Forward Together

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FORWARD
FORWARD
TOGETHER:
TOGETHER:
Dear Friend,
Dear Friend,
This plan is OUR plan for building the community we all deserve.
And I say “OUR plan” because it’s not mine alone. It belongs as much to you as it does to me.
That’s because the vision laid out in the following pages, this blueprint, was formed through conversations
with you… on front porches and in backyards during my Together with Terry Listening Tour, and at forums and
community celebrations city-wide.
To put this plan together, I’ve captured your thoughts and ideas and combined them with what I know and
learned through my experiences as a long-time leader in this community. I’ve sketched out goals and priorities
in areas like public safety, neighborhood improvement, and education with an eye toward lifting up our
community and providing opportunities for everyone.
When you read the plan, you’ll see… It’s a lofty agenda. But I know we can do all this and more with the right
city leadership.
For me, the chance to serve as your Mayor has never been about political parties, a campaign, or even about
me.
It’s about the “We.”
It’s about moving Forward Together.
I’d appreciate your vote in November. Let’s build the community we all deserve.
Stephanie Terry
P.S. Let me know what you think of the plan. Message me at stephanie@voteterry.com.
VOTETE R RY.CO M
VOTETE R RY.CO M
A Vision for Evansville
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Neighborhood Development:
Neighborhood Development:
A city is made up of neighborhoods. Each one has a personality, a history, and a set of qualities that
make it special. But each one should offer a standard of living that starts with being safe and ends with
beautiful parks. Our city won’t truly prosper until all of our neighborhoods are vibrant places to live,
work, and raise a family.
Cultural Districts
Cultural Districts
Parks
Parks
In recent years, we’ve watched Cultural Districts ignite economic development and historic
preservation in areas like Haynie’s Corner and the Franklin Street Corridor. These neighborhoods are
now filling with new businesses and hosting art fairs, summer markets, and music festivals, adding to
our city’s cultural richness and pride. It’s time to expand. My administration will work in partnership
with businesses, neighborhood associations, and organizations to create Cultural Districts all across
town that capture, preserve, and build on the special history of these parts of our city. As part of this
work, my team will improve zoning codes and bring partners together to activate our public spaces in
these neighborhoods. Because it’s not just about repairing, it’s also about reimagining.
Our neighborhood parks are more than just places to play. Sure, they bring our community together
and help bolster tourism and economic development, but they also contribute to public safety. To put
it bluntly, if our parks don’t look and feel safe, people don’t feel safe. My administration will make it
a priority to invest in our city parks and trails. We will work in partnership with the Parks Foundation,
businesses, and neighborhood associations to pool resources and find creative ways to polish up
these community spaces and playgrounds. If that means launching capital campaigns, that’s what
we’ll do. If that means finding grant funding, we’ll go for it. These spaces, and the people who use
them, are too important to neglect.
There is no detail too small to me when it comes to city government,
from ensuring trash pickup arrives on time to improving the
reliability of our bus service. I want every resident to feel that
Evansville works for them.
“
“
- Stephanie Terry
Repair and Reimagine
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Reinvigorating Code Enforcement
Reinvigorating Code Enforcement
Overgrown grass. Dilapidated structures. Backyards full of junk. While we would hope and wish that our
neighbors keep up their properties and avoid these descriptions, in many cases, that doesn’t happen and
some of these examples are true.
We have codes in the books that allow our Building Commission to enforce our neighbors more quality
properties, doing the small things that keep pride in our neighborhoods. A Terry administration will beef
up our staff within the Building Commission to ensure those standards are met, and codes are enforced.
We can invest in our neighborhoods, we can add sidewalks and cultural districts, but if we aren’t
leveraging current codes to ensure quality neighborhoods, we can’t continue transformative progress.
Complete Streets and Infrastructure
Complete Streets and Infrastructure
Repaving streets is and should be a priority for Evansville. Within the first 100 days, we will conduct an
assessment of our more than 400 miles of roads, streets, sidewalks, and bicycle lanes.
We will prioritize a list of streets and roadways to be repaved. And yes, we’ll fill the potholes! In addition,
my administration will commit to enforcing the Complete Streets Policy that passed Evansville City
Council in 2021.
