Zionsville Will Get New Town Hall The Same Way Westfield Got Its Grand Park Soccer Arena

So much for the state law requiring units of local government to conduct a public referendum and allow voters to decide when government wants to borrow money and pledge tax revenues to build new buildings. Zionsville, like Westfield's grandiose decision to build an indoor soccer arena at Grand Park in a sweetheart deal with a politically-connected developer, will do the same thing to build a new town hall. Westfield turned to Holladay Properties to build its indoor soccer arena and lease it back to the city for 25 years at a cost of $53 million before taxpayers will take ownership of the facility that cost about $25 million to build. Zionsville is turning to the politically-connected Keystone Realty Group owned by Indy Eleven owner Ersal Ozdemir, to get its new town hall.

When Zionsville officials first started talking about plans for a new city hall, the building cost was estimated to be about $6.5 million. Now that they're closing to inking the deal, those costs have grown to $10.2 million. As Barnes & Thornburg's Bruce Donaldson explained the financing of the new town hall to town council members, "It would be sort of like if you bought a house on contract from a seller." What this deal actually involves is a build, operate and transfer agreement, which is governed by Indiana's Public-Private Agreements Act. That law requires these opportunities to be publicly bid through an RFP process. I've seen no mention of an RFP process that led to the selection of Ozdemir's Keystone Realty Group. But, hey, since when does a silly law get in the way when it's time to reward someone who has been very generous in contributing campaign dollars to the politicians? Keystone is also a client of Donaldson's law firm, but I'm sure the interim mayor/town council member, who is also a former partner of the same law firm, is aware of that.

A financial adviser at Crowe Horwath, Angie Steeno, told town council members the plan is to make biannual $284,572 payments to Keystone Realty Group, or about $570,000 annually. The funds, of course, weren't included in the town's 2016 budget. No problem, the town will tap county option income tax revenue, food and beverage tax receipts, its cumulative capital development and its TIF funds to piece together money for the payments. So at the end of the day a town hall that was originally going to cost about $6.5 million to build will in all likelihood cost at least $20 million. I suspect there's other payments beyond the lease payments that will accrue to Keystone Realty Group's benefit for operating and managing the building, but those details aren't mentioned in the Current In Zionsville report.

Kudos To Kenley For Telling Ozdemir What Other Lawmakers Are Afraid To Say

Sen. Luke Kenley

I've often disagreed with Sen. Luke Kenley (R-Noblesville) on a lot of issues, but I have to hand it to him today for saying to Ersal Ozdemir and his plan to force taxpayers to build a new soccer stadium for his minor league soccer team, Indy Eleven, what other lawmakers are afraid to say, or won't say because they're on his payroll. Kenley told the IBJ that Ozdemir's taxpayer-funded stadium deal is dead this year and successive years as far as he's concerned until he mans up and puts his own money on the line.

"I keep telling him to stand up and be a man," Kenley said. "If you’re a real capitalist, you should have money of your own in this. He’s one of those developers who’s had a little success and who realizes if he can get government to pay for this or that, then that’s a good deal for him. He acts like that’s pro forma."

Last year, Kenley had suggested $20 million in state-backed bonds to fund the renovation of IUPUI's Carroll Stadium where the Indy Eleven currently play as a bone to Ozdemir, inviting him to kick in more money if that wouldn't get him the stadium he wanted. The Turkish immigrant who comes from a country where paying bribes to politicians to get what you want is pro forma turned his nose up at that plan, insisting on a brand new $75 million plus stadium to be constructed elsewhere in downtown Indianapolis.

I wish I could say this is the end of this matter, but it won't be. Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett is in Ozdemir's back pocket. That was self-evident when he blocked a public corruption probe of Ozdemir's influence peddling while he was U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. Hogsett has already privately committed himself to support his project by placing his own handpicked stooges on the Capital Improvement Board who will find a way by hook or crook to give Ozdemir the stadium he wants for the Indy Eleven. I'm sorry, folks. You don't matter. Only the people stuffing money in the politicians' pockets matter, and we don't have any prosecutors in this state on our side to stop it from happening.

Despite Declining Attendance, Turkish Immigrant Still Demanding Taxpayers Build His Indy Eleven New Soccer Stadium

The Turkish immigrant Ersal Ozdemir isn't used to taking no for an answer. He was taught that if you stuff a bunch of money in the politicians' pockets, you can ask and receive government handouts for your private business endeavors on demand. From his mansion in a gated Carmel community, Ersal Ozdemir remains convinced he is owed a brand new soccer stadium financed by the taxpayers because he brought a minor league professional soccer team, Indy Eleven, to Indianapolis and made big campaign contributions to the politicians. In the end, he'll probably get what he wants based on the past track record of our bought and paid for politicians.

The facilities at IUPUI's Carroll Stadium are more than adequate for his fledgling soccer team, but he's a professional sports team owner and he was told that all professional sports team owners in Indianapolis get a taxpayer-financed stadium. He's not the least concerned that Indy Eleven's attendance has plummeted. Officially, Indy Eleven officials acknowledge only a 6.3% attendance figure decline, but anyone who has paid any attention to the televised games couldn't help but notice all of the empty seats in the stadium as this year's season wore on.

Peter Wilt tells the IBJ, whose owner Mickey Maurer is a next door neighbor of Ozdemir, that only the "tire kickers" have stopped attending the games. "Second seasons are always challenging," Wilt told the IBJ. "The tire kickers may have left, but we had a really good base. Coming out of our second season, we can find a lot of positives." Wilt claims food and beverage sales and sponsorships have made up for lost ticket revenues. Noticeably missing from that claim is the large number of free tickets the team has been giving out during the first two seasons in an effort to entice people to attend the games.

Wilt whines to the IBJ that Carroll Stadium lacks modern amenities like Banker's Life Fieldhouse and Lucas Oil Stadium. Sen. Luke Kenley tells the IBJ that he doesn't expect any action on a stadium next year since it's not a budget session, meaning Ozdemir will have to wait until at least 2017 to hit pay dirt. Kenley complained that he thought the team turned down a good deal offered last year to renovate Carroll Stadium for about $20 million. Wilt suckered a Chicago area community into building a new stadium for the Chicago Fire that caused taxes to skyrocket and the promises of success from the development of the new stadium came up way short before he was fired from that job. Attendance at the Chicago Fire's games at a modern stadium have been very disappointing.

Indy Eleven Owner Now Says He Needs $60 Million For Suitable Stadium

It's a moving target what it would cost to build a new soccer stadium for Ersal Ozdemir's Indy Eleven, but those responsible for footing the bill have always remained the same--the taxpayers. Last year, the owner said it would take close to $90 million to build a new stadium when the House signed a blank check for him by passing legislation he sought before the Senate killed legislation calling for a publicly-financed stadium for the shadowy Turkish businessman's young minor league soccer team.

This year, the cost of that stadium dropped to $83 million. The House quickly signed off again on the deal after we learned the Speaker of the House and a member of his leadership were both on Ozdemir's payroll. The Senate stripped the plan and offered the businessman $20 million in state money to renovate Carroll Stadium on the IUPUI campus in downtown Indianapolis where the team currently plays. Senate lawmakers said Ozdemir could pay for more costly improvements if he wanted a better stadium than the $20 million would buy.

A bait-and-switch amendment hastily added in the Senate before passage allowed Carroll Stadium to be razed and replaced by an entirely new stadium without the track and field component after the corrupt Ballard administration promised city dollars to pay for the extra costs of the stadium demanded by the Indy Eleven owner. This is the same mayor who promised $50 million in projects to five Democratic council members to get them to pass the criminal justice center he wants built under a public-private partnership agreement that will royally screw over Indianapolis taxpayers for decades to come. Indy Eleven's owner is very pleased with the deal because he knows he won't be paying a dime for the new stadium.

It’s all about creating a new home for the Indy Eleven, an 18,000 seat stadium that might lead to Major League Soccer in Indianapolis. 

Indiana University, however, says that Carroll Stadium is likely suitable only for demolition and that, rather than renovation, it would like to see a new stadium built that could also be used for NCAA championships in soccer and other sports. 

“If you want to build for professional soccer or an event type facility,” said Indiana University Vice President Tom Morrison, “it’s probably going to necessitate building almost a new stadium on that footprint that’s probably between $50 and $60 million.” 

Lawmakers are working on a plan that would limit state government investment to $20 million. “I think the other parties would need to contribute,” said Rep. Todd Huston (R-Fishers) “but we define what the state’s contribution would be.” That means $30 to $40 million would have to come from the team, the city, and Indiana University if the stadium plan is to succeed. Indy Eleven team officials say they can work with this plan.

