Chris W. Cotterill: We must develop a shared vision for our capital city

We’re past the halfway point of the legislative session, and serious issues are being debated that affect the future of our capital city, most importantly the Mile Square economic enhancement district and the expansion of IndyGo. Whatever your opinion on these issues, the significant difference in viewpoints from one end of Market Street to the other is not good for Indianapolis or Indiana.

Successive administrations in the City-County Building have worked hard to move Indy forward. Yet, no matter how hard they work, the power to transform the city rests with the leaders who control state law.

At key moments in our past, like with the financing of our stadiums, the state helped make things happen that the city could never achieve on its own. And for decades, governors, mayors and their teams have worked together in a bipartisan approach to economic development, which remains true to this day. As a result, Indy has secured major public- and private-sector investments, allowing our capital city to punch above its weight in business expansion, talent attraction, conventions and more.

Still, each opportunity is being approached separately. Though there are successes, too often we lurch. A downtown enhancement district is created by state law, then legislation emerges to dissolve it the very next year. This is just one example.

We need a shared vision to guide our efforts to move forward together. Not since we strived to be the “Amateur Sports Capital of the World” have city, state and private-sector leaders shared the same vision for our capital city. When they did, Indy and Indiana were unstoppable. We leaped ahead of our competition.

Today, Indy has problems that big cities have, but that does not mean we should accept them as ways of life. We must pursue large-scale solutions to large-scale problems and deliver world-class infrastructure, strong educational options, transformational redevelopment, mental health assistance for the homeless, more jobs for ex-offenders and more. Only with the guiding light of a shared vision can we make consistent progress on these and other challenges.

We must get to the real question: What can we do to make Indy the most vibrant capital city in America? And to be clear, this is not about city leaders pursuing their plans, and certainly not about state leaders pursuing their own plans for Indy. A vision must be shared. That’s the key.

A commission, perhaps in the Kernan-Shepard mold, with leaders from Indy and from across Indiana who understand the importance of our capital city should be put to the task. This commission must emphasize that Indy’s peers are not other cities in Indiana, but rather the likes of Austin, Texas; Nashville, Tennessee; Raleigh, North Carolina; and international cities we compete with for businesses and talent. So, the vision must be bold!

There is also much to be gained through the process of deliberation. Developing a vision together will help reinforce that a strong Indy strengthens all of Indiana. Then conversations about changing the funding mechanisms in state law to properly fund major projects and essential services should be easier going forward.

With a shared vision, unrelenting champions in the Mayor’s Office and private sector, Marion County Democratic and Republican state legislators working in partnership, and sustained support from the Governor’s Office, we will unleash an era of revitalization never before seen in our capital city. Indy and Indiana will leap ahead again.

Now is the time.•

__________

Cotterill is the chief operating officer at Goelzer Investment Management. He previously served as chief of staff to Mayor Greg Ballard and as chief operating officer of the Indiana Economic Development Corp.