By: Jennifer Messer, Executive Director of CIRDA

Nov. 10, 2025

I write this column a day after another election season where voters in Virginia, New York, and California, among others, were warned of the inherent dangers of the other candidate and threatened with a world in demise if that other candidate won. Meanwhile, the federal government is shut down, and a myriad of divisive political issues consume the news cycle. All the while, however, your local elected leaders are working for you, and they are working together for a better Central Indiana, a Central Indiana where opportunities and wages increase and where our kids seek to live.

Over the last two years, Mayors, Town Council Presidents, and County Commissioners representing more than 30 Central Indiana communities have united to form the Central Indiana Regional Development Authority or “CIRDA.” Together, this group is committed to taking on another job—collaborating and making hard decisions that advance the entire region—Anderson to Martinsville, Zionsville to Franklin, and communities like Indianapolis, Noblesville and all the others in between.

You may argue these leaders are merely doing their job. But keep in mind, the goal of this group extends far beyond the immediate, beyond each member’s electorate, and beyond their individual municipal or county boundaries.

Through CIRDA, our leaders, Democrats and Republicans alike, are collaborating and playing the long game. Through the IEDC’s READI program, they are allocating resources to communities across the region because, for a strong region, we need dynamic small towns and thriving cities and suburbs that offer a plethora of living options. Meanwhile, CIRDA members are regularly meeting with local not-for-profits and stakeholders as they undertake a plan called Catalyze Central Indiana: Strategic Alignment To Ignite Growth. When completed in Q2, 2026, the Catalyze Plan will provide a pathway to strategically grow our economic assets to solidify a modern economy that yields high-paying jobs and greater opportunity.

And, CIRDA is working with our state leaders on so much more. From issues concerning water and utilities to planning for a stronger, more robust creative economy, CIRDA’s commitment to be a forum where elected leaders collaborate will pay off for decades. So, next time you read a divisive article or contemplate a news story that paints a picture of doom, think of CIRDA and rest assured that good work is happening here. Here, your elected leaders are setting aside differences and making tough decisions to help ensure that Central Indiana remains the state’s economic engine for decades to come.