At a conference committee meeting today on HB 1273, a representative of Indiana University first told bill conferees the stadium demanded by Ozdemir would cost at least $50 to $60 million and would require razing Carroll Stadium and starting from scratch. That's after the media lied to you about the Senate-passed plan, saying it limited public investment in the project to just $20 million when the bill passed by the Senate said no such thing. Advance Indiana, alone, told you that the plan called for razing Carroll Stadium.

Chances are that your lawmaker supports this big giveaway to Ozdemir since HB 1273 has passed both the Housen and Senate by very wide margins. You need to start asking your lawmakers what they've been promised in exchange for selling your interests down the river to enrich this man. You certainly aren't going to get any help from the useless media in this state, which does little more than write press releases for the people raping and pillaging our state.

Senate Passes Publicly-Financed Soccer Stadium For Indy Eleven

Ersal Ozdemir (Indianapolis Star Photo)

The Indiana General Assembly proves once again that they are the best legislature money can buy. The Senate overwhelming passed on a 46-3 vote enabling legislation to allow for the construction of a publicly-financed soccer stadium for the Indy Eleven minor league soccer stadium. The three senators who stood on the side of taxpayers are: State Sen. Mark Messmer (R-Jasper); State Sen. Greg Walker (R-Columbus) and State Sen. Carlin Yoder (R-Middlebury). State Sen. Amanda Banks (R-Columbia City), who is filling in for her husband, Jim Banks, during his tour of duty in Afghanistan was not present for the vote. The shadowy Turkish immigrant owner of the Indy Eleven, Ersal Ozdemir, proves you can buy politicians in America just like they do in his native country of Turkey.

WISH-TV includes this quote from Indy Eleven's Peter Wilt, the same huckster who sold the suburban Cook County municipality on a new professional soccer stadium for the Chicago Fire before he was fired from that job, a stadium that has left residents of Bridgeview reeling from skyrocketing taxes to pay the mounting debt on a stadium that never lived up to its expectations:

“We are thrilled that the Senate’s vote today furthers our goal to secure a proper stadium for ‘the World’s Game’ and all of its passionate supporters from across Indiana,” said Peter Wilt, president and general manager of Indy Eleven. “We look forward to building on this momentum with our partners at Indiana University and IUPUI and working towards a venue plan that will do the City and State proud while boosting Indiana’s economy for all Hoosiers.”

Indianapolis Star Misrepresents Key Change Made By Senate Amendment To Indy Eleven Stadium Bill

Just like The Indianapolis Star printed false stories about the impact of the RFRA legislation contained in SB 101, it is now printing lies in its newspaper about HB 1273, the legislation that provides for public financing of a new $83 million soccer stadium sought by the shadowy Turkish immigrant owner of the Indy Eleven. The difference portrayed by Star reporter Mark Alesia about a key change made by an amendment adopted by the Senate on second reading today is the difference between night and day.

Sen. Brandt Hershman stripped the original language contained in the House-passed version, which put taxpayers entirely on the hook to build an entirely new soccer stadium for the Indy Eleven. Hershman's committee amendment replaced the bill's original language with bond authorization granted to Indiana University of up to $20 million to renovate Carroll Stadium on IUPUI's downtown Indianapolis campus where the Indy Eleven currently play. Hershman's amended bill, he said, would allow Carroll Stadium's seating capacity to be expanded from 12,000 to 18,000, just 500 shy of the seating capacity of the $83 million stadium sought by Ozdemir. Members of the Senate committee that heard HB 1273 expressed their view that if Ozdemir wanted anything better than what the $20 million would provide, he should pony up his own money for the renovation project.

After the bill hit the Senate floor, Sen. Hershman filed a floor amendment that changed references in the bill to Carroll Stadium to include "or its successor." Sen. Hershman in a telephone interview with Advance Indiana Monday morning said he offered the amendment after talking to representatives of IU, who he explained were working on a design plan with Indy Eleven that would relocate the track and field component of the stadium, which was the original purpose it was built to serve, to a nearby location. Hershman said Indy Eleven had prepared renderings showing Carroll Stadium replaced by an entirely new stadium absent the track and field facilities to allow seating closer to the field of play. Hershman also said a new stadium would be configured with a playing area running north and south at its current location instead of the east and west direction of the current field of play. This bait-and-switch flew in the face of the desired outcome of making the facility a multi-purpose facility. Either Lucas Oil Stadium or Victory Field could have accommodated play for the Indy Eleven, but the demanding minor league soccer team owner viewed such reasonable and prudent suggestions as insulting.

Commenting on the proposed amendment in this week's edition of the IBJ, Mayor Greg Ballard's chief of staff, Jason Dudich, told the IBJ the City was prepared to step up and provide the necessary funding to pay for the new stadium to augment the $20 million in bonding authority included in the bill for IU, which is not required. Dudich defended city funding for a university-owned stadium on the same basis the City used last year for dipping into the downtown TIF fund to pay tens of millions to the university to renovate the nearby Natatorium, which IU allowed to fall into disrepair after the Lilly Foundation and others donated generously to build the facility, to attract national diving and swimming competitions. The City used the newly-built natatorium, which was considered the best in the country at the time, to help land the Pan Am Games in 1987.

Despite the IBJ's reporting and Hershman's explanation of it to Advance Indiana, this was how Alesia grossly misrepresented the changes in the bill adopted by a voice vote in the Senate today in his news story on The Star's website:

Amendments to House Bill 1273 passed on the Senate floor Tuesday involved financial reporting and clarifying language. An amendment on the use of minority- and women-owned businesses for the stadium at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis failed after a brief debate on whether it was repetitive of existing law.

Clarifying language? It's only clarifying language when it allows the track and field facilities to be displaced, the entire stadium razed and replaced with a brand new stadium exactly to the design specifications demanded by Ozdemir, a businessman about whom very little is known other than he suddenly fell into large sums of money that he started spreading around to all of the politicians about a decade ago after bankrupting a prior business he owned? Large campaign contributions have translated into hundreds of millions of dollars in public contracts and public subsidies being handed out to Ozdemir by state and local governments in Indiana. At least two lawmakers, House Speaker Brian Bosma and State Rep. Greg Steuerwald, have been put on Ozdemir's payroll, a fact neither bothered to disclose to the public last year when the House passed in record time legislation granting Ozdemir everything he demanded after very little public debate. Senate President Pro Tem killed that legislation when it arrived in the Senate.

The handwriting is on the wall that Ballard intends to use the unelected, unaccountable Capital Improvement Board to finance the balance of the cost of a new stadium without even seeking the city-county council's approval. Thanks to a state law Ballard got state lawmakers to enact, the council has less control over the CIB's finances, which continues to grow by leaps and bounds due to its increased taxing authority and additional state funding it has received under a professional sports development area established under state law that allows the CIB to capture state income and sales taxes to support its sports palaces and convention center. You can bet IU has no intention of paying the costs of maintaining and operating a new soccer stadium. The CIB will wind up paying 100% of those costs just like it does with Lucas Oil Stadium and Banker's Life Fieldhouse for the Colts and the Pacers. These are facts The Indianapolis Star is hiding from the public because it is quite obviously a co-conspirator with the folks who get very rich off the billions the City invests in anything related to sports. If that means telling the public something other than the truth, then so be it.

Perhaps it's time the public demanded to see a copy of the lease The Star signed with the Simon-operated Circle Centre Mall (built with taxpayer dollars) for its new digs. We'll presume the lease wasn't an arm's length transaction until proven otherwise, particularly the way the newspaper has pimped for giving billionaire Herb Simon hundreds of millions in public subsidies for his NBA team, The Star's publisher, Karen Ferguson, started dating Pacers CEO Rick Fuson soon after she moved to Indianapolis from Scottsdale, Arizona. They seemed to be an item even before her divorce with her ex-husband was final. The Star's new offices puts her and her newspaper's staff just a stone's throw from Banker's Life Fieldhouse.

Senate bill to renovate IUPUI stadium for @IndyEleven moves to senate vote after only slight amendments.
— Mark Alesia (@markalesia) April 7, 2015

Story on latest move forward in state legislature for @IndyEleven getting renovated stadium at IUPUI. http://t.co/wv31Grdoj2
— Mark Alesia (@markalesia) April 7, 2015

Lawmakers Pull Bait-And-Switch On Indy Eleven Stadium Deal: Amendment Will Allow New Stadium With City Money

Ersal Ozdemir (Indianapolis Star Photo)

The hope that the shadowy Turkish immigrant owner of the Indy Eleven, Ersal Ozdemir, and his powerful team of State House lobbyists hadn't bought off the Senate like we knew they had the Indiana House of Representatives, appears dashed. Under a plan included in a Senate amendment offered by Sen. Brandt Hershman, the $20 million in state financing to renovate Carroll Stadium could be scrapped and replaced by the brand new $83 million publicly-financed stadium sought by Ozdemir. Mayor Greg Ballard's administration is already working behind the scenes to cobble together a funding proposal that will force Indianapolis taxpayers to pick up the balance of the tab for the stadium under the auspices of the Capital Improvement Board, which will also be stuck paying 100% of the operating and maintenance costs on the stadium just like is the case with Banker's Life Fieldhouse and Lucas Oil Stadium.

