Little more than four months into the job, Henry Mestetsky, executive director of the Carmel Redevelopment Commission, said he’s in his dream role.
“I’ve always been fascinated with development and growing a city, starting from when I was in middle school and played Sim City on the computer a lot,” he said. “I moved to Carmel because this is where I wanted to start my family, and now to have a role in growing the city, that’s my dream job.”
Carmel Mayor Jim Brainard appointed Mestetsky, a real estate attorney with Bingham Greenebaum Doll LLP, to the CRC as a commissioner in 2016. He became interim director in November 2017 after CRC Director Corrie Meyer, who had been in the role since 2014, resigned to focus on her primary campaign against State Sen. Mike Delph (R-Carmel).
Mestetsky, a 32-year-old Carmel resident, was unanimously voted as the permanent director Nov. 21, the next meeting after Meyer resigned.
On March 19, the Carmel City Council unanimously voted to switch Mestetsky to a city employee instead of a paid consultant. Previously, Meyer had her status changed from a city employee to a consultant after entering the Republican primary.
The council voted to move $180,864 from CRC consulting fees, which is roughly the same as Meyer’s pay, into the CRC’s different budget for salary and benefits. Before benefits, Mestetsky will earn $132,130, the same as Meyer.
Mestetsky said he has many projects to tackle before 2018 is complete, including the luxury hotel announced for the Carmel City Center area, the expansion of the Monon Greenway, Carmel’s Midtown, Kite Realty’s mixed-use development at 116th Street and Range Line Road and Anderson Birkla’s project, The Proscenium, at Carmel Drive and Range Line.
“My predecessor was instrumental in putting together a large number of projects, and my goal is to continue building on that success and carry out the mayor’s vision for the development of our city,” he said.
Mestetsky is a 2010 graduate of the Indiana University Maurer School of Law in Bloomington . He received his undergraduate degree at IU Kelley School of Business in Indianapolis. He also is a member of the Hamilton County Leadership Academy.
