The Carmel Community Players held opening night April 15th for their production of Neil Simon’s comedy The Odd Couple.  Larry was there and has this review.

Keep Fishers Beautiful has been an annual Mid-April event for the city Parks and Recreation Department.  This year, the weather was once again perfect.

The Sunblest neighborhood received special attention this year with a fix up blitz centered along Orchard Boulevard.  There was a spring service day at Ritchey Woods.

One of the biggest operations was the recycling day at Billericay Park.  Fishers residents lined up there vehicles to drop-off items for recycling.

Residents, volunteers and businesses joined forces with the city to make this operation happen April 16th

My latest Indiana Forefront commentary looks at how education is a major issue in the Indiana Senate District 20 campaign between Luke Kenley and Scott Willis.

http://www.indianaforefront.com/luke-kenley-scott-willis-and-education-in-indiana/?doing_wp_cron=1460813462.5566320419311523437500

Primary election day is now less than 3 weeks away, and today is the deadline day for candidates to file their final campaign finance reports before the balloting begins May 3rd.

I will highlight the most interesting race for Fishers, since County Commissioner District 3 includes Fishers.

Incumbent Commissioner Mark Heirbrant started the year with just under $140,000 of cash on hand.  He received an additional $30,000 during 2015 up to the reporting deadline.  The report lists expenditures of over $90,000 this year, leaving Heirbrandt with cash on hand of just over $79,000.  You can view the entire campaign finance report at this link.

Challenger Bill Smythe, a Fishers restaurant owner, had no cash on hand to begin the year, because he did not declare his candidacy until after the first of this year.  His report lists contributions of just over $15,000 and expenses of a little under $12,000.  His cash on hand is shown as just over $3,200.  You can see his entire campaign finance report at this link.

The other election of interest to those living in Fishers is the school funding referendum on the May 3rd ballot.

The political action committee (PAC) advocating a yes vote in that referendum is Advance HSE.  The PAC’s campaign finance report shows cash on hand at the start of 2016 at just over $4,600.  The PAC shows contributions so far this year at just over $14,600. Expenditures on the report this year are shown as just over $9,200.  That leaves the PAC with cash on hand of a little over $5,300.  You can access the complete report for Advance HSE at this link.

So far, no organized group has emerged to oppose the school funding referendu.

You may have heard about the Fishers Government Academy, where citizens take a course lasting several weeks to learn more about how local government works..  You may not know that once one has graduated from that course, you become an alumnus.

The Government Academy Alumni are banding together for a fundraising effort for the two townships encompassing Fishers, Fall Creek and Delaware.  3,000 area residents are helped by the food pantries run by the Fall Creek and Delaware Township offices.

You will find donation boxes at the following locations:

The drive will take place May 6th-20th.

–Fishers Park and Recreation building lobby (11565 Brooks School Road)

–Delaware Township Office (9090 E. 131^st Street) Monetary donations accepted here.

–Fall Creek Township Office (11595 Brooks School Road) Monetary donations accepted here.

–Fishers YMCA and Britton Falls Club House (15305 Trebbiano Drive).

Here are some donation ideas from the alumni:

Soaps and cleansers, shampoo and conditioner, razors, brushes, combs, toothbrushes, toothpaste, dental floss, lotions, children’s shampoo, deodorant, toilet paper, paper towels and laundry detergent. Sensitive skin and hypoallergenic products are also appreciated. 

The group publicly thanked the Kroger store at 116th & Olio Road for a direct donation to their drive.   The Hagerman Group, Chase Bank, and USA Funds have boxes located within their employee areas.  

The Alumni group is comprised of graduates from the Fishers Government Academy program. The City of Fishers provides the Academy to educate City residents about the operation of Fishers government and its services and departments.  

The Fishers Redevelopment Commission issued a report Thursday evening detailing activity within the city, on Tax Increment Financing (TIF) funded projects.

The 2015 TIF financial overview shows income of $3.8 million, with a fund balance at the end of 2015 of $958,136.

The report breaks down activity for the various TIF project throughout the city.

You can view the entire 2015 TIF report at this link.

Both Republican County Commissioner candidates sat down with Larry for a talk about their respective campaigns.

