OFFICIALS OF THE
CITY OF GREENWOOD, INDIANA

1993

Margaret A. McGovern, Mayor

Genevieve Worsham, Clerk-Treasurer

Mary Hotopp, City Judge

Members of the Common Council:

John M. Gibson-First District

Ronald A. Deer-Second District

J. Steven Boggs-Third District

Eli Gilbert-Fourth District

Michael J. Tapp-Fifth District

Jessie E. Reed-At-Large

William P. Bless-At-Large

Board of Public Works and Safety:

Margaret A. McGovern

Richard Heiney

C. Duane O'Neal

Jo Angela Woods, City Attorney

 

PREFACE

The 1993 Greenwood Municipal Code is a re-codification of the general and permanent Ordinances of the City enacted from Ord. No. 83-27, which adopted the 1983 Greenwood Municipal Code on November 7, 1983, through Ordinance No. 93-5, passed February 15, 1993.

Special Ordinances which relate to limited or special purposes, and the levying of special assessments, are not included.

The Ordinances contained in this Code were organized by subject matter classifications. Obsolete and conflicting provisions have been eliminated and the remaining laws edited and revised where necessary. To facilitate usage, the Code Chapters are arranged in subject-matter order and numbered consecutively. Each Chapter is preceded by a Chapter Table of Contents which designates the material included within the Chapter.

The Comparative Tables Chapter lists all Ordinances contained in this Code chronologically by Ordinance number, Section number, identifies date of passage, and the new Code Section of this Code.

The General Index which appears at the end of this Code will serve as a research aid in the location of specific sections within this Code. Where appropriate, the Chapters have been subdivided into Articles, Divisions, and Sections. Catchlines describe the contents of each Section and appear in bold print as a further reference aid. Footnotes are contained throughout the Code which reference important State Law citations.

Hoosier Codification Service, Inc. wishes to express their appreciation for the cooperation and assistance of all of the Greenwood City Officials and employees during the preparation of the Greenwood Codification, and especially the late Mayor Jeanette L. Surina; Mayor Margaret A. McGovern; Genevieve Worsham, Clerk-Treasurer; Jo Angela Woods, City Attorney; Virginia B. Fischer, Assistant City Attorney; Elaine Bass, Legal Secretary; all of the members of the Common Council, and the staff members of the Mayor's, Clerk-Treasurer's and City Attorney's offices.

General supervision in the preparation of the Greenwood Municipal Code was by Attorney Kathleen C. Farrand; Betty Lou Nimtz, Kimberly A. Clark and Yvette C. Arts, Editorial Assistants; and Catherine Mittiga, Productions Manager of Hoosier Codification Service, Inc.

                     Hoosier Codification Service, Inc.

                     South Bend, Indiana

                     December, 1993

Certification

We, Margaret A. McGovern, Mayor, Eli Gilbert, President of the Greenwood Common Council, and Genevieve Worsham, Clerk-Treasurer, of the City of Greenwood, Indiana, pursuant to the laws of the State of Indiana, hereby certify that the general and permanent Ordinances of the City of Greenwood, Indiana, as revised, amended, restated, rearranged, renumbered, codified and presented in 12 Chapters, are correct as printed, and constitute the Greenwood Municipal Code.

Signed and sealed this 20th day of December, 1993.

                     Margaret A. McGovern, Mayor

                     Eli Gilbert, President

                     Greenwood Common Council

Attest:

Genevieve Worsham, Clerk-Treasurer

Attest as to Legality:

Jo Angela Woods, City Attorney

A Brief History of Greenwood, Indiana

"Pride and Progress"

The City of Greenwood, Indiana, is located in northern Johnson County. It is bordered on the north by Marion County and the City of Indianapolis. It is immediately accessible from I-65, U.S. 31, and S.R. 135, and is just five miles south of I-465 which connects to the major interstate highways crossing the State of Indiana, I-70, I-74 and I-69. The following is a brief history of this wonderful community.

On September 30, 1823, John B. Smock and Isaac Smock, brothers who migrated from the State of Pennsylvania to Mercer County, Kentucky, settled in what is now known as Greenwood, Indiana. These settlers each purchased 160 acres of land for $1.25 an acre at the Federal Land Office. John B. Smock built the first log cabin; Isaac Smock settled near the creek that runs through what is now known as the Old City Park.

The settlement was first known as "Smocktown" because the majority of first settlers were people by the name of Smock, including the first postmaster, James Smock.

Madison Road was built in 1824 by the Federal Government. A historical plaque on what is now Madison Avenue marks the site of the first church in the community, established on December 31, 1825 by Isaac Reed, a pioneer Presbyterian minister.

The first post office was established in 1828 and was named "Greenfield". The town was renamed "Greenwood" in 1833 when it was discovered that there already was a Greenfield in the State. Dr. Benjamin S. Noble, a native of Virginia, was the first person to practice medicine in the town, establishing his practice in 1840.

The first railroad built west of the Allegheny Mountains and the first to run in Indianapolis came through Greenwood on October 1, 1847. The railroad system was an important component in the shipping of grain, livestock and lumber from the area.

