Crown Point Mayor Pete Land faces the first political challenge of his career as he seeks his first full term in office. The city’s former police chief became mayor in 2022 after former Mayor David Uran left to take over the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority.
Land will benefit from strong Democratic Party support as he looks to fend off a challenge from Republican Shirlene Olson, a retired U.S. Army Master Sergeant.
Land, 57, made a smooth transition to the mayor’s office a year and a half ago after serving as police chief for 17 years. The experience of working with the City Council and a variety of civic entities has prepared him well to advance Crown Point in a full term as mayor.
– Original Credit: Photo courtesy of Pete Land
“I obviously worked very well with City Council members, various city boards and commissions over those 17 years, so you learn not only the people holding those positions but the operations of city government and how to manage and properly create a budget,” Land said.
In a nod to fiscal conservancy, he noted that the Police Department came under budget in each of his 17 years as police chief.
Land, a lifelong resident of Crown Point, said that his years of public service has given him a “good pulse” on what our community wants now and in the future.
– Original Credit: Photo courtesy of Shirlene Olson
“I’ve always said that one of the best aspects of Crown Point is, yes, we’re a growing population with a growing residential and business community, but we always have that hometown feel, that hometown spirit,” he said. “That’s something very important for not only the community but the leadership of our community.”
Addressing that growth would be a strong focus area of Land’s going forward, with an emphasis on public safety.
“We are the safest city in the state of Indiana among those with populations over 30,000,” he said. “I just got that notification last week.”
In addition to hiring more police officers to accommodate the city’s growth, Land said he will be focused on complementary infrastructure projects, enhancing business development and creating more quality of life projects.
“We’re creating that by building a destination park at Sauerman Woods,” Land said. “My administration has secured $5.61 million in grant funding toward the creation of that park.”
Land’s Republican opponent, Shirlene Olson, who did not respond to request for an interview, describes herself as a “family constitutionalist” with “conservative values” on her campaign website. She is former Crown Point educator and a U.S. Army veteran who served in the Gulf War, Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Iraq War, and the Global War on Terrorism, according to her biography.
Jim Masters is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
