Weekly wrap - Monday, April 13, 2009 » Opinion » Kokomo Tribune; Kokomo, Indiana

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April 13, 2009

Weekly wrap - Monday, April 13, 2009

Anonymous The Kokomo Tribune Mon Apr 13, 2009, 12:48 AM EDT

Excerpts of recent editorials from Indiana newspapers:

On Wrigley Field:

Surely, he didn’t really mean it. There’s just no way that Carlos Zambrano, the Chicago Cubs ace pitcher, could really want the city of Chicago to replace Wrigley Field.

Zambrano made the comments as he sat in the visitors’ clubhouse at the Yankees’ $1.5 billion stadium before an exhibition game Saturday.

“You come into a ballpark like this and see great things,” he said. “You wish that Chicago’d build a new stadium for the Cubs.”

Heaven forbid.

There is no better place in the world to watch a baseball game than the Friendly Confines. Built in 1914 and home to the Cubs since 1916, Wrigley is the second oldest major league stadium, trailing only Boston’s Fenway Park, which was built in 1912.

Just walking into the place, you can feel the magic. Sitting there in the stands, you can almost hear the voices of the generations of Cub fans who have turned out to watch a game.

Certainly, the old ballpark might need some tweaking here and there. Some of the facilities could certainly use an update.

But build a new ballpark? Why on earth would anyone want to do that?

– Pharos-Tribune, Logansport

On foreclosure help:

Of all the homeowners with mortgages in Anderson, about 11.4 percent go into foreclosure, unable to make their monthly payments. Without people inside the homes, they can go neglected and turn into community blights.

In Kokomo, the foreclosure rate is 11.5 percent.

Somewhere in between is Alexandria and Elwood.

Both cities have wisely applied for Neighborhood Stabilization Program grants that would allow them to demolish or rehabilitate blighted homes.

This doesn’t end the foreclosure crisis, but the grants from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development allow cities and towns to maintain pride.

For about $2 million, Elwood would demolish 26 properties. With about $2.6 million, Alexandria plans to tear down 34 homes. Some homes could be renovated.

In no way do these grants address the anguish facing victims of foreclosure. Nor should they be viewed as sweeping the problems out of these cities.

But the marketability of our towns is vital to their survival. Residents should be compassionate to the plight of foreclosed homeowners, but they should be grateful that these local officials see the need for property values to stay the same and the quality of life to improve.

– The Herald Bulletin, Anderson

On public access bill:

Senate Bill 232, which would protect the rights of Hoosiers to know what their government is up to and that would punish those who would intentionally thwart those rights, appears headed toward the trash bin.

That’s because state Rep. John Bartlett, D-Indianapolis, has indicated he will not call the proposal for a hearing in the Government and Regulatory Reform Committee that he chairs.

Senate Bill 232, written by a bipartisan group of lawmakers concerns public access to government and includes the ability for a judge to levy a civil fine against a government official who deliberately violates either the Indiana Open Door Law or Indiana Access to Public Records Act. It passed in the Senate and appeared to be headed toward approval in the House. Not so now.

We contend the measure would serve the interests of Hoosiers and their access to public records and governmental meetings and other valuable information. It deserves “yes” votes from our state representatives and senators. Of course, Bartlett would first have to give the bill a chance in his committee.

– The Tribune, Seymour

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