By Jason Michael White, Daily Journal of Johnon County
Five years ago, a group of Center Grove area residents came together with a common goal: keep Walmart away from State Road 135.
The group gathered support and defeated two attempts by the retail giant to move into White River Township.
Walmart might have gone away, but the group stayed together.
White River Citizens United has evolved from a protester of big-box retailers to a community advocacy group that has had a voice in planning for the future of the Center Grove area. The township is mostly unincorporated, meaning it is not part of a city or town, and has an estimated population of about 40,000 people.
Group members have offered state officials suggestions for improvements to State Road 135, a major corridor through the township. They have advocated for parks and trails by working with local governments and committees. And recently, the group started discussions about the possibility of a merger between White River Township and Bargersville or Greenwood.
About 15 to 20 neighborhood associations, representing more than 1,500 households, are members of the incorporated nonprofit group.
Members of the group realize they do not represent all of White River Township. They are not elected; and until last year, only homeowner associations could join.
"We know we don't represent everybody in the township, but we try to represent as many people as we can," said Anita Knowles, a member of White River Citizens United and the county council.
For example, the change in the bylaws to allow individual property owners to join followed criticism from people who questioned how the group could speak for the township when only neighborhood associations could join, said Forrest Mellott, a member who lives in the Eagle Trace subdivision.
"We wanted to open the group up and make it all inclusive," said John Dorsett, president of White River Citizens United. "Our goal is to be an advocate for the community."
Changes in the group's role were a natural progression, Knowles said.
The main reason the group opposed Walmart was because State Road 135 could not handle the increased traffic from the development, and at the time, road improvements were not expected for years.
After Walmart's plans were defeated, group members started asking themselves what they could do to help improve the traffic situation and quality of development along the major corridor.
"We asked ourselves: What can we do as a group to make things more positive for our community?" member John Griffin said.
One of the group's challenges was that the township had little representation in county government, Knowles said. The county has three elected commissioners, who represent the entire county.
"County government was not made to handle an urban area with 40,000 people," she said.
For example, the township has 30-year-old subdivisions with roads that are deteriorating and need to be rebuilt. County government was not designed to handle the scope of roadwork that the Center Grove area needs.
Issues about streets and other services, such as parks, prompted the group to study whether the township would be better served by becoming a city or merging with Greenwood or Bargersville.
A study by Indiana University professor Paul Friga also played a role in these discussions. The study showed the options and consequences of the Center Grove area remaining unincorporated or merging with Greenwood or Bargersville.
Group members also became more active with the governments that affect the Center Grove area.
The group gave feedback to Greenwood planners while they updated the city's comprehensive plan, which stretches into White River Township. Comprehensive plans are guidelines for what types of development will go where.
Group members have worked with county planners, too, as well as the committee planning trails for the Center Grove area.
The group sets its priorities based on comments and issues that come up during monthly meetings. Group members have roundtable discussions and vote on what actions they want to take.
For instance, in 2006 the group asked the Indiana Department of Transportation to study the safety of State Road 135. Group members used statistics from the Greenwood Police Department to cite concerns about the safety of the road, particularly between County Line Road and Smith Valley Road. The 1.9-mile stretch was responsible for about 17.5 percent of the city's accident reports in 2004, the group found.
White River Citizens United met with local and state government officials and formalized a list of concerns and suggestions for improvements to the highway.
One suggestion was to realign Golfview Drive and Demaree Road and install a traffic light at the intersection.
Membership has stayed mostly steady since the group was organized over the Walmart issue, Mellott said.
"Walmart was a lightning rod," he said.