October 1, 1981

Greenwood groups raffling two houses

       House raffles, a controversial fundraising method, will be allowed in Johnson County as long as they are done according to the guidelines issued by the Johnson County Prosecutor D. Charles Gantz. He has issued a preliminary set of guidelines that he hopes will restrict house raffles to non-profit organizations and prevent fraud. “I’m trying to keep it out of the hands if people who want to make money for themselves,” Gantz said Friday. The rules issued by the prosecutor outline how organizations must handle the money and how it can be used. Raffles are not new in Indiana, but the amount paid for tickets and the value of the prize are greatly increased in a house raffle. Gantz said that Indiana Attorney General Linley Pearson is letting local prosecutors decide whether house raffles violate Indiana laws regarding lotteries. Gantz said he is taking no position on the matter, but reviewing each raffle on a case-by-case basis. Pearson has said that he feels raffles are illegal under the Indiana Constitution. His objection is the possibility if fraud-a group selling tickets for a house that does not exist. Gantz developed five guidelines for conducting a house raffle after he learned of three organizations that are involved in raffling two houses in the Valle Vista West section of Valle Vista in Greenwood. The two homes, located next door to one another, are valued at $75,000 and $92,000. One drawing is set for November while the other is in December. The organizations involved are Greenwood Little League, the Greenwood Jaycees and the White River Township Volunteer Fire Department. The fire department and the Jaycees have joined forces to the $92,000 home at 604 LaReforma Drive. The little league organization is raffling a $75,000 house next door at 411 Punto Baho Drive. The organizations were attracted by the idea of a house raffle because of the need for large amounts of money to undertake projects. The people who own the homes were interested because the depressed housing market makes it difficult to sell a home, according to interviews. One of Gantz’s regulations allows money to be used only for equipment and hardware, not for the groups operating budget or personnel salaries. Dane Meyer, President of the Greenwood Jaycees, said his group needs between $6,000 and $8,000 for an exercise station at the Johnson County Association of Retarded Citizens in Franklin. “We weren’t coming up with that through our small projects,” he said. The fire department will use it’s share of the money to purchase a new rescue truck or automobile extrication equipment, according to Rick Cooley, the department Emergency Medical officer.  The LaReforma Drive home is a two gray structured owned by Jim Moore Of White River Township. Tickets are being sold for $100 each. Meyer said that a minimum of 1,000 tickets must be sold before the drawing will be held. A maximum number of 1,250 tickets will be sold, he said. Moore said he agreed to the raffle because he needed to get rid of the home. He purchased it as an investment, but it hasn’t worked out that way, he said. “By the time I have it finished, I’ll be quite sufficiently in the hole,” he said. The house is minus appliances, light fixtures and sinks. Moore said that whoever wins the raffle will be allowed to choose the kind of fixtures and color of the appliances and sinks as part of the prize. Jim Padgett, committee chairman, of the little league group, said the proceeds will be used to purchase lights and bleachers for the league’s baseball fields. The tickets went for the $75,000 home at Punto Baho Drive sell for $60 a piece. A maximum of 2,000 and a minimum of 1,400 will be sold. Padgett said that 110 tickets have been sold since the raffle was announced. He said that the committee has received inquires from all over Indiana and out of state as well. As a part of the guidelines set down by Gantz, the committee has to set up a trusteeship with Morris Plan Savings and Loan to deposit ticket receipts as they come in.  Meyer said that his group hasn’t had a chance to set up the trustee arrangement with a financial institution because the raffle was only approved last Thursday, but will make the necessary arrangements soon. The two groups involved have sold tickets, he said. The winners of the two homes will be responsible for paying taxes.  (Reprinted with permission from the Daily Journal)

 

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