GREENFIELD — With Greenfield’s evolving housing market on the minds of many candidates running for city council this year, a political action committee associated with the region’s board of Realtors endorsed five Republican council hopefuls, according to campaign finance documents filed this week.
The Realtors Political Action Committee, a group of trustees affiliated with the Metropolitan Indianapolis Board of Realtors, gave $5,000 to five candidates — $1,000 to each person — running for the Greenfield City Council. The PAC’s contributions added up to a quarter of the total amount of money Hancock County candidates received between Jan. 1 and mid-April, county finance documents indicate.
Candidates had until April 22 to turn in campaign finance reports for pre-primary contributions and expenditures ahead of the May 7 election to the Hancock County Election Office. Thirteen GOP contenders, from Greenfield, Fortville and McCordsville, collected $20,035 during this year’s four-month reporting period. Five of those candidates carried over $16,135 from past campaigns, documents state.
The campaign committee for Greenfield Mayor Chuck Fewell, who’s running unopposed in the Republican primary but who will face 22-year-old Democrat Zachary LaFavers in the general election, reported the most contributions among the 13 candidates with $14,454 in the bank, year to date.
Fewell’s campaign has received $1,000 so far in 2019. That came from DPBG PAC, a committee affiliated with American Structurepoint Inc., an Indianapolis-based engineering consultant. According to the company’s website, American Structurepoint constructed the Potts Ditch storm sewer in Greenfield in 2015. In August 2017, the firm designed a plat for Progress Park near BeijingWest Industries, documents on the city’s website state. DPBG PAC also contributed to the campaigns of Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness and Carmel Mayor Jim Brainard, according to the Indianapolis Business Journal.
MIBOR’s PAC contributed to the campaigns of city council incumbents Gary McDaniel, District 1 representative; Kerry Grass, District 5 representative; Dan Riley and Joe Skvarenina, both at-large representatives; and first-time candidate John Jester, who’s running for the District 2 seat.
At a forum this week, the five Republicans running for two city council contested races in the May primary — Riley, Skvarenina, Jester, Thomas Lopez and Mitch Pendlum — each voiced support for more housing options in Greenfield, mentioning a mix of apartments, townhomes and single-family houses.
Lacey Everett, director of political affairs for MIBOR, said the bipartisan PAC sends out questionnaires to candidates who file for municipal offices in the association’s 12-county service area in central Indiana. For 2019, Everett said the PAC sent out 480 questionnaires and received back about 200. Of the 80 candidates the PAC board’s trustees interviewed, Everett said they chose to endorse 45 candidates.
The questionnaire focuses on real estate and home ownership, Everett said; the endorsement from the MIBOR PAC means a financial contribution and access to voter data for candidates, she added.
“You’re also deciding on ‘electability,’ and that’s a huge part of this,” Everett said, “to be able to figure out are they a viable candidate, have they put enough thought into their campaign plan, and how can we be helpful?”
Skvarenina was endorsed by the MIBOR PAC when he ran for city council four years ago, he said. As Hancock County Historian, Skvarenina said he works with many local Realtors who are also MIBOR members.
Jester, a former Greenfield police chief and Hancock County coroner, was the only non-incumbent city council candidate to receive the endorsement. The $1,000 given by the MIBOR PAC is Jester’s only itemized contribution, according to his campaign finance document. He said the support means a lot coming from a regional association that represents many local real estate professionals.
“So, that shows me that I have their confidence to make the right decisions,” he said.
Riley, who’s running against Skvarenina and Pendlum — the council’s current District 2 representative — in a three-way race in the GOP primary for two at-large city council seats, contributed $250 to Skvarenina’s campaign in January. Riley said in addition to the council, he and Skvarenina serve on the Riley Old Home Society. Skvarenina added that he and Riley get along well on the council.
Both Riley and Grass received campaign contributions from the committees for Greenfield Sen. Mike Crider and Rep. Bob Cherry. Riley collected $100 from Cherry and $250 from Crider, while Grass received $750 from Crider and $100 from Cherry; former state Sen. Beverly Gard and her husband, Don, also contributed $100 to Grass’s campaign.
Cherry also gave $100 to Skvarenina’s campaign, and Hancock County Treasurer and Republican Party Chairwoman Janice Silvey contributed $100. Skvarenina said those donations feel like a “stamp of endorsement” of his candidacy from the county’s GOP.
Skvarenina spent $100 of his funds to support the campaign of Lopez, a political newcomer running against Jester for the District 2 seat. Lopez, who started as Skvarenina’s campaign manager before choosing to file himself, self-funded the remaining $500 in his campaign fund. Skvarenina said Lopez has good ideas to bring to the council, adding the city need someone new who can bring “vigor” to the position.
Pendlum, a 12-year member of the city council, self-funded his campaign, contributing and spending $2,552.88. He chose to run as an at-large council candidate after three terms representing District 2.
At a Hancock County Election Board meeting Thursday, Hancock County Clerk Lisa Lofgreen said the county didn’t receive campaign finance reports from four candidates: LaFavers; Republican Fortville Town Council District 1 candidate Tonya Drake Davis; Republican Greenfield City Council District 4 candidate Jeff Lowder; and Democratic Greenfield City Council District 1 candidate Chris Beushausen.
Lofgreen said she contacted each candidate, and Lowder was the only person to respond. He plans to turn in his campaign finance report once he returns from vacation, Lofgreen said. The election board will send out letters to the three other candidates, asking them to turn in the reports as soon as possible.
Any candidate can create a campaign committee, but those who make less than $5,000 aren’t required to unless they receive more than $500 in contributions, according to state election rules. LaFavers is the only candidate of the four who didn’t turn in finance reports to create a campaign committee.
[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”At a glance” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
Some highlights of the campaign finance reports:
Most cash on hand: Mayor Chuck Fewell
Most in contributions this year: Dan Riley
Biggest self-funded campaign: Mitch Pendlum
Most campaign money spent this year: Riley
[sc:pullout-text-end][sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”Candidate campaign finance reports” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
The following candidates from Hancock County running for office in the 2019 primary election turned in campaign finance reports by noon April 22. The contribution amounts listed include the campaign committee’s cash on hand from past elections.
Name, office sought, cash on hand
Chuck Fewell, Greenfield Mayor — $14,454.89
Dan Riley, Greenfield City Council At Large — $6,193.37
Kerry Grass, Greenfield City Council District 5 — $4,886.10
Joe Skvarenina, Greenfield City Council At Large — $2,800
Mitch Pendlum, Greenfield City Council At Large — $2,552.88
Gary McDaniel, Greenfield City Council District 1 — $2,155.37
John Jester, Greenfield City Council District 2 — $1,545
Thomas Lopez, Greenfield City Council District 2 — $700
Lori Elmore, Greenfield Clerk-Treasurer — $517.87
Greg Brewer, McCordsville Town Council District 2 — $315.65
Melissa Jo Glazier, Fortville Clerk-Treasurer — $50
George Plisinski, Greenfield City Council, District 3 — $0
Staci Starcher, McCordsville Clerk-Treasurer — $0
[sc:pullout-text-end]
