David Leas, a 25-year resident of Greensburg, has announced his intention to seek the Republican nomination for Greensburg City Council in District Four.

“The next few years will be a critical time for Greensburg. The city will be facing great demands for increased infrastructure, as well as an increase in demand for police and fire services. How the city handles these increased demands will affect tax rates for years to come,” Leas said. “If not handled correctly, the city is looking at some serious financial problems in the future.”

Leas previously served a four-year term as Greensburg’s District Four City Councilman from January 2000 through December 2003. Gary Herbert beat Leas out by 54 votes in the 2004 election year.

During his time as a Councilman, Leas served on the Greensburg Planning Commission and on the Abatement Committee. During his fourth year as councilman, Leas served as its president.

“Serving on the City Council makes me uniquely qualified for this office,” he said.

Leas is employed by Lowe’s Pellets and Grain, Inc. as its controller, a position he’s held for 25 years. Leas noted his experience with Lowe’s, and his previous experience working for a Fortune 500 company, has given him a very strong monetary understanding.

“Using my financial background, I want to help make sure that the city handles future growth without breaking the bank,” he said.

Leas also served as a board member for many different community organizations such as; Decatur County Council For Youth, Little Blessings Daycare, Arts and Cultural Council of Decatur County, Greensburg and Decatur County Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Corporation of Greensburg and Decatur County.

Leas is currently a board member of the Community Action Coalition and during the Dec. 2003 City Council meeting, introduced the smoking

ban ordinance that was close to the Indianapolis smoking ban ordinance.

“I introduced this ordinance in the hopes that it would be an issue the next administration would seriously study and consider,” he said. “By passing the smoking ban ordinance, the City Council felt they made the best decision for the city. I support the idea of a smoking ban. It is good for the health of both the customers and the employees who visit or work in public places.”

Leas is also the Webmaster for the Greensburg and Decatur County Community Page and the official County Website.

“Greensburg, for the most part, has been a safe and nourishing community for our citizens. We need to work hard to make sure this continues”, Leas said. “This means that we must have strong schools, a good police department, effective social services and a dedicated and fair court system. While the city government can do much in this area, they cannot do all of it on their own. Accordingly, the city must work closely with the county and the state.”

Leas concluded with, “As a city councilman, I will work hard to develop new and improved lines of communication not only with state and county officials, but also with the citizens of the City of Greensburg.”

Leas is married to Janeanne who is a school teacher for the Greensburg Community School Corporation. They have two children, Warren, who graduated from Greensburg High School and now attends Xavier University in Cincinnati and Mollye, who is currently a junior at Greensburg High School.