What is the Complete Street policy? It’s a commitment to building more sidewalks and bike lanes in
every road reconstruction project. As we build more connected Cultural Districts, and improve our
neighborhoods, we must ensure they are connected by quality streets and sidewalks all across town –
and that’s a priority for me and my administration.

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Other Work Ahead
• Establish a standard of excellence for property owners
• Create a citywide Tenant Bill of Rights
• Reinvigorate code enforcement to improve neighborhood conditions
• Develop a grading system for city parks to improve park maintenance
Increasing Housing Trust Fund Allocation
Creating cultural districts and improving parks won’t mean a thing to a neighborhood if people can’t
afford to live there. Our Affordable Housing Trust Fund offers many the support they need to buy a
home. It also helps create more affordable housing in our city. But there’s not enough money in the
fund to meet the need. My administration will remain committed to working in partnership with the
business community, local leadership, and housing organizations to significantly increase the amount
of money in the Affordable Housing Trust Fund by raising philanthropic support, leveraging private
investment and tapping federal, state, and local grant sources. It will take creative public-private
partnerships, policy adjustments, and a lot of hard work. But in our city, the dream of a stable home
shouldn’t be just a dream.
Housing
Housing
Evansville has a long history of working together to make sure all of our citizens have a safe, stable
place to live. But, in many ways, we’ve come up against some unpredictable forces like a pandemic,
growing inflation, rising mental health challenges. We can’t move forward as a city when some
residents are left behind. According to the 2023 Housing Needs Assessment completed by Bowen
National Research, Evansville will need to build around 2,812 new rental units in the next five years.
The report also states nearly 45% of “cost-burdened” renter households are paying a large part of
their income toward housing, likely because there is not enough affordable rental housing. We have
work to do to ensure access to affordable housing.
Affordable, Quality Housing
Right now, many people who want to buy homes have been priced out of the market. They’re stuck.
They can’t work toward their dreams.
At the same time, many neighbors simply cannot afford their homes anymore, an increase in rent
or a recent illness can dramatically shift housing affordability and often tragically results in housing
instability or worse, homelessness.
Our city is at a turning point. To help create more affordable housing, my administration will look at
federal grant funding, multi-city partnerships, and community investment. We will look for national
solutions and make them our own. And, we’ll make it attractive for developers to build more
affordable housing. Let’s grow our tax base, shore up our population, and improve our economy by
building more affordable housing. We can’t afford not to.
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Public Safety:
Public Safety:
Public safety is the first job of city government. It’s important to ensure that Evansville has responsive,
prepared, and culturally competent public safety professionals. As Mayor, I will work with my team to
take a broader look at what really goes into public safety. We will coordinate all of our city work in all
of these different areas with the goal of creating a safe, connected community. I believe it will take a
holistic, visionary approach like this to tackle the issue of public safety.
Service, Enforcement, Prevention, and Community
Ensuring safety in our community is a team effort and improving
safety will take collaboration and commitment from our public
safety professionals, social service agencies, courts, the Mayor’s
office and even our local faith community.
“
“
- Stephanie Terry
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We will...
We will...
Expand and strengthen community policing strategies, starting with well-trained officers, youth
outreach & engagement, effective crime prevention, and collaboration with community leaders to
build trust. Local police officers should work closely with the people they serve. They should become
a part of our neighborhoods, getting to know us and our concerns. EPD has developed a community-
based approach, but we can always do more.
Develop a holistic approach to policing by partnering with non-profit agencies to identify and assist
individuals who may be at-risk and need other resources, removing responsibility for non-emergency
calls from the police department (e.g. substance abuse, mental health, elderly).
Broaden our hiring and retention efforts by developing a positive workplace culture, increasing
compensation, providing support for our officers with mental health and wellness services, and
ongoing training. These deserving professionals invest heavily in our communities and I will invest in
them.
Promote transparency and accountability by enhancing police communications to update residents
and businesses on public safety efforts.