Even though the City pleads poverty when it comes to spending money maintaining neighborhood streets and sidewalks, parks and other basic city services, Ballard's chief of staff Jason Dudich tells the IBJ there's no problem finding city dollars to pay for the new stadium, which wants to ensure the Carroll Stadium makeover is "no humdrum makeover." "We're still committed to helping out," Dudich said. The mayor's office isn't saying just how much the City is willing to chip in to enrich Ozdemir's Indy Eleven professional soccer franchise. The City is defending the use of money on a facility owned by Indiana University, noting the City already agreed to provide tens of millions of dollars from TIF funds to renovate the university's Natatorium facility, which sits just to the west of Carroll Stadium on the university's campus. "The mayor wants a multi-purpose facility," Dudich said. "This investment not only helps Indy Eleven, it also helps a bunch of other organizations." I suspect there are some others who would disagree with that assessment since a new facility is likely to draw business away from other publicly-financed facilities which the City is already hard-pressed to maintain due to its sweetheart deals with billionaire professional sports team owners.

The IBJ says the mayor's staff is working closely with Ballard's former chief of staff, Paul Okeson, who was hired away by Ozdemir in a high-paid, six-figure job several years back in consideration for all of the public tax dollars Ballard steered towards the shadowy businessman the public knows little about. A short time after Okeson started working for Ozedemir, Ballard announced that the first funds to be spent from his corrupt privatization deal of the City's parking meter assets, which was brokered by the law firm which employed then City-County Council President Ryan Vaughn, would go to Ozdemir. The City gave Keystone Construction $6.5 million to build a new parking garage and commercial space in Broad Ripple, which he owns entirely and retains all of the revenues generated from parking and commercial leases. According to Ozdemir's former business partner, Keystone Construction inflated the construction costs on the project substantially by charging a multi-million dollar development fee he paid to himself.

Ozdemir's rise to political power has been meteoric. A construction company he previously owned went bankrupt a little more than a decade ago and his Carmel home was placed in foreclosure, while he was sued for failing to perform on several construction projects, including public library projects. Virtually overnight, Ozdemir appeared to be swimming in cash, becoming one of the largest campaign contributors to various Republican politicians and assuming the role as finance chairman for the Greater Indianapolis Republican Finance Committee after disgraced Ponzi schemer Tim Durham was forced to step down from that role. The Marion Co. GOP moved its headquarters into a building owned by Ozdemir which houses corporate offices for Keystone Construction and the Indy Eleven. Both Mayor Ballard and Carmel's Mayor Jim Brainard have lavished public dollars on sweetheart development projects awarded to Ozdemir's construction and real estate development companies. Nobody seems to care much about claims made in separate lawsuits pending in Hamilton and Hendricks County where his former business partner, Jason Ellis, has accused Ozdemir of defrauding him out of his ownership interest in his business and accused Ozdemir of inflating subcontractor bills and billing his construction company for costs associated with building a multi-million dollar mansion he built for himself in a gated Carmel community next to IBJ publisher Mickey Maurer.

As a result of Advance Indiana's exclusive reporting, it was revealed that Ozdemir had placed House Speaker Brian Bosma and another member of his House leadership team, State Rep. Greg Steuerwald (R-Avon), who chairs the House Ethics Committee and serves as Assistant Caucus Leader, on his payroll. The House rammed through the House approval of  a public financing deal for a new stadium for the Indy Eleven last year before the minor league soccer team had even played its first game. Neither Bosma nor Steuerwald, both of whom are attorneys, disclosed the fact they were doing legal work for Ozdemir. Bosma was hired to perform trademark work for the Indy Eleven, while Steuerwald had been employed by Ozdemir for several years to represent his interests in the ongoing litigation with his former business partner in Hendricks County. Both belatedly acknowledged their relationship with Ozdemir and abstained from voting on the legislation this year but only after Advance Indiana blew their cover.

One doesn't have to study too closely the recent indictment federal prosecutors brought against New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) on bribery and honest services fraud charges, or any number of cases federal prosecutors in Chicago have brought against multiple public officials to wonder why no prosecutions are being brought in Indiana. One of the serious problems in Indiana in getting federal public corruption cases pursued lies in the U.S. Attorney's Office, which are occupied by political appointees signed off on by the senior senator whose party controls the White House prior to their presidential appointment. Indiana's senators, Democrat and Republican alike, only choose political hacks to fill that role in the Southern District of Indiana, unlike the Northern District where we've seen some tough prosecutors appointed willing to take on public corruption cases regardless of political party.

Most recently, whistle blowers complain that former U.S. Attorney Joe Hogsett, who is now running for Indianapolis mayor, killed multiple public corruption cases during his tenure, some believe in exchange for a deal he made with the Republican Party under which Mayor Ballard agreed not to seek re-election, and the Republican Party would throw the mayor's race to him. This seems quite plausible considering the rampant corruption in Ballard's administration and that of former Marion Co. Prosecutor Carl Brizzi, which Hogsett swept completely under the rug. Similarly, one of Hogsett's predecessors, now U.S. Rep. Susan Brooks, stunned local FBI investigators years earlier when she tossed in the waste basket a major corruption case in Lawrence where former Mayor Tom Schneider illegally entered into a deal with political cronies that allowed them to walk off with control of the city's water utility company, along with millions of dollars in cash and assets. Schneider's successor had to spend a tremendous amount of taxpayer money in legal expenses trying to unwind Schneider's corrupt deal. The law firm Lawrence fought was Ice Miller, the same law firm which is lobbying on behalf of Ozdemir for this corrupt stadium funding deal. Brooks, herself a former Ice Miller attorney, was later rewarded with a high-paid job at Ivy Tech following her tenure as U.S. Attorney, while her husband's law firm made off well from work steered to it by Republican power brokers, including the redrawing of Indianapolis' city-county council districts. Those same powers lined up to back Susan's successful bid to represent Indiana's Fifth District in 2012. Not surprisingly, Brooks quickly rose to the inner circle of House Speaker Boehner's extremely corrupt leadership team in Washington.

Folks, this is the sort of thing you should be reading about on the front page of the Indianapolis Star. Sadly, the newspaper is more interested in faux news stories manufactured by its disingenuous reporters and editorial staff. The taxpayers of this state and city are literally being raped by political insiders who care only about lining their own pockets at the public's expense. I can't keep count of the numerous e-mails and phone calls I receive from citizens complaining that they were turned away by reporters at The Star and our local TV stations when they have attempted to blow the whistle on all of the public corruption taking place. It really is depressing. I'm more than happy to use this blog as a venue for airing what should be reported by the mainstream media no matter how many enemies I make in the process. I frankly don't give a damn what they think about me.

UPDATE (4-6-15): Sen. Brandt Hershman contacted me this morning to clarify the purpose behind his amendment. He explained to me that folks at IU working on the proposal had mentioned their interest in having the option of relocating the track and field component of the existing Carroll Stadium to a different site, which would allow fan seating closer to the soccer field. There are apparently also renderings that  would shift the playing field from running east-west to a north-south configuration. Hershman's main concern is that it remain a state-owned facility with minimal state investment, and that he's not in any way trying to dictate, what the city and/or the CIB wind up contributing to the facility or what their ongoing role in maintaining it will be; rather, that's for IU and city officials to work out. I told Hershman I thought this undermined the city's argument that it wanted a multi-use facility if the track and field component was being removed entirely. If multi-use means hosting concerts at the venue, then why is the state-owned White River Park working with Dave Lucas to build a new outdoor venue at the old GM Stamping Plant site, which would be yet another facility competing for downtown concerts? The bottom line is that we won't wind up with a renovated Carroll Stadium; Carroll Stadium will no longer exist and we'll wind up with the new stadium envisioned by Ozdemir, plus a new track and field facility built at a separate location.

Senate Committee Approves Renovated Carroll Stadium Plan For Indy Eleven

The Senate Tax & Policy Committee amended out out of HB 1273 this morning a funding mechanism for an $83 million soccer arena for the Indy Eleven minor league soccer team and replaced it with a plan to renovate Carroll Stadium. The Senate plan would allow for $20 million in bonding authority for renovations to the stadium to enlarge it from a 12,000-seat facility to an 18,000-seat facility, which would remain under state control. If Indy Eleven owner Ersal Ozdemir wants something better, State Sen. Luke Kenley told him to put up his own money. "How fancy or how nice the stadium will be will depend on what he wants to put in," Luke Kenley, R-Noblesville, told the Indianapolis Star. "The amount of money we're putting in would rehabilitate the current stadium."

