Letters to the Editor do not reflect the opinions of The Reporter, its publisher or its staff. You can submit your own Letter to the Editor by email to News@ReadTheReporter.com. Please include your phone number and city of residence. The Reporter will publish one letter per person per week.
Dear Editor:
As someone who has been involved in working to attract high quality businesses to Westfield, I have witnessed first-hand the disastrous management of our current city council, all of whom are Republicans.
Broadly, the Republican party has often been described as the “pro-business” party. Yet, over the past four years, I have watched this council make many poor decisions in this area, including a rejection of the opportunity to develop a corporate campus for Bastian/Toyota here in Westfield. This has essentially pushed a key corporate partner out of Westfield and into the welcoming arms of neighboring Noblesville.
I only wish this was an isolated mistake on the part of this council.
Unfortunately, the public rhetoric spewed by the “leaders” on our council has sent a chilly and unwelcoming signal into the business community – many feel that Westfield is “closed for business.”
I would encourage everyone to view the Aug. 22, 2022, city council meeting when the Bastian/Toyota project was debated. Our city leaders clearly failed us at this meeting. One Republican city council member said, in his opposition to the project, “…we (the City) don’t need the money,” not at all considering the city’s need for more businesses for tax revenue to help shoulder the burden that has grown too dependent upon residential property taxes.
In my first conversation with Westfield City Council candidate Alexis Lowry, she wanted to learn more about how and why the Republican-led city council rejected the Bastian/Toyota corporate campus. It was apparent to me from the outset that Alexis, a life-long resident of Westfield, has the curiosity and compassion to represent and promote the entirety of the Westfield population, regardless of political affiliation.
The past four years in Westfield have seen nothing but Republican infighting, with city councilors fighting to be louder and more chilling than the next. As the only woman running for City Council, Alexis Lowry is the one candidate who can allow the city council to become more diverse and representative of our whole constituency; our sole current city councilwoman decided not to run for re-election.
In their quest to “out-Republican” each other, the current council has lost track of their duty of representing all of Westfield. Instead, the current council has seemed more intent on placating a small group of narrow-minded individuals, catering to their calls for anti-growth and division. After four years, these “pro-business” Republicans have isolated our city from the business community, leading businesses to choose our neighboring communities all too often.
In my view and with my development experience, communities that thrive and attract quality development and growth are led by diverse political leadership. Alexis Lowry stands ready to provide that diversity through her energy, natural curiosity, and her dogged determination to represent and improve the quality of life for all Westfield residents.
Chris Wilkes
Westfield