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Stephanie’s Track Record:
• Supported increased salaries for sheriff deputies to attract and retain
top talent
• Leveraged federal funds to provide new mental health care services in
Vanderburgh County
• Approved additional space for Superior and Circuit courts to address
the courts’ backlog
• Funded a Case Manager position to provide services to formerly
incarcerated people to reduce recidivism
Other Work Ahead
• Expand upon internship programs to help with officer recruitment
• Remove abandoned spaces that are often magnets for crime
• Invest in police and fire equipment and spaces
• Expand partnerships that provide second chances for citizens, places
where they can get basic needs like housing and mental health and
substance abuse services
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Promoting Economic Growth
Promoting Economic Growth
The city of Evansville plays an important role in regional economic development. We serve as a
critical link for businesses seeking to expand by providing crucial city services and infrastructure that
fuel economic growth. The Mayor’s office must stay rooted in providing excellent city services and
supporting employers in workforce development. Our city government has a lot of work to do in
streamlining city services, providing strong communication with those seeking to do business with the
city, and maximizing opportunities for those who want to do business here.
Stephanie’s Track Record:
• Supported funding for the Community Development Financial
Institution (CDFI) which seeks to meet community financing needs for
under-financed people and communities
• Fueled new job growth with tax abatement incentives that enabled
businesses to expand.
• Served on the Board of the Evansville Regional Economic Partnership
(E-REP), eliminating redundancy and streamlining the city’s ability to
champion local Evansville businesses.
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Downtown Evansville and Riverfront
Downtown Evansville and Riverfront
A growing and vibrant city needs deep connections with its neighbors. Our regional economy creates
jobs for City of Evansville residents, customers for our businesses, and workers for our employers. Great
relationships with Vanderburgh County, the cities and counties around us and across the Ohio River, as
well as multi-county organizations and projects are critical to the success of Evansville and the well-being
of our residents. In my decade-long experience on the Vanderburgh County Council I’ve developed many
of the relationships needed to continue and expand important regional efforts.
Regionalism
Downtown Evansville is the regional center of government, finance, sports, arts and culture, tourism,
and with Signature School and the school of medicine campus it’s an important educational hub, too.
It’s important to work towards more Downtown growth and begin to drive the benefits of that growth
to nearby neighborhoods and to Evansville as a whole. Simply put, Evansville cannot thrive without a
thriving downtown.
Downtown
Like many cities, Evansville was built with its back to its riverfront. When we look at other thriving cities
across the country, those that seem to be flourishing have changed their relationship to their riverfronts
by creating recreational, commercial, and residential amenities that embrace their shorelines – Evansville
must follow suit. Through my work on the EID, I’m deeply familiar with the regional planning efforts
underway to create a more compelling Ohio Riverfront that has access points for all our residents to
enjoy. A Terry administration will take these plans seriously, and our Riverfront a priority.
The Riverfront

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A Community Master Plan
A Community Master Plan
Our city would benefit from greater transparency and communication about our city plans. A Community
Master Plan, for example, would give businesses, government agencies and everyone in our community
insight into new buildings, expansion of city services, and infrastructure improvements for things like
roads, trails, and parks.
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Modernizing and Streamlining City Approvals
Modernizing and Streamlining City Approvals
It should be easy to do business with Evansville. If you’re a local contractor or business owner trying
to get a license or a permit and you have met all the requirements, the city should grant your request.
That’s what streamlining means to me. Those who are following all of the city’s rules and requirements
should receive approval in a timely manner. It should be that simple.
Enforcement of existing policies can also play a role in streamlining city services. For example, enforcing
contractors’ licensing requirements ensures higher quality in our infrastructure and city development,
promotes safety on local construction sites, and assures competitive pay for local workers – that’s
not a nice thing to do, it’s a must, and a Terry administration will ensure enforcement of licensing
requirements.
Maximizing Opportunities
Maximizing Opportunities
Our community can do more to boost our local economy. Youth sports at the Deaconess Sports Park,
college athletics at UE and USI, concerts at Old National Events Plaza, Victory Theater and the Ford
Center, business conventions, Eastland Mall, Bally’s casino, Mesker Park Zoo and historic Bosse Field all
attract revenue for Evansville. These are phenomenal attributes to Evansville. We must continue selling
Evansville as an excellent location for families and travelers all around the region.
Tourism, Attracting Employers, and Economic Development Zones
Evansvile must focus on creating an environment that attracts employers by investing in a skilled
workforce, modern infrastructure, and business-friendly policies, fostering job growth and innovation.