The source of funding to pay debt service on the $20 million bond issue remains the same. The Professional Sports Development Area ("PSDA") would be enlarged to encompass the stadium grounds and a planned new hotel Ozdemir is building at Illinois and Market Streets. The PSDA captures sales and income taxes that are used by Indianapolis' Capital Improvement Board to support the various sports palaces and convention center it oversees. Taxpayers are obviously still on the hook to pay for the costs of the renovated stadium, not just as much. One burning question is who will be responsible for the costly, long-term maintenance costs of the stadium. If Ozdemir's lease agreement is no different than the Colts or the Pacers, it  means taxpayers will be picking up 100% of those costs.

According to the Star, Ozdemir was non-committal on where he stood on the proposal and whether he was willing to put up any of his own money, calling it "a great step forward. "We've always said we want to be part of the solution. It's just difficult to say, where we are now. We believe in this. If this works out to be beneficial for all involved, we will always be at the table." Ozdemir will never put up a dime of his own money. The power brokers will tell Ozdemir that he can sell the naming rights to this state-owned facility, and they'll count that as his personal contribution to the project.

Senate Plan Calls For Renovated Carroll Stadium In Place Of New Stadium For Indy Eleven

A plan unveiled in the Indiana Senate today would nix plans for a publicly-financed soccer stadium for the Indy Eleven minor league soccer team and replace it with a much less costly plan to expand and renovate Carroll Stadium. An amendment that Sen. Brandt Hershman plans to offer proposes $20 million in state funding to renovate the state-owned Carroll Stadium to expand its seating capacity from 12,000 to 18,000, which would be matched by a $5 million contribution from the Capital Improvement Board. Carroll Stadium would remain a multi-purpose facility under state control as part of the IUPUI campus.

This plan makes so much more sense for so many reasons. Carroll Stadium was built back in the early 80s as a track and field facility when the city hosted the Pan Am Games. Over the years, the stadium has been poorly-maintained just like the Natatorium next door, which was also built especially for the Pan Am Games. It's a good location with ample parking situated adjacent to White River State Park. I would suggest the state consider selling naming rights to the stadium rather than tapping existing state revenues to pay the improvements. If professional soccer is as popular as the Indy Eleven backers say it is, there shouldn't be any problem finding a name sponsor to pony up most of the money required for the renovations.

Media Full Of More Press Releases Supporting Indy Eleven Publicly-Financed Soccer Stadium

The State House media is pumping out press releases again today for the owner of the Indy Eleven minor league soccer team, who has opened up a large wallet of money from unknown sources to pay a large team of high-paid lobbyists to pass legislation that will force taxpayers to finance an $83 million soccer stadium for his one-year old soccer team. Today's press releases from your useless State House reporters tell you about a planned State House rally. Advance Indiana exclusively reported that this rally is being organized by the Indiana Soccer Association , a supposed nonprofit youth soccer organization run by one of Ersal Ozdemir's high-paid lobbyists, J. Murray Clark, Jr., that has been turned into nothing more than a lobbying arm for Ozdemir's self-serving purposes. If your lawmaker supports HB 1273, then you can assume that he or she has been bought and paid for by this shadowy Turkish immigrant and his lobbyists. The Indiana General Assembly has become the most corrupt legislature in all of America filled with a bunch of street whores selling themselves off to the highest bidder. There are no longer any watch dogs in the media to protect the public's interest so until you take to the streets to demand change, your elected officials will continue to sell you out to the highest bidder.

UPDATE: Some hope there is some sanity left in the legislature. Senate President David Long will not commit to allowing a hearing on this taxpayer ripoff much to the disappointment of WISH-TV's Jim Shella, whose TV station pimps nonstop for this taxpayer boondoggle because of its financial relationship with Ozdemir's Indy Eleven.

Sen. Long says soccer stadium discussion may not bear fruit. No commitment to a Senate hearing.
— Jim Shella (@shellawish) March 19, 2015

It looks like fake conservative State Sen. Brandt Hershman's vote has been bought off. He plans to offer an amendment to the bill and give it a hearing next week to make its passage more palatable in the Tax & Fiscal Policy Committee according to the Gannett-owned Indianapolis Star, which is blocking reporting of the rampant corruption occurring in plain view over at the State House to ensure passage of more public funding for another sports palace. There should be an undercover FBI sting operation taking place in that State House right now so all of these crooks can be rounded up and hauled out of the State House in handcuffs, but this is Indianapolis, the most corrupt city in all of America where no such thing can occur. We're sick and tired of our government officials being bought by people with filthy money who think the public treasury is a spigot that can be turned on and off as they please to finance their own private self-serving interests.

Only about 50 people showed up for the rally in support of this pathetic attempt to rape taxpayers and over half of them are on Ozdemir's payroll.

Soccer Parents Complain About Nonprofit Youth Soccer League Being Exploited To Lobby For Passage Of Publicly-Financed Indy Eleven Soccer Stadium

A former state senator and Indiana State GOP Chairman, Murray Clark, Jr., is one of several high-paid lobbyists the shadowy Turkish immigrant, Ersal Ozdemir, has put on his payroll to convince Indiana state lawmakers that the public should finance a new $83 million plus soccer stadium for his Indy Eleven minor league professional soccer team. Soccer parents are now complaining to Advance Indiana that Clark has exploited his position as president of a nonprofit, statewide youth soccer league, Indiana Soccer Association, to use the nonprofit's resources and contact lists to overtly lobby parents and youth soccer participants to contact state lawmakers to lobby for the passage of HB 1273.

The most recent income tax return filed by the youth soccer league that Advance Indiana was able to locate on Guidestar stated that the 501(c)(3) organization engaged in no lobbying activities. Yet the nonprofit's website prominently promotes a State House rally planned for March 19, and the organization has been flooding its members with e-mail solicitations urging them to send supporters to the State House rally to lobby state lawmakers. E-mails urge "fans of the beautiful game of soccer" to come together "to share our passion for the Stadium for Indiana proposal now being considered by the Indiana General Assembly." Free t-shirts promoting the new stadium are being offered to anyone who shows up for the rally. A free catered lunch is being provided by Levy Restaurants for a "meet-and greet session with Indy Eleven's full roster, including autograph and photograph opportunities."

Parents complain to Advance Indiana that Clark has hijacked the statewide nonprofit organization for the benefit of his well-heeled client, who is no doubt paying him a large sum of money to lobby his former colleagues for passage of the publicly-funded stadium. Clark, a partner at Faegre Baker Daniels, is a member of the nonprofit's board of directors and serves as its president. The organization's executive director is Dave Guthrie. While some parents who have complained to Advance Indiana support the Indy Eleven, they question the use of the nonprofit to lobby on behalf of something that financially benefits Ozdemir's Indy Eleven. Several of the parents have attended Indy Eleven games at Carroll Stadium this past year and support the team but strongly object to a new stadium being built on the backs of the taxpayers when there are already perfectly viable facilities available to the team to use, including its current home. The Indiana Soccer Association reported annual revenues of over $1.8 million on its most recent tax return. The nonprofit's stated mission is to "develop youth by promoting the growth of, and an appreciation for the game of soccer in Indiana." Advance Indiana was unable to find a report on file with the Indiana Lobby Registration Commission indicating that the nonprofit is registered to lobby state lawmakers.

By this point, it has become abundantly clear that Ozdemir and his hired political hacks and lobbyists will stop at nothing to force Indianapolis taxpayers to build a monument to a shadowy businessman with questionable business ethics whose activities within this state are worthy of further investigating by appropriate law enforcement authorities, particularly in light of the damning allegations his former business partner has asserted against him in contentious litigation. As a result of Advance Indiana's earlier reporting, we now know that Ozdemir has put Indiana House Speaker Brian Bosma on his payroll as one of his team's attorneys, as well as the chairman of the House Ethics Committee and Assistant Caucus Leader, State Rep. Greg Steuerwald (R-Avon). When will the paid State House media wake up and start doing its job in reporting all that's going on under the State House dome instead of just pumping out press releases handed to them by legislative advocates?

Here's the text of a recent e-mail sent out by the nonprofit:

Indiana Statehouse – South Atrium
200 W Washington Street, Indianapolis, IN
Thursday, March 19 – 10:00 a.m.
 

Fans of the beautiful game of soccer are invited to come together at the Indiana Statehouse to share our passion for the Stadium for Indiana proposal now being considered by the Indiana General Assembly.

