Munster Republican Party

06/20/2026

🐘 Indiana’s 2026 Republican Nominee for Secretary of State will be Max Engling… Congratulations Max!

06/20/2026

2026 Convention - DAY TWO
Round 2 of voting is about to begin.

06/20/2026

Senator John Kennedy was AWESOME! 🐘🇺🇸

06/17/2026

🏆 The Sagamore of the Wabash award was established in the 1940s and recognizes individuals who have rendered distinguished service to the state or the governor.

Congratulations to Munster's very own Republican Town Councilor Emeritus, Mike Mellon, for earning this prestigious recognition from Governor Braun.

06/17/2026

4/4 February 2026 — more than two years later after David Westland’s initial conflict of interest in the Kenmara matter, we now discover that Westland is personally representing the new Kenmara attorney in a business dispute. All of the concerns identified in the ethics opinion are front and center again. See attached document.

Conflicts are common. The problem arises when they are left unaddressed on high-stakes matters involving development projects that will shape the future of Munster. Residents deserve transparency. Equally, the Councilor presenting these matters to the Council should not be personally attacked and disparaged by his colleagues for doing so, rather it is incumbent on this Council to review these documents carefully until they gain a full understanding of their meaning and potential impact on Munster residents.

06/17/2026

3/4 Shortly after that memo, Councilor Petersen reached out to obtain an independent ethics opinion from James Bell (former chair of the Indiana State Bar Ethics Committee).

Bell concluded that David Westland’s personal financial relationship with Hammond/Smith could materially limit or adversely affect David Westland’s representation of the Town of Munster. Bell further explained that this conflict is imputed to the entire firm of Westland & Bennett. Remedies offered: new counsel or written informed consent after full public disclosure.

This is the document Councilor Petersen repeatedly asked to add to the public record — and was denied again on June 15.
See attached document.

06/17/2026

2/4 In February 2024, Councilor Petersen sent a detailed memo to Councilor Nellans raising serious conflict of interest concerns about Town Attorney David Westland negotiating the Kenmara TIF deal against Saxon Partners’ attorney Kevin Smith.

The memo explains that Westland’s firm had already received nearly $582,000 in 2022-2023 from the City of Hammond where Smith serves as Corporate Counsel and Westland could be perceived as having a private financial interest that impedes his ability to negotiate with attorney Kevin Smith the millions of dollars of TIF between the Town of Munster and Saxon Partners.
See attached document.

06/17/2026

1/4 Residents have been asking Munster GOP for copies of the ethics opinion Councilor Jonathan Petersen has referenced regarding the Kenmara Development and the negotiation of millions in TIF dollars.

At the June 15, 2026 Town Council meeting, Councilor Petersen again asked that the document be placed in the public record. The request was denied by the other four council members.
We share your disappointment. On matters this important, residents deserve transparency — not stonewalling.

Because of the clear misunderstandings expressed from the dais about what constitutes a conflict of interest, and because this is part of a larger pattern, we are sharing three related documents so you can review them directly.

Send a message to learn more