I believe we can advance Economic Development Zones by strategically investing in infrastructure
and centralizing the services employers need closer to where residents work. Infrastructure isn’t just
buildings and power lines. Infrastructure should include access to high-speed internet and easy ways to
contact the city to seek repairs or improvements.
Other Work Ahead
• Increase the use of minority and women-owned businesses
• Grow the availability of lending to citizens who’ve not had access in
the past
• Champion efforts to expand air service to our city and region

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An Evansville that Works
An Evansville that Works
Improving City Services
I want to see an Evansville that works for everyone. To me, that means the trash is picked up on time,
that we take diversity, equity, and inclusion seriously, and our residents receive timely communication
from the city when they contact us to report outages, damage, or express a concern. Fostering a
responsive, high-functioning city government isn’t easy and it’s certainly not something you can
plaster on a billboard, but to me, it’s everything. Ensuring our day-to-day operations perform well and
meet residents’ needs is an important priority. To that end, I want to propose some ideas that will help
Evansville city government perform better.
Develop a City Strategic Plan
Develop a City Strategic Plan
A strategic plan that outlines goals and objectives over the next five, ten, and twenty years will help us
achieve critical benchmarks toward addressing the most pressing issues facing Evansville. This should
include goals to measure progress against climate goals, beautification, operations, and city planning.
Tracking measurable progress toward our collective goals will ensure we meet the needs of our
community and also ensures accountability for taxpayers.
At cMoe, It was so important to me to make our museum’s
programming accessible to everyone, regardless of cost. That
meant we needed to bring new partners to the table to invest in our
work. I’m so proud of those partnerships that were instrumental in
increasing visitors and memberships. Their belief in us resulted in
over $1 million in capital improvements, with more to come.
“ “
- Stephanie Terry
Modernizing Communication with the City
Modernizing Communication with the City
There is much work to do to modernize how city government works and make it easier for residents to
contact the city. An Evansville CityAPP, a centralized app that can be used by residents to report road
hazards, reach out to our law enforcement, or book a picnic table with a simple tap on your smartphone,
could reduce phone call times or lengthy forms.
Other Work Ahead
• Host a Together with Terry Listening Sessions in every city ward
• Initiate an efficiency review across city departments to reduce spending
• Establish a task force to study new strategies to help increase revenue
• Review and remove out-of-date city ordinances
• Develop a city-wide Mayor’s Day or Service and Acts of Kindness
• Engage the faith leaders in a more meaningful way
• Evaluate how the city can better serve its increasingly diverse population
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Youth and Education
Youth and Education
Our young people are why we need to build a strong, vibrant community. Investing in them is part of
how we do that.
According to the Indiana Department of Education, nearly 1 in 5 students have not mastered
foundational reading skills by the end of 3rd grade. The ability to read by third grade is critical to a
child’s success in school, life-long potential and their ability to contribute to our economy. When our
children thrive, we all thrive! That’s why as Mayor I commit to developing a more child-friendly city
that is focused on student success, strengthened neighborhoods and the overall health and well-being
of our youth and children.
A Child-Friendly Evansville
A Child-Friendly Evansville
Evansville offers a uniquely strong network of professionals who serve our children but many of them are
siloed in their work. I see an opportunity to form a coalition of parents, teachers, child service agencies,
childcare business owners and other community leaders to develop an equity-focused initiative aimed at
ensuring our region is prepared and able to best serve our children. I am inspired by the work being done
in other regions to develop strong coalitions that identify opportunities, develop leadership in career
paths that serve kids, and press cities to improve services. I believe we can seek greater collaboration
across disciplines to better serve our kids and promote equity as a collective goal. This would include
collaboration between my office and a Mayor’s Education Roundtable where we could tap experienced
leaders in education to provide insight on city services and collaborate together on improving education,
while creating a cradle to career learning environment and a Child Friendly City.
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We must provide opportunities to inspire our children, nurture their
curiosity, and help them grow and learn. I know all about this. My
career has focused on education and, as Mayor, I will bring all of my
knowledge and passion to making sure my administration prioritizes
the health and well-being of children while also preserving the joy
and hope of childhood.
