Big ideas, lots of work in store; Mayor's goals include establishing a university, technology park

DATELINE: NOBLESVILLE

Four new council members take office Jan. 1 and give second-term Mayor John Ditslear his best chance yet of crafting his vision for the city.

Feeling like his hands were being tied by what he has implied was an obstructionist council during his first term, Ditslear handpicked a new team and helped them win office; one veteran council incumbent stepped aside and three others went down to defeat in the spring Republican primary. Three council holdovers return.

Now, with sleeves rolled up, the work begins.

Agendas are already bulging. But as Ditslear said in a recent City Hall interview, it "beats the alternative."

"We will continue providing outstanding quality services to the taxpayers and citizens of Noblesville -- as we have certainly for the past four years -- and continue to serve Noblesville one person at a time," Ditslear said, using the slogan he embraced when taking office in 2004.

By "we," he includes those four members of City Council that he backed in the elections: Mark Boice, Roy Johnson, Greg O'Connor and Steve Wood.

Ditslear acknowledges that having at least four council members allied with him from the beginning can be an advantage, but he acknowledges that "there's going to be some thunder" at times. "I'm not naive enough to think that just because these guys are friends and I have a lot of confidence in them . . . that there's not going to be discord and misunderstanding.

"They are people of their own mind, their own thoughts, and they're going to make their own decisions," he added.

City Council elects its own leaders, and Ditslear thinks Dale Snelling, who will be the most-senior member when he starts his 17th year on the council Jan. 1, "would be outstanding" as president, although the two had not spoken about it. "Dale's got a great attitude, very knowledgeable, very experienced."

Ditslear sees a lot of leadership potential in the freshman class, most particularly in O'Connor and Boice. He thinks "it's best not to have a brand new councilor be president, but if one of the newer people were president, we'd work with whomever it is. . . ."

State law does not allow more than three of the seven city councilors to meet outside of scheduled meetings, but there can be one-on-one, informal conversations, and Ditslear said there have been some of those. He's not certain, though, that the new members have talked with those leaving: Terry Busby, Alan Hinds, Laurie Jackson and Kathie Stretch.

Projects that Ditslear would have liked to put in the "started" or "done" columns of his first term scorecard include establishing a university campus in or near Noblesville and getting the state to designate a technology park here. Both of those are on his second term to-do list.

Custom-home builder Will Wright is championing the drive to get a college campus in Hamilton County. He's working with the Hamilton County Higher Education Initiative, and Ditslear, who holds a bachelor's degree in finance from Miami University of Ohio and who served on the Noblesville School Board for 11 years, said the city is very involved in that effort.

"A university affiliation is something we're still working on and that didn't happen" in the first term, the mayor said. "That's a real challenge . . . and a real high goal," he added, explaining that the process could take 10-20 years.

Noblesville has established relationships with Purdue and Ball State, he pointed out, and that will help establish a technology park here. The park would be similar to an industrial park and be built on 550 acres in corporate campus, but it would be marketed to life sciences, advanced manufacturing and high-tech logistics companies. The city submitted its application to the state in February 2005.

Businesses are often represented at the table when local governments make decisions, yet part of the mayor's job is to make sure the residents who might not have a mighty voice are represented as well.

"I think we always . . . think about the person who is the silent majority or the person that is needy or not as blessed or whatever," he said. "I really think we do a pretty good job of always being aware that we have people like that in Noblesville, and we will continue to make sure that we think about everyone and not just those that are 'at the table,' as you said."

He makes it clear he wants Noblesville -- using the motto he created -- to serve all residents, one person at a time.

Call Noblesville Ledger editor Rosalyn Demaree at (317) 444-5541.

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Online Extra TheNoblesvilleLedger.com

Read more of this interview with Noblesville Mayor John Ditslear at www.TheNoblesvilleLedger.com

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On the city's plate

Without hesitation, Mayor John Ditslear rattles off seven projects on a second-term to-do list that he says will maintain Noblesville's quality of life and control growth:

Hamilton Town Center is expected to open in May.

More companies will be approached to move into corporate campus.

The expansion of Hazel Dell Road is to be completed by the end of 2008.

Roundabouts at Clover and Mercantile are in the planning stages.

Discussions about building a bridge to continue Olio Road north over I-69 are under way.

Extending Union Chapel Road north to Ind. 32/38 is going to be looked at in the next 3 or 4 years.

A seventh fire station is expected to open in 2008 or early '09.

First-term accomplishments

John Ditslear's first four-year watch as mayor of Noblesville put the administration in the spotlight of rapid growth, retooled the focus of customer service and helped him build political capital that is poised to help steer his platform in his second term. Here are some of the accomplishments.

Commercial development

Hamilton Town Center, a massive mall on the city's far east side, broke ground and opened the first of 80-plus stores.

The number of companies making plans to open in corporate campus blossomed, including the North American headquarters for SMC, a Japanese company that will employ 775 people after it opens in 2009, becoming Noblesville's largest private employer.

In a face-off with Hamilton County and Fishers, Noblesville said, "No thanks" to moving Indianapolis Metropolitan Airport to Wayne Township.

Infrastructure changes

146th Street expanded, in a partnership with the county, east of Cumberland Road to I-69.

City Hall, a $17.9 million building three times the size of the old one, opened in late 2006.