Thriving Neighborhoods
As your mayor, I will work tirelessly to help make our distressed neighborhoods safer and vibrant. We will work in partnership with neighborhood associations, the Muncie Action Plan, Ball State’s Building Better Neighborhoods Initiative and Community Engagement, local foundations, not-for-profits and private developers to create stronger neighborhoods.
Office of Neighborhood Services
As your next mayor I will create the Office of Neighborhood Services which will serve as the repository of neighborhood improvement programs and applicable City services. The left and the right hands of your City government will be coordinated to deliver reliable world-class services. All Federal, State, City and philanthropic funding will be administered through the Office of Neighborhood Services.
Muncie 2040—Thriving Neighborhoods
I will immediately convene all stakeholders both currently involved and those poised to lend help to a robust plan of action known as Muncie 2040—Thriving Neighborhoods. The work of Muncie 2040 will be supported by a professional community development team that will work with neighborhood associations, Federal, State and local philanthropic partners, as well as financial and not-for-profit entities to create lasting improvements within our neighborhoods. Our plan of action will be broader and more inclusive than any current or prior plans.
Key components to Muncie 2040—Thriving Neighborhoods:
- Community development expertise aligned to support neighborhoods.
- Participatory planning program that supports engaged neighborhoods.
- Activities, spaces, and civic development that attracts people to live and work in Muncie (incorporate the efforts of Next Muncie and work hand-in-hand with the Office of Economic Affairs).
- Development of inner ring neighborhood revitalization plan.
- Preservation and improvement of outer ring neighborhoods.
- Incentivizing of homeownership and home improvements.
- Review of all applicable City of Muncie life safety and property maintenance codes.
- Creation of the Neighborhood Resource Institute.
- Implementation of community policing.
- Deployment of traffic calming program.
Participatory Budgeting Program
I will ensure that neighborhoods with great ideas get the support they need to make their ideas a reality. From infrastructure improvements to parks, planning activities, or community programs, the City will set aside a certain amount of funds annually that can be accessed through a competitive process known as Participatory Budgeting. Each project submitted will be critiqued by a specially appointed board that evaluates and provides recommendations to the Mayor’s Office.
Community Policing
Community policing works. Consistent community policing programs that aren’t curtailed after a couple of years render extraordinary results. As your mayor, the City of Muncie will make community policing a permanent component of our public safety efforts. Key to community policing is working collaboratively in partnership with city residents, embracing organizational change, and proactively identifying concerns before they escalate into emergency situations. We’ll do this together.
Neighborhood Resource Institute
As your mayor, I will create the Neighborhood Resource Institute as a tool to equip individuals and neighborhood associations to engage in community service and inform community members how our local government works and the various entities—such as local non-for-profits and faith-based organizations, Delaware County Government and other relevant organizations, like the Chamber of Commerce—operate. Other functions of the Neighborhood Resource Institute include preparatory seminars for serving on boards, authorities, commissions, and special planning committees of the City of Muncie, as well as a citizens’ inspector program.
Citizen Inspector Program
Vibrant neighborhoods are safe neighborhoods. It takes active and engaged neighbors working together to maintain and improve our quality of life. Working in coordination with the City of Muncie’s Building Commissioner’s Office, the Unsafe Building Hearing Authority, established neighborhood associations, and others, the City will establish a resource known as the Citizen Inspector Program. The program’s purpose is to alleviate the time and congestion of responding to and addressing properties that are not in compliance with the City’s code enforcement ordinances and to establish favorable and predictable outcomes, without placing undue stress and work on the trained citizen inspector.
Traffic Calming Program
Pedestrian safety is critical to maintaining a safe neighborhood. Speeding vehicles is a safety issue that can be eliminated. As your mayor, I will make available both the expertise and resources to reduce vehicular speeding and eliminate other impediments to personal safety.