City of Gary committee to remove public-safety payroll from film-fund ordinance, retain film liaison role

At a City of Gary Finance Committee meeting this evening, officials discussed Ordinance CPO 2025-19, which would establish additional salaries and operating budgets for the city’s filming fund for calendar year 2025. Committee members and staff agreed to remove line items that would have paid police officers and firefighters through the city budget and to retain a line item for a film liaison to be hired as a contractor.

Erica Blackwell, chief communications officer, told the committee that staff "do need to make an amendment" and that "in regards to the line items with the police officer and firefighters, we would like to have that removed." She said the city intends to treat public-safety support for film productions as independent-contractor work rather than funneling those payments through municipal payroll.

The change is intended to match practices in other cities, staff said. "We just independently contract with those officers as if they were doing any other security job," said Chief Dumas, describing how officers often take outside security assignments. He told the committee that productions typically provide proof of insurance and that, for the crew currently in Gary, he believed there was a $1,000,000 policy on file.

Staff said the only line that will remain in the proposed filming fund budget is funding for a film liaison. Blackwell described the liaison as a professional-services contractor hired on an as-needed basis to manage intake and relationships with film crews who come to Gary.

Blackwell also said a separate ordinance draft that would govern film permitting and a recently adopted fee schedule will provide the city with legal authority to approve or deny film permits and to cite violations when necessary. "Once [the ordinance] is done, that will give us a legal process in which we can approve or deny a film based on content," Chief Dumas said, noting legal is performing final edits on the draft ordinance.

The committee discussed community-notice practices after staff reported a production posted visual notices by taping them to buildings. Staff described a resident complaint that a notice had been duct-taped to the side of a building and risked damaging paint; staff said they instructed the production to remedy any damage and plan to add clearer notice requirements to the ordinance and communications.

Blackwell framed film permitting as an economic-development opportunity, saying the Chicago-based TV production currently in Districts 5 and 6 is a "nostalgia story" and could bring business and positive attention to local small businesses. Several committee members asked procedural and liability questions; staff said they will return a corrected, amended budget for final review and that the ordinance remains under legal review.

The Finance Committee adjourned after staff confirmed the amended budget will be provided for final review. The transcript records no formal vote or final adoption of Ordinance CPO 2025-19 during the meeting.