Meet Abdul-Hakim Shabazz, Indianapolis mayoral candidate

As Indianapolis voters cast ballots in the mayoral primaries between now and May 2, Axios asked leading candidates about their views on crime, economic development and how they’d run the city.

Abdul-Hakim Shabazz, a Republican, is an attorney, radio host for WIBC-FM, blogger and longtime contributor to Indianapolis newspapers and television shows.

Which Indianapolis neighborhood(s) have you called home? Eagle Creek, St. Joseph.

What is your favorite restaurant in the city?

Name one city service that you guarantee would function better at the end of your four-year term.

Is Indianapolis making enough progress toward reducing homicides or is there something new yet to be tried?

• No, the public perception, and rightly so, is that Indianapolis’ murder rate is still too high. We need to make sure when violent felons are arrested, they stay behind bars.

Has police reform gone too far or not far enough?

• I worry that the pendulum is swinging too far to the left in favor of criminals, i.e. “bail reform.”

Does Indianapolis need more money from the state to fix the streets and, if so, what can you do to get it?

• We need to change our road funding formula to include more lane miles than road miles.

Would you support maxing out the wheel tax to secure more road funding from the state?

• All options should be on the table when it comes to our roads, but first and foremost, we must maximize options that do not increase the tax burden on residents.

What will you do about rising car crashes and deaths involving automobiles?

• All too often, the one behind the wheel in these situations is a driver with a history of DUIs and other traffic violations.
• I will use the mayor’s office to build bridges between public safety and criminal justice stakeholders and advocate for meaningful accountability for those who have demonstrated a dangerous recklessness that jeopardizes our pedestrians and cyclists.

With remote work taking off and companies downsizing real estate, how does Indianapolis bring more people and activity to downtown?

• We need to reinvent downtown’s purpose from primarily office to housing and retail/entertainment. We also need to make sure downtown is safe for our residents and visitors.

Should Monument Circle go car-free?

How should Indianapolis’ use of corporate subsidies and developer incentives change to reflect shifting economic conditions?

• Corporate subsidies, unfortunately, are a fact of life in the 21st century. They should be used judiciously and responsibly to improve the quality of life for all citizens.

Should the city offer incentives to build a 20,000-seat soccer stadium for Indy Eleven?

• As long as it fits the parameters I mentioned earlier, I don’t have an issue with incentives for Indy Eleven.