Indy Eleven Professional Soccer will lead a chorus of supporters to cheer on our vision for the 18,500-seat multipurpose stadium proposed for downtown Indianapolis. Beginning at 10:00 a.m., hear from key speakers on this initiative, learn about the latest details, meet the entire Indy Eleven team, enjoy a catered lunch, get your Stadium for Indiana t-shirt, and tour the Statehouse to see your representatives in action and meet with your legislators to share your support for this bill.

Rally for Indiana Itinerary
10:00 am - Formal rally held in South Atrium, featuring speakers representing various members of the soccer community in the Hoosier State
11:00 am - Catered lunch provided by Levy Restaurants and meet-and-greet session with Indy Eleven's full roster, including autograph and photograph opportunities!
12:00 pm - The official Indiana Statehouse tour begins (see more details below, including how to RSVP

Gannett List Says There Is Hope For Justin Moed's Survival

The Gannett-owned Indianapolis Star has a new list discussing the sexting scandal involving one of political columnist Matthew Tully's favorite circle jerk buddies, State Rep. Justin Moed (D-Indianapolis), and finds "hope" that he might survive. Once you figure out that Gannett newspapers are nothing more than one giant psyop against the American people, this list like the others they throw at us virtually daily makes sense, particularly since one of Gannett's primary goals is to define deviancy down.

The Star's Tom LoBianco used to be the best State House reporter when he worked for the AP. Now that he's joined the Star, he's become nothing more than a list-maker regurgitating Gannett's talking points. LoBianco gives us six reasons today why Rep. Moed might survive.

1. Moed clipped the story by apologizing quickly. Sexting scandals only get worse if allowed to linger without a response.

2. He's a Democrat, and he's supported gay marriage. The fallout on scandals like this tends to be worse for conservative "family values" politicians, specifically because of the implicit hypocrisy. 

3. Moed is not alone. There's a long list of scandals involving Hoosier politicos and officials. The stories range from soliciting sex from undercover police in men's bathrooms to being listed as a client of the "D.C. Madame." 

4. He didn't break the law. Based on the allegations, all Moed is guilty of is poor judgment. 

5. Sex scandals can be damaging, but even that isn't always permanent in politics. The bizarre disappearance of then-South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford in the summer of 2009, and the resulting revelation that he was carrying on an affair, forever redefined what it meant to go "hiking on the Appalachian Trail." He was censured by the South Carolina legislature — but never removed — and served out his full term as governor. He later ran for, and won, a U.S. House seat. 

6. And then there's Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky. Many readers who called and wrote in following the Moed story landed on a very simple question — one that helped Clinton not only overcome the Lewinsky scandal but engineered a backfiring of sorts against Republicans: What business does the public have prying into the private lives of politicians?

The most important point of LoBianco's story is to reassure Moed that the newspaper won't be digging any deeper into his scandal. That's the primary point communicated here. That's because he subscribes to the Gannett agenda. Note that the Star emphasizes Moed's support for gay marriage, while omitting any mention of Moed's graphic discussion in his social media exchanges with Leathers of his BBC fetish in which he described his casual, frequent hook-ups with a buff young black man named Omar (as shown by the nearly naked images of him he sent to Leathers) while presenting himself to the public and presumably his fiancée as a straight man. I expect political columnist Matthew Tully will follow-up with a similar reassuring column any day now that emphasizes the point he made in this Twitter post shortly after news of the scandal broke.

Feel the need to note that Rep. Moed is a particularly hard-working lawmaker who has done a lot for often-neglected neighborhoods.
— Matthew Tully (@matthewltully) March 10, 2015

LoBianco concludes Rep. Moed broke no laws without even lifting a finger to ascertain the veracity of that generalization. Good investigative journalism would require a reporter to look at this major character flaw exposed to us by a porn star and ask whether those seeking to influence Moed's votes as a state lawmaker had exploited that weakness to their advantage. Was one of the down low lobbyists (and there are more than a few of them) helping finance his sexual exploits at local hotels and on out-of-town trips? Moed didn't just show up at the State House. He worked as a door man for the House Democrats for several years before becoming a state lawmaker. We learned without any digging that Rep. Moed was partying with former State Rep. Dennie Oxley, a fellow House Democratic staffer at the time, the same night Oxley was found highly intoxicated at a downtown Citgo gas station holding the high heels of a 21-year old intern, who was also found to be highly intoxicated. Oxley was later arrested for impersonating a lawmaker to avoid arrest under legislative immunity while the legislature was in session. Has the Star inquired about whether Moed has engaged in inappropriate sexual relationships in the past with House staffers as rumored?

Is the Star digging to find out whether Rep. Moed's government-issued laptop computer was being used for his sexual exploits? Has the Star put in a public records request for Rep. Moed's e-mails? Has the Star asked whether any campaign dollars may have been misspent. The IBJ's lastest edition has a story inquiring about more than $10,000 City-County Council President Maggie Lewis reimbursed herself over the past couple of years in large round numbers from her campaign funds without any detailed explanation. The Star, however, seems more intent on telling us there's nothing really to see here, folks, just move along. After all, Moed's got important work ahead of him like helping the shadowy Turkish immigrant, Ersal Ozdemir, obtain state approval for public financing of a new soccer stadium for his Indy Eleven minor league professional soccer team, along with other goodies thrown in to promote development of the former GM Stamping Plant site for a new outdoor music venue and criminal justice center, all of which have been given the seal of approval by the newspaper and which are being co-authored by Moed. The Star doesn't seem to have much of an appetite for digging into the background of Ozdemir either, and there's plenty there on which to report. Gee, I wonder why that is?

Justin Moed is in the Statehouse for today's House session.
— Jim Shella (@shellawish) March 16, 2015

Justin Moed back in Indiana House today. Shaking hands, talking w other House members
— Tom LoBianco (@tomlobianco) March 16, 2015

UPDATE: Not all Democratic lawmakers welcomed State Rep. Justin Moed back into the fold when he returned to the State House today. Four walked off the floor. WISH-TV's Jim Shella didn't say those four legislator were. Moed says he has no plans to resign.

Indianapolis Star Finally Calls Out House Speaker And Ethic Committee Chairman On Financial Ties To Indy Eleven's Ersal Ozdemir

State House reporters for the Indianapolis Star finally got around to discussing the financial ties House Speaker Brian Bosma and House Ethics Committee Chairman Greg Steuerwald have to Indy Eleven's owner Ersal Ozdemir after Advance Indiana first first broke the story. Speaker Bosma rushed out a conflict letter on February 13, 2015 after Advance Indiana reported that Rep. Steuerwald, an Avon attorney, had been representing Ozdemir and his construction and real estate development businesses in contentious litigation with a former business partner in Hendricks County for the past several years.

Despite that relationship, Steuerwald supported and voted for legislation last year providing for the public financing of a new soccer stadium for Ozdemir's Indy Eleven minor league professional soccer team in downtown Indianapolis. After Advance Indiana reported on Steuerwald's conflict, Bosma fired off a letter to the ethics committee disclosing legal work his law firm had performed for Indy Eleven and requesting to excuse himself from voting on this year's stadium financing legislation, HB 1273. Both Bosma and Steuerwald abstained from voting on HB 1273 when it came up for a vote in the House of Representatives last week on Second and Third Reading.

In today's Star story by Tony Cook and Mark Alesia titled, "Ethical dilemma? House Speaker Brian Bosma has ties to Indy Eleven," Common Cause's Julia Vaughn criticized the timing of Bosma's disclosure, although the story ignores the fact that it was prompted by Advance Indiana's exclusive report, while Bosma defended his actions regarding the matter.

“If it’s going to be meaningful to the process it has to be timely,” Vaughn said. “I think it would have been more transparent if he had put his cards on the table beforehand.”

Bosma defended himself by saying he has never voted on the issue or advocated for it privately.

“I feel like I handled it perfectly correctly with advice from legal counsel on how to do it,” Bosma said. “It was appropriate for me not to make any public statements about it and just to distance myself as much as possible so the normal legislative process could take place.” . . .

Bosma said he works on trademarks, contracts and sponsorship agreements for the team . . .

Bosma said he didn’t try to hide his relationship with the team. He said that last year he privately told Gov. Mike Pence and Senate President Pro Tempore David Long he couldn’t discuss the stadium issue because of his work for the team.

Bosma never publicly disclosed his work for the team until reporters pressed him for an opinion on the measure after Wednesday’s vote. Initially, he said he didn’t have an opinion on the bill. Only when a reporter told him that seemed unlikely did he explain he had done “some work with the team” and has “not been a public or private advocate” for the project.

He later voluntarily provided a copy of his Feb. 13 letter to the House ethics committee, although such letters are not public record.