Incumbent Mark Heirbrandt talked about the controversy involving his e-mail exchange with St. Joseph County Commissioner Deb Fleming, saying he was “caught in a political snare.”

Heirbrandt’s opponent, Fishers businessman Bill Smyth, talked about his mantra of “Voter over Vendors” and is critical of the campaign contributions coming into his opponent’s campaign coffers.

Below are links to each Podcast

Here’s my interview with Mark Heirbrandt

Below is a link to my talk with Bill Smythe

My story about the Hamilton County Republican Lincoln Day Dinner has been creating quite a stir.  Since I posted that piece late on April 13th (same night as the dinner) I’ve been hearing from some Fishers Republicans.

In that story, I did write about local Fishers officials I noticed were there, and those I could not find in attendance.

Let me list what I know about some of the Fishers no-shows:

–Hamilton County Republican Committee Treasurer (and Fishers City Council member) Pete Peterson insists he planned to be there, but had a last-minute personal situation to handle.  County Chair Laura Campbell said as much from the podium during her talk at the dinner, saying Pete had been “called away” at the last minute.

–Fishers City Council President John Weingardt is a tax accountant and missed the Fishers City Council Finance Committee meeting the same day as the dinner, because of his work load so close to the tax filing deadline.

–City Council Finance Committee Chairman Eric Moeller told me he had a long-time commitment to meet the board of directors of a local Homeowners Association, plus his family has just completed a move from one home to another.

–City Councilwoman Cecilia Coble is reportedly out of town with her husband.

–City Councilman Todd Zimmerman posted a Facebook message that he was at baseball practice for the team he coaches.

–City Councilman David George is traveling outside the country.

I’m sure there are other stories out there on why some Fishers officials did or did not choose to attend the Lincoln Day dinner April 13th.  Were some Fishers Republicans purposefully avoiding the Lincoln Day Dinner or did they have legitimate reasons to be elsewhere?  I’ll leave that up to you.

Indiana Governor Mike Pence urged Hamilton County Republicans to come together after the primary elections and work to elect GOP candidates for office (including himself). Wednesday night featured the annual Lincoln Day Dinner at the Carmel Ritz-Charles.

“We need to decide here and now, in Hamilton County, Indiana…after we get through these primaries, that we are going to come together as a party, we are going to unite and roll our sleeves up and make sure Indiana is the first state on the board to elect a Republican president of the United States of America, and reelect Republican leadership,” Pence said.

“I really believe elections are won on the the ground,” said to the governor.  “The most important people in this room are the precinct committeeman and committeewomen .”

The state’s chief executive complimented the new GOP County Chair.

“Laura Campbell, this is a great rookie season for you,” Pence told the crowd.

Pete Peterson was originally chosen to replace party chief Pete Emigh but the state GOP ruled that several appointments to precinct offices were not eligible to cast votes, resulting in Campbell taking over as county GOP chair.

There were not many elected officials from Fishers on hand.  City Councilman Rich Block was in attendance as was State Representative Todd Huston.  Several candidates for office were in attendance, including George Kehl and Bill Smythe.

Absent from the scene were Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness, City Council President John Weingardt and a number of other council members.  City Clerk Jennifer Kehl was at the dinner…her husband George is a county council candidate.

The process of enacting the Fishers 2040 Comprehensive Plan continued Tuesday night as the city plan commission members heard an overview of the components contained in the document.  Fishers Deputy Mayor Leah McGrath reviewed the major areas of the plan, including Land Use, Parks & Open Spaces, Residential and Transportation.

The Plan Commission will hold a public hearing next month, allowing the public to comment on the comprehensive plan.

City Council members Rich Block and Pete Peterson, also members of the Plan Commission, complimented the city staff and elected officials involved in putting the comprehensive plan proposal together.  Plan Commission President Warren Harling singled out the high school students involved in the Fishers 2040 committees, saying the students were fully engaged in doing their part in formulating the first draft of the plans.

The city is planning two community meetings for the public to get more information about the proposed comprehensive plan and provide comments to city officials about the plan. The first will be at Conner Prairie, Thursday, April 21st, 6pm.  the second is set for May 5th, 6pm, at Brooks School Road Elementary.

You can view the Fishers 2040 detailed document at this link.