By Sue Hughes | For The Times-Post

PENDLETON — The idea of Fall Creek Township and Pendleton merging took center stage at a township meeting June 13, much as it has previously at some Pendleton meetings.
It was standing room only at the township meeting at Pendleton Fire Station.
Most of the people at the meeting indicated they were against the merger.
State Sen. Mike Gaskill spoke as one of those opposed.
“We like living under one less layer of government,” Gaskill said. “We will have a tax increase.”
He asked the board to “be our first line of defense and nix this thing before it gets started.”
He said township residents would sleep better if the board were to pass a resolution stating the township is not interested.
The merger idea has been percolating for a couple of months.
At May’s regular monthly Pendleton Town Council meeting, town manager Scott Reske said the possibility of a merger had been raised in April, at the second of the three meetings on growth; some attendees of at that meeting suggested it could solve some problems.
During the May council meeting, Reske said one benefit of a merger would be to stop warehouses and cheaply built housing additions from moving in.
“We have upped our standards and are stricter than the county concerning development; we will not allow houses like those previously built here.”
He and council President Marissa Skaggs said in May that the town was just starting to analyze the idea and that any final decision would be made at the ballot box through a referendum.
Reske said the town has hired Baker Tilly, an accounting and consulting firm, to do a parcel by parcel study to find out what a merger would cost.
At the township meeting, attorney Lynn Lawyer pointed out — as Reske has also stressed at Pendleton meetings — that for the merger to happen, both the township and the town would have to agree to it.
“The question is ‘Do you want the town and the township to merge,’” Lawyer said.
Former County Council member Paul Wilson was unable to attend the meeting but sent a letter that was read by Judge George Gasparovic.
The letter said in part “I don’t think the residents of the unincorporated area would benefit much from the merger.
“I simply don’t believe that bigger is better.”
The letter was applauded by attendees.
Township resident Jeff Moore asked the board what the next steps would be.
Members of the township board asked if there was anyone at the meeting who was in favor of the merger.
No one raised a hand.
The board explained that although it seems clear most people are against it, they need to hear from a majority of the residents of the township before a decision is made.
Township residents said they planned to circulate petitions and make sure all the residents in the township knew about the planned merger.
Resident Matt Deshong said he has started a Facebook page, Pendleton Fall Creek Merger. “It’s a good page to share information,” he said.
The next meeting of the Fall Creek Township Board is set for 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 11, at the fire station, 100 S. Broadway St., Pendleton.