$1 million grant for Auburn YMCA gets OK

SHERRY SLATER | The Journal Gazette

That splash you just heard was the sound of almost $1 million being thrown into the pot for Auburn’s YMCA expansion.

The Indiana Economic Development Corp. has approved the Regional Cities Initiative grant to the YMCA of DeKalb County, officials announced Friday.

IEDC review is the final step in the process that begins with approval from the Northeast Indiana Regional Development Authority. The five-member board signed off on the request for $947,000 in July.

The $7.2 million project is a 38-acre youth development complex that includes a fieldhouse and an indoor-outdoor swimming pool. The plan also includes seven collegiate-sized soccer fields, two football fields, a training area, a splash pad and a playground.

“This project will increase community amenities and programming, encourage tourism and support healthy lifestyles in the region,” IEDC officials said in a statement.

Bob Krafft, CEO of YMCA of DeKalb County, expects the new facility to attract visitors from a three-state area.

Also, he said in a statement, “it will focus on developing character qualities in youth and building healthier, happier families, making northeast Indiana an even better place to live.”