Compiled by Nancy Price
Indiana primary elections are just five days away. There are two contested candidates running for mayor: Mark Myers and Dale Marmaduke.
Candidates discussed their experience, qualifications, leadership, reasons for wanting to run for office and a desire to make a difference on the Southside of Indianapolis.
The Southside Times is only focusing editorially on the contested races. We will include everyone running for election during the fall.
Remember to vote Tuesday, May 7.
GREENWOOD: MAYOR
Dale Q. Marmaduke (R)
Why do you want to become mayor?
I want and expect better for Greenwood. The policies under our current mayor has been too business-friendly and anti-citizen. I want change for the citizens. The city has brought in many low-pay jobs and massive warehouses. These actions do not improve Greenwood. Zoning is inconsistent. I am against the additional food tax to 9 percent for Greenwood.
What are your qualifications to be mayor?
The most important qualification is representing the citizens. I care about the citizens. I’m a businessman with degrees from Indiana University. I do weekly school volunteer activities and believe our schools are the most important asset for Greenwood.
What are three priorities that you would like to achieve if elected mayor?
- We have to change the current development from low-pay warehouses to high-pay jobs.
- The traffic problems need to addressed with proven methods.
- Reduce financial waste. Greenwood has $89 million of debt and growing.
Mark W. Myers (R)
Why do you want to be re-elected as mayor?
Our downtown is alive and thriving, this due to the city’s direct involvement in the revitalization of downtown. This is an exciting time to witness the changes that will bring in more housing and retail areas to downtown. There are projects underway on each side of the city that will bring quality companies and jobs to our residents.
What are your qualifications?
I have been a firefighter, EMT and a police officer for the city. I also was elected coroner in 1992. I was elected mayor in 2011 and having spent the past seven years in the mayor’s office has given me the opportunity to learn all aspects of the job. I have also been appointed to two state boards and two national boards which have helped me to learn more about how to properly run the city on the local, state and national levels.
What are three priorities that you would like to achieve if re-elected mayor?
- Increase the public safety numbers in the police and fire departments. We need to have the manpower numbers so our officers can become more preventative than responsive.
- The city is in the initial stages of the largest project in the city’s history: building a western regional sewer interceptor. We are also doing preventative maintenance on many of our roads and actively maintaining our many miles of roadway.
- The downtown area where the former middle school was is currently in the infancy stage of an amazing buildout. This is an exciting time for our city as we can see the old downtown alive and active again and we get to witness the birth of the new downtown.
CITY COUNCIL: DISTRICT 1
Linda S. Gibson (R)
Background: Linda Gibson and her late husband, John, moved to Greenwood in 1967. Linda retired from Ernst & Young. She has been the District 1 Council representative since 2008. Linda is a member of First Baptist Church. She has served on both the Board of The Social of Greenwood since 2009 and Greenwood Village South since 2010. She was selected for the Richard Lugar Excellence in Public Service Class of 2014-15. Linda and John were the co-founders of Flags for Greenwood (FFG). Linda is a former board member of Restore Old Town Greenwood. She has two adult children, Susan Simmons Stephen Gibson.
Jay Hart (R)
Matthew Smith (D)
CITY COUNCIL: DISTRICT 2
Ron Deer (R)
Background: Ron Deer has been a resident of Greenwood since 1977. He is retired from the Indianapolis Airport Authority, where he served as the director of parking and transportation. Ron was elected to the Greenwood City Council District 2 in 1988. He served for 24 years. Ron was also on the Greenwood Planning Commission, Greenwood Board of Zoning Appeals and the Central Indiana Regional Transit Authority. He was chosen as Central Indiana Regional Citizens League Citizen of the Year in 2000. He is a widower and has one adult child, Krystal, and three grandchildren. Ron attends Greenwood Christian Church.
Ezra Hil (R)
Background: Ezra Hill grew up in Indianapolis, attended Roncalli High School and graduated from Purdue University. He is vice president and co-owner of Whalen Construction Co. with his brother Austin. Ezra moved to Greenwood in 2002 and has two children, Alivia and David. Ezra was first elected to the Greenwood City Council in 2012 and has served two terms and seeking his third. He was a Restore Old Town Greenwood president in 2016, served on the pool committee, which proposed Freedom Springs as well as two years on the Plan Commission. Ezra’s primary focus for the last seven years has been on the downtown revitalization effort.
