By BILL SMYTHE
Guest Columnist
According to the new census data, Fishers is the sixth-largest city in the state and ranks second in Hamilton County, just behind Carmel. However, the city of Fishers has never had its own representation in the executive branch of our county government.
Now is the only chance until 2031 to give Fishers citizens a voice on the County Board of Commissioners. The Hamilton County commissioner district boundaries should be realigned to dedicate one voting district to Fishers. Our approximately 99,000 residents deserve this dedicated representation.
Currently, Fishers is broken into two county districts, while Noblesville and Carmel each have their own. This means that Fishers residents’ interests are diluted. Simply, a Fishers-dedicated district would ensure that a Fishers resident would be voted on by Fishers citizens to serve in our county government.
Most voters are unaware that the board of commissioners is comprised of three commissioners, who each must live in separate districts. This despite the fact they are all voted on county-wide. The purpose of these three districts is so all three of them can’t live in the same cul de sac in Carmel, for example, and have little concern how they serve the remainder of the county.
I have extensive know-how about our county government. Some of you may recall my unsuccessful run for county commissioner in the 2016 GOP primary. I confronted county government’s shortcomings during my campaign and offered important solutions. Voters Over Vendors and Rehab Over Incarceration could still successfully address significant problems within HamCo.
A third solution, Dedicated Over Divided, could be implemented today. I pledged to ensure that Fishers would have their own dedicated commissioner district when it came time to re-evaluate the district maps. Five years ago, I identified that Fishers was divided and insufficiently represented and there was simple remedy that would fix it.
Today, I implore the current County Commissioners to implement this remedy and reset the district lines to serve the people of Fishers.
I remain committed to my pledge to a dedicated Fishers county district instead of divided. So, I recently reached out to the Elections, Clerk and Auditors offices to better understand the process that the commissioners will follow. As best I can tell is once the precinct numbers are verified then the Clerk’s office, Kathy Williams will make a recommendation based on the desires of the commissioners. The County Commissioners, none of whom live in Fishers, have the sole authority to decide to redistrict (themselves) and how those districts are created within the state statue Indiana Code 36-2-2-4, which reads in part:
The executive shall divide the county into three (3) districts that are composed of contiguous territory and are reasonably compact. The district boundaries drawn by the executive must not cross precinct boundary lines and must divide townships only when a division is clearly necessary to accomplish redistricting under this section. If necessary, the county auditor shall call a special meeting of the executive to establish or revise districts.
Lastly, I want to state clearly for those that think my passion for a Fishers-dedicated voting district is self-serving so I can run again in 2024: I have no intention of ever running for office again and most assuredly I will never appear on a GOP ballot in the future. We old folks need to get out of the way and let the next generation start to lead. But before I step aside, I will do all I can to convince our County Commissioners to do the right thing for Fishers.
Contact your County Commissioners and tell them to dedicate a district to Fishers.