“ “
- Stephanie Terry
SAFE Summer Evansville
SAFE Summer Evansville
Over almost 15 years of engagement in local nonprofit work with youth, I’ve seen firsthand the positive
impact of providing our youth with safe recreation and educational opportunities. Our administration
will launch SAFE Summer Evansville, a summer recreation program that keeps teens, youth, and young
adults engaged with employment opportunities, giving teens a chance to learn new skills and earn some
extra money during their break. We could offer a special all-access pass to our amazing pools, parks,
programs, and museums, so teens can enjoy their summer to the fullest. This could include a summer
resource fair to connect the community with valuable information and resources.

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Access Safe Recreation
Access Safe Recreation
An Evansville where every child is engaged with Parks and Recreation is a safer, more equitable, stronger
Evansville. Our city can expand access to equitable recreation activities and this investment will pay off in
a more educated, engaged, safer city for all of us.
Seventy-nine percent of children in the U.S. in families with household incomes less than $50,000 have
no or low swimming ability, according to a 2018 study. Many children in our own community lack access
to water safety and swimming lessons and I believe we can change that. We should set an ambitious goal
for expanding access to our pools and challenge our communities to help us achieve it.
I offer experience in developing strong youth engagement programs. Throughout my career at cMoe
and at Carver Community Organization, I led youth programming efforts that exceeded expectations and
stretched dollars wisely. I want to bring this leadership to the city as Mayor and expand our recreation
programs.
Other Work Ahead
• Support events that champion young people in arts and culture
• Invest in organizations that provide creative learning opportunities for
young people
• Advocate for more community youth centers throughout the
community
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Sustainability
Sustainability
There is no forward, alone or together, without caring for our environment. That’s why the final topic
of my plan is sustainability. Evansville must do its part to make sure we are creating a clean, safe,
beautiful city for generations to come. We can look toward other cities for inspiration, but we also
need to harness the passion that has been slowly growing in our community. As Mayor, I will join with
sustainability leaders and champion their efforts. At the same time, my team and I will look at all of
our city services through the lens of sustainability.
City Climate Director
City Climate Director
A Terry Administration is committed to continuing the Climate Director position. Within that position,
we will continue identifying strategies to ensure a long-term, cleaner, and more environmentally
friendly City. But we won’t just continue the position, we will invest in it by providing opportunities
for our Climate Director to network with climate leaders in other cities. We’ll charge our director
with researching and exploring what works and what doesn’t work so we can bring creative, proven
solutions and ideas to our city. And, we’ll encourage our climate director to work with businesses and
organizations in our city to make sure that whatever we do as a city has a bigger, more collective impact.
An Environmentally Friendly Evansville
An Environmentally Friendly Evansville
Sometimes it’s not about doing more things. It’s about doing them differently. As part of our
commitment to sustainability, my administration will look to purchase more hybrid city buses. We will
bargain with our trash and recycling firms to identify better recycling practices… ones that include glass
recycling. And, we will add more miles of sidewalks and bike lanes, better connecting our community,
and also providing the opportunity to reduce those short car rides to the store. As a city, we will do our
part, and my hope is that it will inspire others to do the same.
Other Work Ahead
• Partner to explore solar energy possibilities within the city.
• Map existing sustainability efforts and awareness within the city with an
eye toward coordinating those efforts.
• Improve public green spaces as part of parks improvement.
• Research need for electric vehicle charging stations
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@Terry4Mayor | @Terry4Mayor
www.VoteTerry.com | Stephanie@VoteTerry.com
PAID FOR BY FRIENDS OF STEPHANIE TERRY | PO BOX 351 | EVANSVILLE, IN 47703
Forward Together
Forward Together
From top to bottom, Eastside to Westside, from
election year to the year 2050, my Forward Together
vision covers topics I am personally passionate about,
and priorities I’ve heard from door-to-door. I hope
you’ll see yourself in this plan, draw some inspiration,
but most importantly – keep providing input.
I know Evansville can dream of a bright future, and it’s
not all going to be captured in this document. But I can
promise you one thing, this isn’t the last you’ve heard
from me. We will continue listening. We will continue
working together, and we will build a brighter future,
together.
For more information, visit
www.VoteTerry.com
and join our campaign to bring Evansville
Forward Together!
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VOTE ON NOVEMBER 7th, 2023