Lebanon City Council will realign with current population

Maria Flora, The Lebanon Reporter, Ind.
·3 min read

Dec. 1—The City of Lebanon will redistrict zones for city council seats in response to population growth reported in the 2020 U.S. Census.

Council districts are to be equal in population and the redistricting ensures a nearly even number of people in each, Mayor Matthew Gentry said. The council heard the first reading of the redistricting ordinance Monday and is expected to vote on it Dec. 12.

The Lebanon City Council also voted unanimously Monday to re-establish a city court.

The court will not be operational until January of 2024 in order to allow time for the election of a city judge, Gentry said.

Lebanon leaders abolished the city court in 2014 because it cost more to operate it than the money it brought in. County courts took over the city's traffic tickets, while ordinance violations such as those governing junk and junkyards, were left without a way to enforce them or collect fines.

Downtown workers and others caught on and some soon began ignoring parking tickets they received from the city for parking too long in the limited 2-hour parking spaces downtown.

In other businesses, the council also awarded $1,500 from food and beverage tax funds to each of three groups. Votes for all three were unanimous.

The Shalom House

The Shalom House, in its 19th year of operation, will use the money to feed adults and children in need, Executive Director Lisa Williams told the council.

Requests for adult meals rose by 12% this year at the same time inflation is straining the non-profit, volunteer-operated group's budget. The group has served more than 19,000 meals from the house this year and twice weekly delivers as many as 80 meals to residents who cannot leave their homes.

Shalom also provides food for children during the 14 weeks a year they are not in school. More than 4,300 children have been served about 23,000 meals this year through eight Boone County sites. The demand for children's meals rose by 11% this year, at the same time that much of the food needed is no longer available to order due to supply chain challenges, Williams said.

"This is a need, not a want," Councilman John Copeland said. "They help our community. They help those in need."

Lebanon Welfare League

Kappa Delta Phi, Lebanon Welfare League (KDP/LWL), a local 501c3 non-profit civic group, requested money to help members provide Christmas baskets of food for those in need.

The organization provided food for nearly 500 people last year, representative Sue Muncie told the council. This is the Lebanon Welfare League's 85{sup}th{/sup} year of providing the baskets with community help.

Boys & Girls Club

The Lebanon unit of the Boys and Girls Club of Boone County alone spends about $10,000 per year on fuel and vehicle maintenance to provide transportation for children to and from athletic events, summer camps, a water park and to and from the schools and will apply the city's money to that fund.