The Star report also discusses Steuerwald's belated disclosure of his conflict of interest and the fact he voted for the Indy Eleven stadium legislation last year and only abstained this year after Advance Indiana's reporting. Both Bosma and Steuerwald insisted that even tougher ethics rules pushed by them this year didn't require they abstain from voting on the legislation; rather, they did so for appearances sake. "Steuerwald . . .  said the new ethics rules — which include language discouraging “the appearance of impropriety” — were the primary factor in his decision to abstain from voting this year, the Star reported. "That is a higher standard, so even though I had no pecuniary interest, no financial interest in the bill of any kind, I thought it would be best to avoid the appearance of impropriety," he said.

Keystone Construction's vice president, Paul Okeson, assured the Star the hiring of Bosma and Steuerwald by his boss' firm had nothing to do with their roles as state lawmakers.“This is Indianapolis,” Okeson said. "We’re sort of a big small city. It’s perfectly reasonable that at some point you might interact on a business transaction with someone who may be an official at the Statehouse," Okeson said. "But, it’s not like we do that exclusively. It’s not like we look to that for any undue gain. It’s part and parcel of doing business in Indianapolis." "Compared to our total (legal) spending, it’s not a significant amount with either of those two lawyers,” Okeson said." "Okeson said the lawmakers didn’t give advice on the proposed stadium and that the company uses 13 law firms." Okeson assured the Star that Ozdemir did not have any business relationship with other lawmakers. Vaughn told the Star she viewed the hiring of the two lawmakers as "a curious coincidence."

Retired Barnes & Thornburg Partner Unloads On Indy Eleven Soccer Stadium Deal And Former Colleagues

Tom Huston

When an Advance Indiana reader forwarded to me a column Tom Huston penned over at Indiana Policy Review's blog, I had to do a double take. Huston's scathing critique of legislation authored by his nephew, State Rep. Todd Huston (R-Fishers), to force taxpayers to finance a nearly $90 million, 18,500-seat soccer stadium for Ersal Ozdemir's Indy Eleven minor league soccer team could have been written by me, but I assure you I had no part in authoring it. Huston, a retired Barnes & Thornburg partner whose practice area focused on real estate development, had particularly harsh words for his former colleagues' role in aiding the passage of HB 1273.

State Rep. Todd Huston

Huston opens his column by telling readers not to "believe a thing you are told by its proponents or their mouthpieces at the Indianapolis Star." "They are in a Putin frame of mind, and if you are inclined to believe that the Legislature has the slightest interest in protecting taxpayers from the rapacious grip of Ersal Ozdemir and his fellow schemers, you have lost contact with reality," he writes. And that's just for starts.

Huston doesn't mince words in describing the amendment authored by his former colleague at Barnes & Thornburg, State Rep. Ed DeLaney, which DeLaney claimed would put Ozdemir on the hook for half of the debt. Huston's analysis of the DeLaney amendment mirrors mine. "Actually, his proposal won’t do any such thing since there it incorporates no requirement that the guarantor possess assets of a minimum amount," Huston said. "Unfortunately, DeLaney has spent his legal career as a litigator, and he doesn’t understand the fine art of theft through public-private deal-making." Ouch! "As to these statements, I simply blanch in embarrassment for my friend and former law partner: DeLaney said he didn’t ask for a 100 percent guarantee because he wanted a 'fair and measured approach' . . . DeLaney is oblivious to the reality that the only obligor/guarantor who is going to be of interest to buyers of bonds issued to finance the stadium is the deep-pocketed Capital Improvements Board," Huston said. "Any guaranty from others will be simply window-dressing for boobs."

Huston isn't buying assurances from the stadium's proponents of transparency in financing the stadium and then takes aim at Indianapolis' mayor: "Mayor Greg Ballard has refused to turn over documentation relating to either the special operations center lease or the financing structure for the proposed criminal justice center (both multi-million dollar deals) and has conducted as much of the public business in secret as his handlers thought he could get away with." Huston continues, "I am undecided whether those pushing this scheme are in on the action or are simply reading from a script prepared by the lobbyists (which, incidentally, include every major lobbying outfit in Indianapolis)." That team of lobbyists hired by Ozdemir includes some of his former partners at Barnes & Thornburg. Huston also includes some specific, spot-on analysis of the tax-shifting implications of the expanded downtown TIF and the creation of a new White River Revitalization District to sweeten the pot.

In concluding remarks, Huston say, "It is certainly true that the measure before the House is merely 'enabling' legislation: it will enable Ozdemir and his cronies to continue the rape of taxpayers that Mayor Ballard has enabled over the past seven years and which, apparently, the new Democratic administration of Joe Hogsett intends to also facilitate." He continued, "Millions of dollars in fees and commissions will continue to flow to favored law firms and their engineering and construction company clients. In the meantime, the legislators who expedite this fraud upon the public will continue to profess their commitment to free-market principles." He closes, "Lady Liberty weeps." I couldn't have said it better myself.

Ersal Ozdemir (Indianapolis Star/Danese Kenon Photo)

House Speaker Reveals For First Time He's On Ersal Ozdemir's Payroll As Well

UPDATED: SPEAKER DIDN'T VOTE ON GAMING EXPANSION BILL-WHAT DOES IT MEAN?
Well just how many state lawmakers are on Ersal Ozdemir's payroll? Advance Indiana exclusively reported to you that State Rep. Greg Steuerwald (R-Avon) has been on Ersal Ozdemir's payroll as his attorney of record in contentious litigation Ozdemir is engaged with a former business partner, Jason Ellis, who alleges Ozdemir defrauded him out of his 20% interest in his construction and real estate development business. Despite that conflict of interest, Rep. Steuerwald supported and voted for legislation authorizing the public financing of a new stadium for Ozdemir's Indy Eleven minor league soccer stadium when it came for a vote before the House last year. Steuerwald reversed course and abstained when the legislation came before the House this year following Advance Indiana's report of his conflict of interest. Even more disturbing is a very cavalier disclosure today by House Speaker Brian Bosma that he too has performed legal work for Ozdemir, prompting him to join Steuerwald in abstaining from a vote on the passage of HB 1273.

The troubling disclosure of Bosma's conflict of interest is tucked away in an online story on the Indianapolis Star's website concerning the passage of HB 1273 on a 73-21 vote this afternoon. "House speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, did not vote on the bill Wednesday, the Star's Mark Alesia and Tony Cook report. "He disclosed after the vote that he had done legal work for the Indy Eleven and has remained neutral." "That work involved trademarks and contract negotiations." "I don't have an (ownership) interest in it," Bosma said. "Honestly, I'm just trying to set the example for others and felt it was appropriate for me to file a letter (with the House ethics committee) and be excused."

He's remained neutral? Hah. This man controls the calendar and all bills heard in committee and called up for vote on the floor. His unilateral action can block a bill from being heard at any point along the way. By not disclosing at the beginning of the legislative session his conflict of interest, he has opened himself up to a heap of criticism that he has helped engineer passage of this bill for his client. This is even more troubling if the legal work he performed for Ozdemir occurred prior to consideration of last year's legislation. More interesting is the fact that Bosma's practice area at his law firm does not traditionally include trademark work. According to the firm's website, Bosma describes his practice area as follows:

With an extensive background in engineering, business, law and government, Mr. Bosma’s practice is concentrated in the areas of complex business and municipal transactions, municipal finance and environmental matters. He chairs the Government Practice Group of Kroger Gardis & Regas, and serves as general or special counsel to dozens of municipalities and business entities throughout the State of Indiana. 

An engineering graduate of Purdue University, Mr. Bosma represents both public and private sector clients in real estate and construction projects, public sector joint ventures and Brownfield redevelopment. He has served as lead counsel for more than fifty public and economic development projects ranging from small facilities to major public private utility projects. He is nationally recognized bond counsel and an active member of the Indiana Municipal Lawyers Association and the National Association of Bond Lawyers.

His government-related work alone raises all sorts of red flags since he has rarely disclosed a conflict of interest in participating on any matters before the General Assembly. Unlike Steuerwald, Bosma did not actually abstain from the vote; rather, he simply didn't vote on HB 1273. Steuerwald actually stood and requested permission to abstain from voting ahead of the vote, whereupon he was instructed to state the reason in writing for his abstention. Is there any wonder why those of us on the outside looking in see nothing but a public auction taking place over at the State House where financial benefits to lawmakers are regularly traded for favorable consideration of legislation before the General Assembly?

Last month, federal prosecutors in New York indicted the Empire State's long-time Assembly Speaker, Sheldon Silver, on multiple public corruption charges accusing him of accepting legal referral fees from clients with matters pending before the state legislature in exchange for favorable legislative consideration. Silver was accused of failing to disclose the sources of his income on state ethics statements. Indiana's weak ethics laws do not require lawmaker attorneys to disclose clients with matters pending before the legislature. In fact, both Bosma's and Steuerwald's financial disclosure statements claim attorney-client privilege and the rules of professional conduct governing attorney conduct prohibits them from making such disclosures.

