Andrew Klinger loves economic development and working within local government entities.
He gets excited about building up the community through infrastructure, amenities and more. As town manager of Cumberland, Indiana, Klinger got to know former Plainfield Town Manager Richard Carlucci.
“I got to know him through town manager events and I had always thought Plainfield was a nice community,” Klinger said. “In my mind, when Rich retired, I’d have five years of experience under my belt in Cumberland and I might apply for the position.”
It all happened a lot faster than anticipated.
Carlucci retired fairly soon after that, and Klinger made the last-minute decision to apply. He’s now entered his 10th year serving as town manager for the Town of Plainfield.
“My role day-to-day is managing operations,” he said. “We have five elected council members but they need someone to handle the departments like fire, police, public safety, parks and others. We have over 400 full-time employees and we’ve got great people like the police chief and the fire chief managing their operations. I’m working with them for the future, for our community and how we want to operate overall.”
When Klinger came on board, the Town of Plainfield was already a fast-growing community. They already had the Richard A. Carlucci Recreation and Aquatic Center, 40 million square feet of warehouse space, and what is now known as the Shops at Perry Crossing.
He immediately connected with the town’s goals and got to work.
“Rich and the town council had the mindset of investing funds for benefits down the road,” Klinger said. “I was able to step right in. They do a great job of planning for the future, which has set the stage for the different projects.”
First on the list for Klinger was developing Plainfield’s downtown.
He said the area wasn’t struggling. In fact, nearly every building was occupied, but he wanted to bring attention and focus to the heart of the community.
In the council’s typical fashion, when a developer proposed a mixed-use building downtown, they took a pause, with the intention of taking their time and looking at what the town needed and wanted in the area.
This resulted in the Downtown Redevelopment conceptual plan.
“That’s where the art center, Hendricks Live!, came in,” Klinger said. “The feedback from residents at the time was give us something to do downtown. That’s been a big focus for me – reinvesting back into downtown, and of course other projects came along like The Barlow and our government center.”
With a mix of old and new, the downtown area is still under development.
The Prewitt owners renovated the old movie theater and it includes a restaurant and bar space. Mama Bird Bakery has occupied the lower level of The Barlow. Tlahcos opened in the new parking structure and, The Green Room is a coffee-to-cocktail concept coming to the Performing Arts Center building.
“We’re continuing to attract unique business to the downtown area and, of course, Hendricks Live! draws people downtown,” Klinger said.
His second area of focus, even 10 years ago, has been Echo Hollow Nature Park, formally known as Sodalis Nature Park on the west side of town.
“We call it our glacier project, he said. “We’ve already spent 10 years working on it and it’ll be another 10 years before the entire vision is built out. We’re currently developing a master plan and have some new amenities and projects coming up.”
Echo Hollow is currently a 210-acre park with nature trails, picnic areas and a 5.5-acre pond. However, the entire property spans 1,800 acres and the long-term goal is to create a park equivalent to other Indiana state parks.
“It’s one of the benefits of having consistent leadership,” Klinger said. “We’re not in a hurry. We have a vision and a plan, and we want to do it the right way and deliver that plan.”
Though Klinger is a big proponent of developing the downtown area, he and other leaders haven’t forgotten other areas across the community. Hobbs Station offers 1,000 new housing units near the Shops at Perry Crossing, and they’re not stopping there.
“We talk about Plainfield being a community of places, developing different places people want to go like downtown, the mall and Echo Hollow,” Klinger said. “We also have the hospitality district off of I-70 with hotels and restaurants. In my next 10 years we would like to do more with that space. We want to send a clear message that you’re in Plainfield.”
Over the years Klinger has worked on more than infrastructure and development projects. He’s worked on putting the right people in the right positions, so the Town of Plainfield operates smoothly and with a passion like no other.
Klinger was at one time managing more than a dozen direct reports, but that number is now closer to six, with additions like Assistant Town Manager of Community Services Alan Geans, Assistant Town Manager of Administrative Services Nate Thorne, Executive Director of Public Safety Jared McKee, and others.
“This year, with a change in legislation, we have an elected clerk and we’ve brought on a controller who handles our finances,” Klinger said. “The experience and education of this staff is amazing. We have folks with two master’s degrees, professional engineers, and many with more than 20 years of experience in their field.”
Klinger has focused on diversity among team members and believes the town has found the perfect mix.
“Everyone has diverse views and personalities, and that leads to a better result,” Klinger said. “I think getting the structure right so we can deliver quality services to our residents is important.”
“We love it here,” Klinger added regarding his family. “We were in one of the best school systems in the state and then learned that Plainfield was even better. We can go anywhere from our house using the trail system and we’ve already been to five or 10 shows at Hendricks Live!. Plainfield has been so welcoming, and these events and amenities we’re planning are the same ones I’m taking my kids to. I want them to be the best.”
