Carmel received a long-lost monetary Monon memento last week.
City attorney Doug Haney received an $11,505.29 check last week from Anthony Properties LP Trust. Carmel had deposited that money and more in an escrow account as the city, former right-of-way owner CSX Transportation and hundreds of property owners tried to hammer out an agreement. Despite the issue being resolved 14 years ago, the money remained in the account for more than a decade.
“There were hundreds of things going on, this just happened to get overlooked,” City Spokeswoman Nancy Heck said. The oversight was discovered during a routine audit, and soon after, a check was sent. The newfound money will be added to the city’s general fund.
Carmel paid $1.5 million to acquire the 245 parcels of land from 96th Street to 146th Street, and $1.6 million in construction costs to build the once-controversial trail. The gamble paid off: with an estimated 1.3 million users a year, the Monon Greenway –including Indianapolis’ Monon Trail to the south – is believed to be the most actively used trail in the state.