UPDATE: A vote yesterday was also taken on HB 1540, the big gaming bill all of the high-powered gaming lobbyists have been working the hallways hard this session to pass. It allows riverboat casinos to become land-based casinos, and it allows live dealers at the state's two racinos at the horse race tracks in Anderson and Shelbyville, effectively turning them from the "slots at the tracks" to full-blown casinos. The recorded roll call vote shows that only one lawmaker present did not participate in the vote. That lawmaker was Mr. Speaker. Does that mean Speaker Bosma is also doing legal work for the powerful gaming interests? The public has the right to know. I understand the Speaker often doesn't vote in Indiana, which I've always found a bit odd, but if the Speaker doesn't explain his non-participation, how would the public know whether he was not voting because he's the presiding officer or because of a conflict of interest. When are the useless State House reporters going to actually start doing their jobs and reporting on the rampant corruption taking place under their noses?

House Foolishly Votes 73-21 To Pass Indy Eleven Soccer Stadium Deal

The House of Representatives just voted 73 to 21 with virtually no debate to pass the Indy Eleven soccer stadium legislation that will force state and local taxpayers to subsidize a nearly $90 million, 18,500-seat stadium for a minor league soccer team owned by a shadowy Turkish immigrant about whom little is known other than he seems to have bucket loads of money to lavish on politicians to extract public financing for his private business endeavors to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars. That's an even larger margin than it passed last year, proving just how thoroughly corrupt your state lawmakers have become.

Only State Rep. John Bartlett took to the floor to speak in opposition to the legislation, noting that Indianapolis is the 9th poorest major city in America with many unmet needs that should have a higher priority than another sports stadium.

Our corrupt mayor, Greg Ballard, visited the State House today for the first time this session to personally lobby on behalf of Ozdemir. Obviously, the Carmel resident is Ballard's master, not the city of the people he supposedly represents.

Rep. Greg Steuerwald (R-Avon) again recused himself from participating in the vote--only because Advance Indiana exclusively reported he's been on Ozdemir's payroll for the past few years representing him in contentious litigation with his former business partner. The only hope lies in the Senate, where Senate President David Long says the legislation is not a priority.

Ch 13's Kevin Rader just reported @MayorBallard at Statehouse supposedly lobbying for soccer stadium bill. WHY is that Mayor top priority!
— Amos Brown (@Amoswtlcindy) February 25, 2015

Indy Eleven Publicly-Financed Stadium Gets Worse, House Ethics Committee Chairman Abstains Following Advance Indiana Disclosure Of Conflict

The Indiana House of Representatives is doubling down on its efforts to totally screw over state and local taxpayers to publicly-finance a new soccer stadium for the shadowy Turkish immigrant who owns the Indy Eleven minor league soccer team, who by all appearances has bought off corrupt members of the Indiana legislature lock, stock and barrel with his team of high-powered lobbyists. The House approved an amendment to HB 1273 sponsored by Rep. Todd Huston (R-Fishers) that further exposes public liability for the riverboat gamble the massive $90 million investment in a new stadium for a little-tested professional sports franchise represents.

Huston's amendment adopted on a second reading would create a new White River Revitalization District, which would encompass the former GM Stamping Plant site where corrupt Ballard administration officials are pushing to redevelop the land for the new privately-built Marion County Criminal Justice Center and a new outdoor concert venue promoted by Dave Lucas, one of those 15 people the Gannett-owned Indianapolis Star told us to watch in 2015--obviously having advanced pre-approved knowledge of the massive taxpayer heist planned for this year's legislative session. The revitalization district, which would be bound by the White River on the East, Harding Street on the West, Washington Street on the North and I-70 on the South, would be entitled to capture all incremental state and local income tax revenues within this development area, which will be used exclusively for infrastructure improvements of up to $5 million within the development area.

The amendment gets worse. It presumes a major expansion of Indianapolis' massive downtown TIF to encompass all of the undeveloped property surrounding Lucas Oil Stadium bounded by the White River on the West, East Street on the East, McCarty Street on the North and Raymond Street on the South. If the consolidated allocation area is expanded to include this territory, $10 million is to be deposited into the neighborhood stabilization fund to fund infrastructure improvements within this expanded TIF area. That's a massive expansion of the downtown TIF district that will siphon off property tax revenues from any new development for decades to come. This amendment seems to pave the way for the new soccer stadium to be built either near Lucas Oil Stadium or at the GM Stamping Plant site where Lucas wants to build his outdoor music venue, which is needed no more than the costly new stadium. This expanded TIF area is premised on an agreement being reached between the CIB and Indy Eleven to issue bonds and build the 18,500-seat stadium proposed by the team's owner, Ersal Ozdemir, who has unleashed a team of powerful lobbyists on the General Assembly the past two years to force taxpayers to build the stadium he has demanded.

An amendment adopted to HB 1273, at first blush, appears to help protect taxpayers by forcing Ozdemir to have some "skin in the game" as the pols use that term over at the State House; however, it's really just an empty promise. Rep. Ed DeLaney's amendment provides that "the owner of a professional soccer franchise that would be the primary tenant of a facility or complex of facilities constructed in the tax area; the professional soccer franchise;  the professional soccer league in which the professional soccer franchise competes; or any combination of the owner, the franchise, and the league; have guaranteed at least fifty percent (50%) of the amount that is financed under this chapter for a facility or complex of facilities that includes a soccer stadium. That offers no real protection to taxpayers. The franchise owner's newly-created business entity could simply file bankruptcy and walk away, leaving taxpayers holding the bag. DeLaney knows his amendment is nothing more than a phony attempt to reassure taxpayers, but that's just the kind of crafty lawmaker he is. An amendment offered by Rep. Cherish Pryor to give the City-County Council an opportunity to review and approve any stadium deal was voted down overwhelmingly.

Advance Indiana exclusively reported on the financial entanglement the House Ethics Committee Chairman, State Rep. Greg Steuerwald (R-Avon), has with Ozdemir. Steuerwald has been immersed as one of several attorneys representing Ozdemir in contentious litigation between Ozdemir, his various companies and a former business partner, Jason Ellis, who has accused Ozdemir of defrauding him out of his 20% stake in his business, along with other serious allegations of wrongdoing. Ozdemir is also represented by Barnes & Thornburg, which is also one of sevearl law firms lobbying on behalf of Ozdemir's Indy Eleven soccer stadium deal. Despite his glaring conflict of interest. Rep. Steuerwald supported and voted for legislation last year pushed by Ozdemir's lobbyists to pave the way for his publicly-financed soccer stadium.

When amendments were heard on second reading today, Rep. Steuerwald asked to abstain from participating in those votes, a request granted by the Speaker with the understanding he would put his abstention request in writing. The State House news media, which excoriated former State Rep. Eric Turner's conflict of interest over nursing home legislation affecting his family's business because of their animosity towards him stemming from his opposition to same-sex marriages, has been noticeably silent on Steuerwald's equally-troubling conflict of interest, particularly as the key lawmaker tasked with hearing an ethics complaint against Rep. Turner and helping craft tougher ethics rules for lawmakers in the face of public outcry over lax ethics rules that permitted Turner's self-dealing.

The House will hear HB 1273 on third reading final passage tomorrow. I presume its passage is a foregone conclusion since this corrupt body passed similar legislation last year with even less review than they've taken this year and could give a damn less what their constituents think. The bottom line is that your legislators auction off state and local tax dollars to the highest bidder in exchange for campaign contributions and other benefits shielded from public disclosure. In the absence of any real federal or state prosecutors to act as guardians of the public, a total free-for-all atmosphere permeates our State House hallways. Why is nobody asking any serious questions about who Ersal Ozdemir is? Where is all of his money and clout being derived? Where have all the State House investigative journalists gone?

UPDATE: This online story on the Indianapolis Star's website can be described as nothing but a deliberate misrepresentation of what the Huston and DeLaney amendments to HB 1273 accomplished. Here's how Mark Alesia describes Huston's amendment:

Another amendment--introduced by Huston--that passed included language to prohibit stadium money from going toward Ozdemir's hotel.

Well, duh, that was never in the original proposal. What was done in committee was language was added to the bill to allow state and local tax revenues generated by Ozdemir's hotel to be captured by an expanded Professional Sports Development Area, which allows the CIB to capture up to $5 million in tax revenues annually to apply towards the debt on the stadium bonds from the area developed for a new stadium and his hotel at an entirely different location. Of course, nothing in Huston's amendment prevents Mayor Ballard from passing out money for Ozdemir's hotel from his TIF slush fund he uses to reward his campaign contributors. The DeLaney amendment is similarly mischaracterized.

