.
• National Events Plaza/VenueWorks: Scott Schoenike presented a relatively flat budget. VenueWorks has managed the plaza for 10 months and improved performance by about $600,000 over the prior 12 months, roughly 33% better; the focus is now on increasing sales.
• Explore Evansville and Tourism Capital Improvement: The Explore Evansville budget is $2.48 million, $21,000 less than expected revenue. Reported marketing growth: 121 group-sales leads versus 83 all last year, 70 contracted events versus 51 all last year, 52,000 room nights toward a 65,000 goal versus 25,000 at this point last year, social impressions up 92%, engagements up 21%, clicks up 102%, 830,000 followers, and a 34% email open rate versus 28% industry standard. The TCI request is $2.1 million, including a $1.29 million bond payment; naming-rights sponsorship at the sports park increased 115%.

Key Outcomes

• All recorded Council votes passed 7-0.
• Approved appropriations and transfers as summarized above; Public Defender appropriation was $335,000 rather than the requested $445,000, with the transcripts line at $0.
• Old Farm Reserve bond ordinance passed first reading; second reading scheduled for September 2, 2026.
• Sent the 2027 property tax levy limit recommendation letter to taxing units.
• Appointed Brian Gerth to MUST.
• Day 1 budget hearings concluded after 15 department heads presented 29 budgets. Day 2 is scheduled for August 13 at 9:00 a.m.; a city/county joint department review is set for August 26 at 3:00 p.m.; the September 2 council meeting will be followed by budget cuts at 3:30 p.m.
• No formal Council votes were recorded during the Day 1 budget hearing itself; it consisted of departmental presentations and discussion.