The first actual event I experienced at the Fishers Event Center was the home opener for the Indy Fuel hockey team.  I looked around the venue and found a standing-room-only crowd.

Then, the following night, I watched the second home game for the Fuel and found a crowd just under a sellout.  It made me think back to May of 1991, when I first moved to Fishers.

The 1990 census put the Town of Fishers population at just over 7,500.  The current population for the City of Fishers is estimated to be well over 103,000.  Fishers has come a long way.

I would point to 2 key moments that propelled Fishers to the city we know today.  First, the 2012 referendum that paved the way for the city, as opposed to remaining a town or transforming into a “reorganized city” that had the name of a city but looked a lot like a town.

In 2014, we had our first city election.  With 6 candidates for mayor, Scott Fadness, the Fishers Town Manager, was the winner.

The new Mayor Fadness had a very specific vision and has been aggressive in promoting development up to the present time.  There have been some controversies along the way, but the city you see today results from the vision Fadness expressed in his first campaign for mayor and has acted upon during his tenure as, so far, the only mayor Fishers has ever had.

A great example comes from three recent major projects he has spearheaded…the new City Hall/Arts Center, the Event Center and the Community Center.  The City Hall/Art Center has been open several months.  The Event Center opened its doors weeks ago.  The Community Center is under construction and should open in 2025.

Scott Fadness is accomplishing all three projects with no increase in the city’s share of the local property tax rate.  The mayor did propose a food and beverage tax to complete the funding for the Event Center and the City Council backed Fadness.

I know there were a number of attempts at constructing a facility for the Indy Fuel in Fishers over many years, and I could see at opening night Fuel owner Jim Hallett and Mayor Fadness were in good spirits, taking in the energy of the sold-out crowd, center ice, at the first Fuel home game December 6.  It was a big night for the Fuel and Fishers.

One wonders what Mayor Fadness has up his sleeve for the next project.