Northeast Indiana Regional Development Authority Recommends Funding for Three Projects
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Dec. 13, 2016
Northeast Indiana Regional Development Authority Recommends Funding for Three Projects
FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Board of the Northeast Indiana Regional Development Authority (RDA) met today to consider requests for Regional Cities Initiative funding for projects submitted by South Adams Trails in Adams County, The Enterprise Center in Steuben County and The United Brethren Block (UB) in Huntington County.
The Board voted to support the three projects including:
- South Adams Trails in Adams County, which requested a $498,000 grant, which represents 16 percent of the $3.6 million of the project’s total cost;
- The Enterprise Center in Steuben County, which requested a $323,000 grant, which represents 17 percent of the $1.9 million of the project’s total cost; and
- United Brethren (UB) Block in Huntington County, which requested a $1.6 million grant, which represents 20 percent of the $8 million of the project’s total cost.
The South Adams Trail project will improve regional quality of life by re-constructing two historic Pratt Truss iron rail bridges to creatively connect trails across the Wabash River. In addition to the reclamation of the historic bridges, the trail will ultimately connect Berne and Geneva trails to the Poka-Bache Connector trail system.
The Enterprise Center will help meet the workforce needs of regional employers by transforming a 70,000 square foot, five-building area on 4.5 acres near downtown Angola into space for offices, business incubators, co-working and industrial training.
The United Brethren (UB) Block will attract and retain talent by partnering with Huntington University and Pathfinder Services to develop a space that fosters a community of innovation and entrepreneurship for people of all abilities. It also includes plans for 35 apartments above the incubator space.
“The Road to One Million is truly a regional economic development plan. Today’s meeting is a great example of how we are supporting inventive projects that create new opportunities and spur economic growth in our 11-county region,” said RDA board chairman Jeff Turner, senior vice president of Metal Technologies.
The Board’s recommendation now goes to the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) for review and final approval to receive funding.
The board also heard presentations from three other groups including:
- Posterity Scholar House in Allen County, which requested a $2,484,180 grant, which represents 20 percent of the $12.4 million of the project’s total cost; and
- Michiana Event Center in LaGrange County, which requested a $3,843,371 grant, which represents 20 percent of the $ $19,216,855 million of the project’s total cost.
In addition to the approval of funding, the RDA also reported on the progress of the following Road to One Million projects, which are either approved or under review by the RDA or the IEDC:
- Great Lakes Capital for the Skyline Tower;
- Trine University;
- University of Saint Francis;
- Embassy Theatre;
- The DeKalb County YMCA;
- Little River Trail’;
- Manchester Early Learning Center;
- North Buffalo Street Redevelopment Project;
- Fort Wayne Regional Trails;
- South Adams Trails;
- The Enterprise Center; and
- The United Brethren (UB) Block.
The RDA is responsible for disbursement of the $42 million in funding granted to the region through the Regional Cities Initiative established last year. The Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership, which helped lead the effort to secure the Regional Cities Initiative funding, also provides staffing support to the RDA.
As of December 2016, the Northeast Indiana RDA has recommended $120.8 million in funding to the IEDC, which includes $71.2 million in private investment in the region.
The purpose of the Regional Cities Initiative funding is to attract and retain talent by providing financial support for game-changing quality of place projects that will increase economic growth, lead to population growth, and enhance the region’s national brand identity. Northeast Indiana won the Regional Cities grant last year with its Road to One Million Plan that outlines more than 70 projects and $1.5 billion in investment over the next 10 years.
To learn more about the Northeast Indiana RDA, visit the new website at www.neindiana.com/rda.
About the Northeast Indiana Regional Development Authority (RDA)
The Northeast Indiana Regional Development Authority (RDA), currently the largest RDA in the state, consists of Adams, Allen, DeKalb, Huntington, Kosciusko, LaGrange, Noble, Steuben, Wabash, Wells and Whitley counties. The RDA is overseen by a five-member board, each appointed by consent of the executives of the member counties and municipalities, and receives staffing support from the Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership. Only the RDA may apply to the new state-funded Indiana Regional City Fund (administered by the Indiana Economic Development Corporation) for matching grants and loans; it may also accept loans, grants and other contributions from federal, state, and private sources. For more information, visit www.neindiana.com/rda.
About the Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership
The Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership was formed in 2006 to build a globally competitive economy in Northeast Indiana. It is a public-private partnership with the mission to build, market and sell Northeast Indiana to increase business investment. In 2010, the Partnership launched Vision 2020 to bring the region together around five key areas for economic growth: 21st Century Talent, Competitive Business Climate, Entrepreneurship, Infrastructure and Quality of Life. The Partnership supports 11 member counties: Adams, Allen, DeKalb, Huntington, Kosciusko, LaGrange, Noble, Steuben, Wabash, Wells and Whitley counties. For more information, visit www.neindiana.com.
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MEDIA CONTACT:
Michael Galbraith
Director of the Road to One Million
Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership
260.469.3476
michael@NEIndiana.com
