Hello,
As we suffer through the heat wave this summer Zionsville has been the source of some disturbing news of late. Without going into detail these incidents, when covered by the media, often paint the worst picture possible. I just want to reiterate my belief that despite the negative actions of a few the people of Zionsville are some of the most generous, kind, and welcoming citizens of any community I have ever been associated with. As we grow, some of the darker aspects of living in a bigger town can happen. This does not define us, and I am proud to call Zionsville and particularly the Village my home!
I believe the VRA is a key element in helping develop a sense of community while fostering an environment which encourages knowing your neighbors and looking out for each other.
In the spirit of cooperation and communication I wanted to announce that the leadership team has agreed to asked Erica Carpenter who is the President of the Main Street Zionsville organization (as well as running a successful business on Main Street) to be an advisory member of the VRA leadership team. We believe that having a strong relationship between the Village and the Commercial district as the town begins a very transformative and disruptive project to change our road configuration makes sense and will allow us to ensure good coordination, communication, and messaging to the town leadership as the project is executed. I am a member of the Main Street Zionsville board so this cross pollination should provide strong synergy going forward. Once the project is completed, we will evaluate if the relationship between the two organizations continues to make sense.
Our meeting this month (July 21st) should be quite interesting, and I encourage you to attend! I know it is vacation season but if you are in town, please come. We will have three guest speakers. The first will be Marcie Cates who runs CoHatch. Marcie will be talking about a program they have started called Beats & Benefits which focuses on helping not for profit organizations raise awareness and funding. These events are being held in Zionsville during the summer months. Second, we will introduce Chris and Mike Marra who have recently opened Angelo’s Italian Market. They will discuss their products and why they feel Zionsville is an excellent market for them.
Also, on the agenda is a talk by Pete Prust who is the superintendent of the Zionsville Golf Course or Zionsville National as it is now known! Pete will discuss how things are going at the course, future plans, and the new concession stand now open at the corner of Willow and Maple!
We will also have an update on Lincoln Park progress and a discussion on various happenings around the Village.
Food truck Mondays got off to a great start on June 22nd. The crowd was large, the food great, and the weather not to uncomfortable! The next date is July 13th with the final night July 27th. Please come and support this great event! Once again, a big thank-you to the board of Lions Park for granting us permission to use it for these events.
Picnic on the Bricks will be the usual grand time on September 19th, and our new Chili Cookoff will take place October 24th. Details on both will be published as we get closer to those events.
Finally, the VRA is hosting a meet and greet for the two candidates running for state house representation for the Village district. The incumbent Becky Cash will join us on September 28th at 7:00 PM and the challenger for the position Tiffany Stoner will join us on October 5th again at 7:00 PM. Both events will be held at the SullivanMunce Cultural Center. Please join us to learn about these candidates and get your questions answered!
That’s all for now! As always if you have any comments, questions or concerns as it relates to the Village, or a topic you would like us to address in one of our meetings, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’m always grateful when residents communicate with us.
DUES: Please don’t forget to pay your yearly dues! Dues are $20 for an individual and $30 for a family. They can be paid by check or
Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/zionsvillevra
Venmo: https://venmo.com/zionsvillevra
VRA Website: https://zvra.com/
All the Best,
Mark