Why Columbus had a head start on the coronavirus response, when Columbus could reach herd immunity, scheduling summer events, Riverfront project costs are going up, and Exhibit Columbus returns.
On this week’s installment of Ask The Mayor, Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop addresses these issues and more. Listen to the full conversation with Indiana Newsdesk anchor Joe Hren by clicking on the play button above, or read some of the questions and answers below. A portion of this segment airs 6:45 and 8:45 a.m. Wednesday on WFIU.
This conversation has been edited for clarity and conciseness.
Hren: I guess we could say we're at the one year anniversary of the coronavirus. I want to hear your thoughts, and a look back at the year and what was going through your mind when all this started?
Lienhoop: I do remember thinking that this was going to be a big deal. And this was going to be with us for a while, I had not anticipated 12 months, or what is likely to be another four or five, yet to go. We have people who work here in Columbus who have business relationships in China. And so we got some information pretty early on that was very credible, that indicated that this was a real deal. I mean, people were getting sick, and people were dying. And so our first reaction was to send some personal protective equipment to the Wuhan friends that we have. And then it wasn't too much after that, that we were asking for them for help in reverse.
We were able to get on this a little early in large part because of the credible communication that we have from Wuhan. And I think that it helped in terms of alerting our community a little sooner.
Depending upon what I've read or what you read, 70 to 85% of the people need to be vaccinated. And in Bartholomew County, that gets us somewhere to around 70,000 people. And the last time I checked, we had gotten to 7,400 in Bartholomew County with two shots. And so we got a ways to go.
Hren: Now that we've heard more people are getting both shots and becoming fully vaccinated. In your briefings, have you heard anything about what people can do in terms of meeting with others, grandchildren? families?
Lienhoop: I think that you're able to resume that kind of in person contact, I think it's still wise to wear a mask. So that may put a little damper on some of the family meetings, but the people you are protecting are your family, so you shouldn't feel too reserved about that. The indications that I've read says that the vaccine is effective and reducing transmission. But, you know, there's still a lot that we all have to learn. I mean, normally these things take years to sort out. We've been at this for a year, right? And the vaccines, maybe even a little bit less.
Hren: You mentioned mid-summer in terms of maybe getting some what back to normal. I saw in The Republic today that some officials are thinking for a perhaps more traditional 4-H Fair? Are you starting to get those types of things coming up?
Lienhoop: I can tell you my calendar is beginning to fill back up in terms of evening meetings or things to do on the weekend. And I'm still a little cautious personally, in all that engaging in some of that stuff. But yeah, I think that it makes sense to continue to start to plan for events that may be mid-summer or I got something the other day is scheduled for October. And so we'll just have to wait to see how that unfolds.
Hren: And one other project that caught my eye, the Riverfront Project. An article in The Republic indicates some officials are starting to doubt the project as cost increased. I believe we talked about $6 million a little while ago, the paper now saying about $8 million. But I know you've also talked about a lot of regulatory items, that kind of opens Pandora's box, because you're dealing with a river.
Lienhoop: Well, you're dealing with a river, plus you're dealing with multiple agencies. And so it's a real Rubik's Cube in terms of trying to put all that together make sense out of it. One of the things we've noticed with respect to COVID is a certain amount of fatigue. And with respect to the riverfront project, we've been dealing with the Department of Natural Resources for four years. And you would think that at this point, we'd be a little further along than we are, and we're not. We've got a permit from them, that allows us now to go talk to the US Army Corps of Engineers and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management.
So while I understand that people rightly are getting a little bit fatigued at the length of time that this is taking, it's going to be a really neat project. I just can't under emphasize how important I think this will be to the future of Columbus and our ability to make ourselves and attracting clients.
One of the things we've learned from the pandemic is that people don't need to live where they work. We've got employers now in Columbus that are hiring, with no expectation of relocation. And so it's incumbent upon Columbus, as well as all the other communities in Indiana, to make ourselves as attractive as we can.
Hren: And it's a mitigation project too, right? It's just not recreation. So at some point, the work needs to get done?
Lienhoop: Yeah, the recreation part comes from the path that we want to snake in The People Trail through between the pump house and the river. But, we've got some erosion on both sides of the river through there, that threatened to uncover an old landfill. And that may mess with our sewer system. And the dam that's in there today is not only dangerous, but it's fallen apart. The dam itself was originally a rubble dam, just rocks out in the middle of the river built back in the 1920s.
We've got several sides to solve, trying to solve all at the same time. And it's challenging but, it'll be worth it. I am really pleased with the project that we designed.
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