Four area mayors gathered on a stage at Old National Events Plaza on July 9 and spoke about the proverbial threads that stitch their cities and the wider region together.
Art was the theme for Lunch with the Mayors, an Evansville Regional Economic Partnership event, and moderator Justin Groenert, E-REP’s chief strategy officer, started by asking the quartet of leaders about what projects have added the most significant brushstrokes to their cities recently.
Princeton’s Greg Wright spoke about the Toyota Indiana YMCA, which has boosted his community’s Downtown and is expanding to include a preschool program. It will be ready about the time school starts, “and it was a $1 million investment in what was already a $23 million facility,” Wright said. “… Preschools are so critical across the board.”
Henderson, Kentucky, Mayor Brad Staton said the Interstate 69 Ohio River Crossing, scheduled for completion in 2031, “is going to change the way our community looks and feels” and will connect the region “in ways we’ve never been connected before, which is really nice.”
Staton also cited local officials’ push to keep both U.S. 41 bridges (known as the Bi-State Vietnam Gold Star Twin Bridges) open long-term. That would require a policy reversal by Kentucky and Indiana transportation officials, whose current plans are to shut down the southbound bridge, with north-south traffic on the northbound span.
“We need to be at a place where we’re able to stay on both of the twin bridges and keep them open and free,” Staton said.
Evansville’s decision to bring emergency medical services in-house under the city’s Fire Department was the brushstroke Mayor Stephanie Terry mentioned. That change took effect on July 1.
“That decision didn’t come easy, but we did the hard thing, and here we are,” Terry said. “I think it’s going to be one of the most transformational things we can leave our community … building a more coordinated, unified system to offer better, high-quality service.”
Mount Vernon, Indiana, Mayor Steve Loehr cited construction of the Philip Hagemann Events Center, a more than 27,000-square-foot building and home to the city’s Parks and Recreation Department offices and Boys and Girls Club. It’s situated in the new Hagemann Park, which will include a skate park, ball fields, pedestrian paths, and more.
“It’s 106 acres that we’re developing,” Loehr said, adding that April 2027 is the expected completion date.
Groenert asked the mayors about the community collaboration that has brought results.
Loehr touted a welding lab at Mount Vernon High School — John D Haynes School of Welding Tech — supported by manufacturer BWX Technologies, Inc. Wright cited various partnerships with Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana, plus the city’s work with the Indiana Department of Transportation on plans to rehabilitate Princeton’s east-west Broadway Street corridor and infrastructure along the road starting in 2027. In Henderson, collaborations have improved city parks, created murals, and led to the rebirth of The Bridges Golf Course, Staton said.
Terry cited the Evansville Promise Neighborhood initiative, started in 2023 with a $30 million federal grant and matching funds from more than 20 local organizations. “It’s about building a cradle to career system to make sure that every child has an opportunity to succeed,” she said. “… I would love to see that model replicated across our city, even beyond in our region.”
Taking the luncheon’s art theme up a notch, incoming University of Evansville freshman Chloe Mayes created a live painting during the event, depicting landmarks in Evansville, Mount Vernon, Princeton, and Henderson. The completed painting was unveiled following the luncheon, and each mayor will receive a framed print of Mayes’ creation. The Henderson County High School graduate will pursue an art degree at UE.