The House is scheduled to vote on the Indy Eleven stadium deal on Wednesday, after an amendment passed requiring the team owner to guarantee half of the debt . . .

The purpose of this amendment is simply to make sure the public is left to foot the bill for an underused stadium," Rep. Ed DeLaney, (D-Indianapolis), said Tuesday on the House floor. 

DeLaney said he didn't ask for a 100 percent guarantee because he wanted "a fair and measured approach."

"A fair and measured approach" would require the owner to build his own damn stadium, not force taxpayers to build another costly sports stadium when there are already costly, under-utilized sports facilities available to the greedy team owner for his team's use at which he's turned his nose down. Quite arrogant, we might add, for someone who only recently immigrated to this country and about whom little is known other than much of his business endeavors to date have been publicly-subsidized by politicians upon whom he's showered campaign contributions and other gratuities hidden from public disclosure. What DeLaney's amendment reinforces up front is the fact that all concerned already know that the taxes generated from this new soccer stadium and his totally unrelated hotel will, at best, generate half the cost of paying debt service on the bonds issued for the construction of the stadium. That guarantee does NOT extend to the multi-million dollar a year ongoing maintenance expense we already know taxpayers will be shouldering just like we do for the stadium and arena used by the billionaire owners of the Indianapolis Colts and Indiana Pacers. If Indy Eleven fails as a sports franchise, Ozdemir can walk away without owing a dime with or without DeLaney's amendment. Only the full faith and credit of Indianapolis taxpayers will backstop unfulfilled expectations.

Indianapolis Star Belatedly Mentions Indy Eleven President's Chicago Soccer Stadium Debacle

They're a little bit too late to the game as usual. The Indianapolis Star posted a story late today that sort of touches on the fact that the last soccer stadium deal the Indy Eleven's Peter Wilt sold to a community was a colossal failure. Advance Indiana told readers last year about Wilt's Toyota Park stadium deal before he got fired by the Chicago Fire Major League Soccer team and how its utter failure to live up to the promised expectations caused tax rates in Chicago's Bridgeview community to skyrocket after Wilt and Indy Eleven owner Ersal Ozdemir's team of high-paid lobbyists descended on the State House to coax easily duped state lawmakers into approving public financing for the minor league soccer team's nearly $90 million, 18,500-seat soccer stadium. Every single media organization in Indianapolis ignored the albatross Wilt left behind with his last soccer stadium deal.

The Star's Mark Alesia in a story titled, "Last Stadium sold by Indy Eleven President has been financial drain," acknowledges what a "financial albatross" Toyota Park has become for Bridgeview residents without going into any detail other than to mention the city's bond rating was lowered due to the financial stress the under-performing soccer stadium was placing on the city's financial picture. Wilt had plenty of excuses for why nobody should pay any attention to Toyota Park. He wants people to know he had moved on by the time the stadium opened for business, but he's the one who was on the ground selling it when the decision was made to build it, which was developed by AEG, a giant sports and entertainment company that manages sports and convention facilities all over the country. He also wants you to believe that this stadium deal is "so dissimilar to the Indianapolis situation that it should be taken with a salt shaker full of salt." Yeah, Bridgeview sits smack dab in the middle of the nation's third largest metropolitan area with an immigrant population ten times the size of Indianapolis' which favors soccer as the sport of choice over football, baseball or basketball.

The most telling admission by Wilt is his reference to the backstop Indianapolis will have to prevent a downgrading of the City's bond rating. "If Bridgeview had the same (financial) backstop that is being proposed for Indianapolis, Bridgeview's Standard & Poor's rating would be fine," Wilt said. He can say that because he's relying on the full faith and credit of the Capital Improvement Board of Managers, which has a host of tax revenues to fund an endless demand for additional spending on sports and entertainment facilities downtown, as well as a healthy annual subsidy of state tax dollars flowing through the Professional Sports Development Area, which the Indy Eleven want expanded to include the new soccer stadium, as well as a new hotel Ozdemir is establishing in the old Illinois Building at the corner of Market and Illinois Streets.

The bill is on second reading in the House where a bunch of amendments have been filed. Alesia's story mentions that State Rep. Ed DeLaney (D-Indianapolis) has an amendment that would require Ozdemir to guarantee half of the debt issued to build the new stadium. State Rep. Cherish Pryor (D-Indianapolis) has offered an amendment that would require the City-County Council to approve the issuance of bonds. An amendment offered by State Rep. Justin Moed (D-Indianapolis), one of the bill's sponsors, would appear to pull in land of the former GM Stamping Plant where the proposed criminal justice center is proposed to be built and where Dave Lucas wants to build a new outdoor music venue. That might suggest Lucas and Ozdemir have formed an alliance in hell to push this deal through the legislature.

House Ways & Means Committee Says Yes To Shadowy Turkish Immigrant's Soccer Stadium Heist

It was a repeat of last year's charade when Ersal Ozdemir sent in to represent him a room full of high-paid influential lobbyists to ask members of the powerful House Ways & Means Committee to once again give the green light to making Indiana taxpayers fork over nearly $90 million to build a new soccer arena for his Indy Eleven minor league professional soccer team. The shadowy Turkish immigrant businessman and his bodyguards were nowhere to be seen. His team of influence peddlers shoveled some more crap for public consumption, and the committee members swallowed it with their typical shit-eating grins as they voted overwhelmingly to advance HB 1273 just like they did with last year's legislation.

Ozdemir's disinformation agents announced the construction of a new downtown hotel by the Indy Eleven owner would be a part of an expanded Professional Sports Development Area ("PSDA"), a TIF-like state taxing district that allows Marion County to syphon off tens of millions of state income and sales tax dollars, hotel taxes and local income taxes annually to pay for the Capital Improvement Board's sports palaces and convention center. The paid lobbyists for this shadowy character claim state taxpayers won't be on the hook for a dime of the costs of building the arena; rather, it will be up to the team's owner and the CIB to figure out what happens when the revenues generated from the stadium prove insufficient to pay for it.

Incredibly, the worthless members of this committee asked no questions of Indy Eleven's Peter Wilt about his disastrous Toyota Arena in Chicago's Bridgeview community, which left taxpayers up their reeling from higher taxes when the costly new arena came nowhere close to generating the revenues promised. Wilt was fired by the Chicago Fire, just one of a handful of successive jobs he's held for short periods of time during his checkered history in the professional soccer arena. The owner's representatives claim the new arena, which will hold 18,500 fans, will generate ticket sales from an average paid attendance of 16,500. It claimed average attendance last year of about 10,400. Faced with reports by this blog only that many of those tickets were comped, the team finally conceded it gave away 6% to 8% of those tickets last year. My guess is the number is even higher than that, but truth-telling isn't a virtue of the folks behind this latest stadium heist.

Under the Indy Eleven's proposal, the PSDA could capture an additional $5 million a year in state tax revenues to pay debt service on the new soccer arena. Ticket revenues from the new new arena would have to be at least $50 million to hit the $5 million figure. As an IBJ story this morning notes, a legislative fiscal analysis suggests ticket sales at the new arena would generate at most $519,000 a year. Faced with this huge shortfall, the team's owner throws in this crap about building a new hotel downtown that will augment the revenue shortfall. How generous of Mr. Ozdemir. What we want to know is how much money you've spread around the Indiana State House and the City-County Building to get our elected officials to turn their backs on us and put so much of our public dollars in the pockets of someone we know nothing about. And what little we've learned about his shady ways from his former business partner, no honest lawmaker would cast a vote in favor of any project for which he came to the State House seeking public financing. Then again, Mr. Ozdemir didn't even have to make an appearance. His paid hustlers showed up to do his dirty work for him.

UPDATE: The Star has some information on a KSM Consulting study given to lawmakers this morning the team says supports its contention the stadium will generate sufficient ticket sale revenues to pay for the stadium. The study assumes the arena will host 66 events a year, including 15 professional women soccer team games and ten concerts. The ticket prices upon which those estimates are based are laughable:

• Indy Eleven: 16,500 at $29.50. 
• Women's professional soccer: 8,500 at $17 
• Concerts: 10,000 at $55

They're going to draw more fans to watch a professional women's soccer team than the WNBA's Indiana Fever? Yeah, right. Any concerts hosted at this new arena is just one less concert for one of the other venues in town like Banker's Life Fieldhouse. That's not a net gain. Also, how many people won't be buying tickets to Indianapolis Indians or Pacers games because they can't afford to buy tickets to both soccer and other professional sporting events? It just goes to show you that these consulting firms will write anything you want them to write on paper as long as you're paying them enough money to do so.