Lawrence Mayor Announces Retirement – Will Not Seek Reelection

Statement from Lawrence Mayor Steve Collier

This morning I am announcing my decision not to seek a third term as the Mayor of this great city.  Inevitably, there will be many people who will be asking the question, “What is driving you to make this decision?”  While there are many reasons, the most compelling answer is that I need to finally consider my family first as I transition into full retirement. 

My beautiful wife and best friend for the past 44 years has earned some time away from our joint public service careers.  Between the two of us we have spent a combined 90 years in public service.  It is time for us to spend some time with our 6 grandchildren, and it is time for Chris and me to travel together and enjoy a bit of time away from the public eye.

In retrospect, I have been an incredibly lucky guy, enjoying two radically different yet equaling rewarding public careers.  As a teacher, coach and administrator for 33 years I’ve made lifelong connections with my colleagues and former students.  That opportunity to positively impact young people is something that I will be forever grateful for!  In the past 7 years as your Mayor I have had the privilege of overseeing many successes.  I‘ve watched my team change the trajectory of this city. Lawrence is now positioned to take its hard-earned place beside successful and growing communities like Fishers, Noblesville, and other economically progressive Central Indiana cities.  It certainly wasn’t easy to implement these changes and often I had to ask myself, “why is it so hard to do the right thing?”  It will remain my strongest hope that we as a community can put politics aside and simply strive to do what is best for the future of our city.  I am consistently encouraged by the number of citizens who go out of their way to thank me for all that we are doing… that makes it all worthwhile – ten times over!

I have made lifetime friends – My Staff and our employees have been incredible.  The media has been very kind to both me and the city.  The men and women who have played vital roles in our city’s growth have been consistently professional.  But we’re not finished yet… in the next twelve months we will see the opening of Civic Plaza, we’ll cut the ribbon on the Tru Hotel and the Marion County Public Library and we will dedicate a brand new Fire Station 38!  And stay tuned for some more great news coming very soon.

Even though I will not be seeking re-election there remains just a little over a year before the next Mayor of Lawrence will be sworn in. You should expect that I and every member of my team will keep working diligently to keep Lawrence moving in the right direction.  We have worked too hard for this not to be an expectation for whoever comes next!

For now, I need to thank my wife who has been right there by my side from the campaign trail to city hall.  I continue to cherish the close-knit partnership between Lawrence Township Schools and my friendship with Dr. Shawn Smith and his administrative team.  I have too many friends to thank to even try to mention here… that will come later!  I’ve been blessed with the best and most talented administrative staff any Mayor could have expected.  I will miss that rare sense of camaraderie that was so instrumental in accomplishing our goals.  Finally, a very heartfelt thank you to the citizens of Lawrence who put their trust in me for these two very rewarding terms.