It was nearly forty years before the Village of Greenwood formally organized a town government, which it did on June 25, 1864. The first Town Board Members were E.C. Smith, F.S. Wilson, Turner B. Hungate, S. Mayfield and A.W. Gilchrist. Other officers of the Town included F.M. Teague, Town Clerk; James McGuire, Town Marshal; W.H. Thornton, Town Assessor; and A. Holloway, Town Treasurer. The Town had a population of approximately 300 people at the time of incorporation.

Shortly before 1864, a school building was erected on the corner of Broadway and Meridian Streets. It was a frame building with two rooms, and was furnished with seats instead of the usual long benches. In later 1864 a brick school was erected upon the site of the Central School building. It measured forty feet by sixty feet, and contained four rooms. During the winter of 1865 this building was destroyed by fire. A new two-story brick building with four rooms was erected in 1868. Greenwood's first high school building was erected in 1928. This building was also destroyed by fire, in January of 1942.

It is reported that in April of 1865, the Town Board met in Hilory Shryock's Tailor Shop on Main Street, and each Trustee was allowed 50 cents for each meeting he attended and was fined 50 cents for each meeting he missed. In December of 1865, the allowance was changed to $1.00. The Town Board met every two to three months.

One of the most important early growth factors for the community was the James T. Polk Canning Factory, established by the man of the same name, a native of Princeton, Indiana, who settled in Greenwood after the Civil War. It became the largest cannery west of Baltimore. "Polk's Best" brand of corn, peas and tomatoes had a world-wide reputation and sales.

When James T. Polk died in 1919, he left a will bequeathing $75,000 to Greenwood for the building of a "suitable place for the meeting or congregating of the people who have helped make him what he was ..." The Harvey Brewer home, at the northwest corner of Madison Avenue and Broadway, was purchased and razed. On February 5, 1920, the James T. and Laura Polk Memorial Community House was dedicated.

The canning factory burned in 1906, but was rebuilt and resumed full operations. The plant was sold to Stokely's in 1930 and remained in operation until 1959. During the acute labor shortage of World War II, Italian prisoners of war from Camp Atterbury were used to keep the factory operational.

In 1888 the first newspaper, the Graphic, was published. It was owned and operated by Sumner Rose and sold one year later to W. J. Spruce.

The first Town Park was built in either 1898 or 1899 and was called "Beech Park". It was located just south of where Beech Park Drive is currently located. On May 30, 1902, the second Town Park was dedicated and known as "Forest Park". The 1900 census listed Greenwood with a population of 1,800.

In early 1891, James T. Polk, Grafton Johnson and other prominent citizens of Greenwood formed a corporation for the construction of an electric railway to connect Greenwood and Indianapolis, with construction completed in 1899. The "interurban" had approximately 100 cars in and out of Indianapolis daily in 1902, and grew to over 400 cars by 1910.

Greenwood's last Town Board of Trustees was composed of Boyd Betts, Don Totten, Joseph Reichart, and S. Garfield Green, Clerk, and served through 1959 when the Town of Greenwood determined that it should become a fifth-class city. Wayne Burkhart was elected as the first Mayor of the City of Greenwood, and the first City Council consisted of Morris Clark, Ray Ritchey, Robert Terhune, James Garrison and Fred Kinnick. The first City Clerk-Treasurer was Byron Rodgers.

The City dedicated a new Department of Public Works Building in 1985. In keeping with the preservation of Greenwood's heritage, there was a major renovation of the James T. and Laura Polk Memorial Community House, which was rededicated as the City Building in November of 1986. A new Fire Station with a Training Center was completed in 1987 on Stop Road 18 .

Today, the City of Greenwood is listed as a third-class city with a population of more than 26,000 residents. The City is governed by a Mayor elected every four years, a seven-member Common Council and a Clerk-Treasurer. Additionally, it has a three-member Board of Public Works & Safety. The City has a strong public safety presence through law enforcement and fire protection services. The City has nine municipal parks with seven playgrounds, seven ball diamonds, and eleven shelters and picnic areas covering a total of one hundred thirty-five acres. It also has a swimming pool, thirteen tennis courts, and golf courses.

The following individuals have served with distinction as Mayor of the City of Greenwood, Indiana:

      Wayne Burkhart      1960-1963

      W.B. "Mike" Myers      1964-1967

      Harold "Jack" Smith      1968-1972

      John O. Boner         1972-1975

      Lawrence W. Myers      1976-1979

      Vaino Grayam         1980-1983

      Jeanette Surina      1984-1991

      Margaret A. McGovern   1991-present

Jeanette Surina made history when she was the first woman to be elected as Mayor, and again when she was re-elected to become the first Greenwood Mayor to serve two terms. During her administration, the Skyway Airport was purchased, and a new Community Center, Police Station Headquarters and Fire Station Headquarters were built in what is now known as "Surina Square".

Greenwood continues to experience rapid increase in population and growth. Because of the hard-working, dedicated citizens, volunteers and public officials, Greenwood, Indiana has truly become a City of "Pride and Progress".

________

Hoosier Codification Service, Inc. would like to thank Lynne Marmaduke, Adult Services Librarian of the Greenwood Public Library for her invaluable assistance in the preparation of this brief history. It would also like to acknowledge the usage of Will F. Averitt's History of Greenwood, Indiana 1823-1965 and the booklet entitled Greenwood Area Centennial, 1864-1964 which were utilized in the preparation of this history.