INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Richmond’s incoming mayor on Friday said he has big plans to turn around the city’s economy.

Ron Oler, a member of the city’s common council, will ceremonially take his oath of office at 6 p.m. Friday ahead of the official beginning of his term at noon Monday. He said he’s been meeting with staff and department heads ever since he defeated incumbent Mayor Dave Snow on Nov. 7.

In an interview with News 8 for All INdiana Politics, Oler said he expects significant new investment in the downtown area due in part to recent grant awards. Earlham College, which is based in Richmond, recently secured a $25 million redevelopment grant from the Lilly Endowment. Officials at the college estimate the grant, when coupled with another $83 million in public-private matches, will lead to more than $100 million in total investment in the downtown area over the next five years. An Indianapolis developer has committed to build 140-150 market-rate apartments downtown. The city has also invested in parks and greenways. Oler said he expects this and other projects to bring in a combined total of $150 million worth of investment to downtown Richmond over the next four years.

“Richmond’s seen a revitalization it’s never seen before,” Oler said. “There’s retail, boutique shops coming. For a long time we had no bakeries. Now, we have three bakeries. For a moment, we had no restaurants, now we have another restaurant downtown.”

Oler will take office as cleanup continues from a fire at an old plastics warehouse in April. He said the EPA has declared the site a Brownfield site due to chemical contamination from the fire. He said the agency currently is responsible for cleaning up about 2/3 of the site’s 14 total acres. Once that phase is completed, Oler said officials have to figure out whether the city, the EPA or the site’s former owner will be responsible for final land cleanup.

Oler also made public safety a key part of his campaign platform. He said he already has a new police chief and two new assistant chiefs ready to take office early next week, all three of which he hired away from the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office. Oler said he wants to reactivate Richmond’s neighborhood associations and bring back the Richmond Police Department’s community liasons. He said he also plans to significantly expand the police department’s training. He said the department was short 12 officers at the beginning of the year. Half of those vacancies have been filled and Oler said applications have risen over the past two months.

All INdiana Politics airs at 9:30 a.m. Sunday.