Mayors from five east central Indiana cities, including Shelbyville Mayor Tom DeBaun, will meet with other government and economic leaders Thursday in Rushville to discuss common challenges and ways to help each other improve and succeed.
DeBaun will discuss economic development at the inaugural Prosperity Summit.
"The city of Shelbyville is in a unique place, because we're part of the metro area but we draw a significant part of our workforce from Rush County, Decatur County (and the like)," DeBaun said.
The topic of economic development came up because Shelby County is a leader in the region in that area.
Greenfield Mayor Chuck Fewell will cover community development, New Castle Mayor Greg York will discuss educational excellence, Greensburg Mayor Gary Herbert will discuss regionalism and Rushville Mayor Mike Pavey will address public/private partnerships.
With the state's push toward regional development and the successful relationships between communities in this region, such a summit makes sense.
"None of us can - or should - operate in a vacuum," Pavey said. "Being engaged, fostering positive conversations with our neighboring communities can lead to new ideas and shared problem solving.
"We named this initiative a Prosperity Summit because if a regional approach is done in a fair and balanced fashion, the end result will be beneficial for all those involved and most importantly, for the constituents we all serve."
Invited guest speakers include University of Indianapolis Associate Professor Dr. Matt Will talking about the "state" of Indiana, Beazer President David Compton discussing residential growth and DTZ Associate Vice President Spud Dick covering commercial growth. Indiana Department of Transportation Intergovernmental Affairs Director Nick Barbknecht will talk about transportation investments with Indiana Economic Development Corp. President Eric Doden and Economic Development Administration Indiana Representative Darrin Fleener handling discussion topics on economic development and regionalism. David Willkie will discuss a public/private partnership with the Rural 1150 Coding Academy. Mike Harmless of Crowe Horwath LLP serves as summit coordinator.
"The knowledge and experience each of these leaders will bring to the group is deep and broad," Pavey said. "As mayors, we matched each of our communities with the appropriate topic so achievements could be showcased and we could learn from those in our group who have had the most success in each area. As the saying goes, a rising tide lifts all boats.
"At the end of the day, all of us hope to better understand the assets of each community, build familiarity and a comfort level that we can comfortably pick up the phone and talk with each other about challenges and resources. The goal is to implement what we learn throughout the day and come away with enhanced knowledge about how we can effectively work together to improve our own communities and strengthen our region so we all can compete on a global scale," Pavey said.
Those interested in attending the free event from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday at the 201 Building, 201 N. Main St., Rushville, should contact Carla Sharpe in the Rushville Mayor's office at 765-932-3735 or secretary@cityofrushville.in.gov by close of business on Monday.
The long-term plan is for the Prosperity Summit to become an annual event, rotating between each of the five cities and hosted by the respective mayor.