The final Republican gubernatorial debate Tuesday evening sparked some lively discussion around the Indiana Economic Development Corporation and, specifically, the LEAP Project in Boone County where the state has purchased significant amounts of farmland that will become shovel-ready sites for companies.
Candidate Eric Doden, former head of the IEDC in the Pence administration, says we should have a 92-county strategy, not a one county strategy.
“I’ve been very clear on this that the IEDC should not be spending billions of dollars of taxpayer money buying land in one county and then discover we have a water problem and then taking water and resources from a smaller community to Central Indiana. This is just inappropriate behavior.”
The plan to address that water issue Doden referenced is to pull water from Tippecanoe County, where some residents have started a “Stop the Water Steal” campaign. Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch says more local input was needed in the process.
“As a former county commissioner, you have to have collaboration. And visiting with the Boone County and Tippecanoe County commissioners, there has not been that collaboration between the state and local government. That’s absolutely critical. That’s why I want to empower local and economic development organizations to have that true partnership.”
Candidate Brad Chambers, who led the IEDC in developing the LEAP Project, defended their actions saying it needed to happen to keep up with other states who would take these jobs if Indiana didn’t want them.
“There is an abundance of water in this state. But the career politicians, like Suzanne Crouch, didn’t take the time and didn’t have the interest in studying it and knowing that it’s an asset that we can use strategically against our competitors like Ohio, Michigan, and Illinois. We have an abundance of water. It’s a transportation issue, bringing in outside investment to pay for that- not taxpayers.”
Senator Mike Braun did not participate in the debate as he was in D.C. for a vote. Election Day is Tuesday, May 7.
You can watch Tuesday night’s debate below.
