Meet the candidates for City-County Council District 9

Two candidates are running for Indianapolis City-County Council District 9: Democrat Keith Graves and Republican Chris Moore. Graves is an incumbent council member, representing District 13 since 2019. Following redistricting by the council, he is now running in District 9. This district encompasses parts of the city’s north and east sides.  

Graves, 57, works as an investment advisor representative at 1st Financial Bank USA. 

Moore is a Republican and lives on the city’s east side. He did not provide WFYI with his occupation or age. 

WFYI and the Indianapolis Recorder sent each of the candidates six questions to help voters learn more. Their answers are presented in alphabetical order.

Editors’ note: Responses were edited for style and grammar, and any numbers used were checked for accuracy. When a statement required more clarification or could not be independently verified, WFYI reached out to candidates before publication. Those instances, and those candidate responses, are noted throughout in editors’ notes, marked by an * and presented in italics.

Early voting started Oct. 11. Election Day is Nov. 7. 

KEITH GRAVES

What are the top concerns that your district’s constituents have shared with you, and what are the issues that you foresee affecting them most in the next two to three years? 

1. While we have seen a sharp drop in crime in District 13 over the last three years, it continues to be the top concern for our community. 

*Editors’ note: When asked for clarification, Graves provided crime statistics that show decreases in criminal homicides in his district. WFYI asked Graves for his source for district-specific data and did not hear back. 

2. The importance of adding to the projects that we have started over the last four years has also been shared. These current projects include a grocery store; Indy Fresh Market, two banks; Old National Bank and Horizon Bank; access to health-care with the new Eskenazi Health Pavilion, and the IndyGo Purple Line construction project that will provide rapid bus transportation from the far eastside to downtown Indianapolis. These additions to our community and many others reverse the negative trend of neglect and disinvestment that has gripped the Indianapolis eastside. The request is that we work to bring projects like this into more areas across the district to provide every neighbor with access to what they need for a full quality life experience particularly where barriers such as transportation, and food access exist. 

Affordable housing is a major issue in Indianapolis. What measures should the council take to address this?

Affordable housing stock in our city is possibly the most critical component necessary as we work to solve many of the problems we find as a city: homelessness, unemployment, high school graduation rates, and crime to name a few. Because housing instability catapults into so many other challenges, our city leadership must plan affordable housing options with the same intentionality as we plan market rate housing options. 

What is your top concern regarding public safety in Indianapolis? What steps will you take as a council member to address it?

As previously mentioned, we have much more work to do where crime is concerned, but the last three years have shown a decline in property and violent crime in Council District 13. This is, in part, due to the council in partnership with the mayor’s administration and the implementation of a two-pronged approach to crime. This includes 1. adding more men and women in uniform and equipping them with the technology they need to patrol our communities successfully. This also includes 2. community partnerships with grassroots organizations that treat root causes of crime such as homelessness, substance abuse disorders, etc.

What specific steps will you take to connect minority-owned businesses in Indianapolis with contracts for city projects? How else will you support growth opportunities for minority-owned businesses?

I am a staunch advocate for minority business owners. In partnership with the Office of Women and Minority Business Development, I will continue my efforts to ensure that these businesses are afforded the opportunity to participate in city contracts. I am also focusing on minority-owned professional services providers as this group of accountants, lawyers, financial advisors, engineers, and architects are often left out of opportunities to do business with the city. 

What specific steps will you take to address environmental concerns in your district that affect your constituents’ quality of life and life expectancy?

I will continue to support greenways and parks in my community and fight for more wellness options such as fully covered gyms, which we are unfortunately one of the only districts that do not have an indoors wellness facility.

What would you like to see happen for K-12 education in Indianapolis, and how would you work as a city-county councilor to achieve that? 

I want to see literacy rates improved across every demographic in Marion County. To accomplish this task, I will seek the Chairmanship of the Indianapolis City-County Council Education Committee in January 2024. I will use this platform to bring attention to the challenges faced by students and educators across the schools in Marion County. I will use the influence of the council to compel educational system leaders across all nine townships to openly discuss their policy, workforce, student challenges, and so much more.

Through information sharing with these leaders, I will seek ways to improve literacy rates in school systems that are struggling and allow an opportunity to share best practices from school systems that are finding success. I will also work with my colleagues to promote Indianapolis as a destination for educators across the country. This could be in the form of housing and childcare incentives, etc.

CHRIS MOORE

What are the top concerns that your district’s constituents have shared with you, and what are the issues that you foresee affecting them most in the next two to three years?  

Roads and crime [are the] biggest issues. Next two, three years if we, council, can not work together to change that, then nothing will get better.

Affordable housing is a major issue in Indianapolis. What measures should the council take to address this? 

Hopefully hold out of state property owners accountable for rundown properties which can cause issues for neighborhoods to have for the housing. The council has very little to do with the housing market.

What is your top concern regarding public safety in Indianapolis? What steps will you take as a council member to address it? 

Hire more police and have the funds for it. Stop wasteful spending on things that have nothing to do with running the city.

What specific steps will you take to address environmental concerns in your district that affect your constituents’ quality of life and life expectancy?  

Separate issues that need to be addressed at the state level as well.

What specific steps will you take to connect minority-owned businesses in Indianapolis with contracts for city projects? How else will you support growth opportunities for minority-owned businesses? 

Expand on the already plans that are in place.

What would you like to see happen for K-12 education in Indianapolis, and how would you work as a city-county councilor to achieve that? 

City council has nothing to do with K through 12 Public Schools. That falls on the State Education Board. They run the public schools.