Tim McLaughlin (R)
Background: Tim McLaughlin works at the Greenwood Police Department and is retiring in January after 35 years. He is married to Jackie and has three adult children, Ashley, Jan and Kaitlyn, in addition to three grandchildren, Mya, Jameson and Rienna. He is a graduate of Greenwood High School, a member of Our Lady of the Greenwood Church and a lifelong resident of Greenwood. Tim previously served as an At-Large member of the Greenwood City Council from 2008-2015. He served two terms as PTO president at Isom Elementary School. He taught the DARE program (drug abuse resistance education) in all of the elementary schools for 21 years.
CITY COUNCIL: DISTRICT 3
Bruce Armstrong (R)
Background: Bruce Armstrong has been a resident of Greenwood since 1999, but has lived on the Southside of Indianapolis since 1964, graduating from Decatur Central High School. He is an engineer and retired from General Motors but now works for Faurecia in Columbus. Bruce has been on the Greenwood Common Council since 2004 and has served two years as the president and two years on the Plan Commission. He represents the Southeast side of Greenwood, which is entirely in the Whiteland School District. He attends Our Lady of the Greenwood Church. He is married to his wife, Susan, and has two children: Ryan and Nicholas.
Terri Roberts-Leonard (D)
Michael Williams (R)
CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT 4
Ronald Bates (R)
Background: Ron Bates has been a resident of Greenwood since 1996. He is employed by Suburban Christian School as a high school teacher. Ron was elected to the Greenwood Common Council in 2003. He also served on the Advisory Plan Commission. His goal on the council was to have most city departments under one roof. The departments are now centered in Greenwood City Center. He is vice president of the council and a liaison for the mayor’s office. He attends Suburban Baptist Church, where he is actively involved. He is married to his wife, Donna; they have four grown children: Ronda, Dawn, Ryan and David.
Steve Moan (R)
Background: Steven F. Moan has lived in Greenwood for nearly 48 years. He is a teacher in Perry Township. He has served on the GCSC School Board since 2009 and currently serves as board president. Steve is an appointed commissioner and vice president of the Greenwood Redevelopment Commission. Previously, he served for seven years as the appointed school board advisor to the RDC. Steve and his family are members of Harvest Bible Chapel – Indy South, where he and his wife, Elizabeth (Liz), also lead a small group. Steve and Liz have been married for almost 25 years and they have one college-age daughter, Madelyn.
CITY COUNCIL: DISTRICT 5
Hunter L. Haskell (D)
J. David Hopper (R)
Background: J. David Hopper has served on the Greenwood Common Council since 2012. He also serves on the Greenwood Redevelopment Commission. David is the director of the local Health Department of Outreach Division with the Indiana State Department of Health. He oversees $6.9 million annually in grants to local health departments, three medical conferences and is the State Health Commissioner’s designee to the Kids First Trust Fund, which funds projects addressing the prevention of child abuse and neglect in Indiana. David and his wife, Carlie, have three children: Lauren, Owen and Evan. They attend Mt. Pleasant Christian Church.
Janet Whiteside (R)
Background: Janet Whiteside is a licensed pharmacist with a pharmacy degree from Butler. Janet believes that the city of Greenwood should upgrade holiday lighting, paint curbs, work with businesses for standard landscaping, add distinctive signs, modern street lights and fix traffic flows by working on east-west roads. Janet said she supports schools and believes that schools are in need of student tax money. She would like to see the city publish detailed TIF financial statements. She participates with medical missions in El Salvador. Janet is a member of Stones Crossing Church. She has three children and seven grandchildren.
CITY COUNCIL: DISTRICT 6
David J. Leske (R)
Kyle R. Swain (D)
CITY COUNCIL: AT-LARGE
John Asher (R)
Mike Campbell (R)
Robert “Bob” Dine (R)
Drew Foster (R)
Randy Goodin (R)
Justin Kloer (R)
Bradley Pendleton (R)
GREENWOOD CITY: COURT JUDGE
Lewis J. Gregory (R)
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