Hamilton County Councilman Mark Hall’s December Timesheet

Welcome to the Timesheet. This column is a report of work done on behalf of the people of Hamilton County. It’s to be informative, too – a place to learn about projects and how our county government works.

As your employee, it’s important to me that you know what is being worked on as transparently as possible in government. You hired me as your County Councilman, and my hope is that you’ll choose to be informed by regularly reading this column, getting involved, consider volunteering, and by asking questions. Council meetings are at 7 p.m. the first Wednesday of every month at the Hamilton County Government and Judicial Center in downtown Noblesville. Meetings are also available to watch online for those unable to attend in person.

Here is where my time this past month has been spent.

In addition to the County Council public meetings, December work included a Regional Development Commission meeting, a Board of Commissioners public meeting, a County Council work session, a Cicero Town council meeting, and a Noblesville Town Council meeting.

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None of the committees that I serve on, personnel, finance and insurance, met during December. This month I did not receive any constituent service requests.

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Noteworthy items from December included meetings to discuss the plans for Hamilton County’s Domestic Violence Center. This project appeared to me to be stalled for the last year, and that in part prompted discussions with the Commissioners and the project architect to not only get a status of the project but to understand if there was anything that the Council needed to do to move the project forward.

I spent hours looking through domestic violence data from comparable-sized suburban counties. This included arrests, prosecutor caseloads, reported incidents, along with facilities and services available to support those families impacted.

Armed with the data, I met with the project architect to understand the thought process behind the scope of the project. The office portion of the project is substantial, and the number of short-term housing units seems low given the size of our service area. In a county as large as ours, four housing units feels low to me. The plan is to pour pads for several more housing units, but those are not funded under this present project. Ideally, the center will obtain sponsors for the additional short-term housing units. The cost of the project will exceed $10 million and will replace the costs of emergency care and housing impacted families in hotels, or facilities in Anderson or Brownsburg.

Lastly, the cost is justified through improving the protection of our citizens. Unfortunately, reports of domestic violence are on the increase. Also, and more tragically, life-changing domestic violence crimes happen in Hamilton County. This facility will save lives.

Further, the county is negotiating with an operator who will rent the office space and provide emergency services to residents at the facility. Ideally, the operator’s rent will offset the cost of the project’s debt service.

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Also, as reported last month, after years of debate, the council has agreed to search for a Director of County Council Operations. County Council positions are part-time, and most of the Council work full-time jobs in addition to our responsibilities to you on the Council. The size and scope of our work is such that we need a full-time resource coordinating the information of dozens of departments, briefing the Council on Commissioners’ meetings, and representing the Council in meetings when we are otherwise obligated.

Even part-time, for me, county business is 25 hours a week on average and is part of what has forced me to change my position on adding this resource. I believe that this investment will produce better results from the council and as such better results for taxpayers.

This month has included reviewing over a dozen applicants for the new position. A hat tip to our Human Resources team for getting the process of filling this position moving.

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This month included attending events to honor several experienced county employees who retired at year’s end. Collectively, the county lost hundreds of years of experience in the surveyor’s, auditor’s and administrative offices. The knowledge leaving is big but not unexpected. Many of the departments began planning for the transition early in 2024 in hopes that the impact on the taxpayers will be minimized.

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Lastly of note was my continued research into a TIF fund with a large unused balance. My position is to save first, spend what is needed on public safety and infrastructure, and then look at other items. Imagine my surprise to find unspent and uncommitted funds. I believe that we can use these funds to offset outstanding debt.

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It was my honor to represent you this past month at the Noblesville Chamber of Commerce Holiday Luncheon, the annual Shop for Kids gift distribution, distributing Wreaths for Veterans at Riverside Cemetery, the Indiana Right to Life Gala, and at the Noblesville Holiday in Lights Parade.

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This is my timesheet. This is where my time went during December 2024. While my job is primarily the financial oversight of the county budget, it is important that I understand the Board of Commissioners’ priorities and balance them with the stewardship of taxpayer dollars. That is the job, and I am excited to do the people’s business.

As a taxpayer myself, and listening to so many of you, our employers, it’s important for the taxpayers to have access to all the information you want. I work for you, and although you may not choose to do a deep dive into what your County Council does, it’s important that you can always do so.

Feel free to contact me at (317) 832-1104 or mark.hall@hamiltoncounty.in.gov with questions, feedback, or if you would like to talk about county business.