Hanna: READI Just Beginning of Long-Term Strategy
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowCalling the state’s Regional Economic Acceleration & Development Initiative an unprecedented economic development strategy, a longtime northwest Indiana leader says last week’s awarding of $500 million in grants was only the beginning. Bill Hanna, the executive director of the Dean and Barbara White Family Foundation, says READI is rallying regions around transformational projects and represents an intentional shift to talent.
“We have seen the benefit of a favorable tax environment and a lot of times it was business we were talking about,” said Hanna. “Now it’s people taking advantage of it. In our case, people are coming over from Illinois and quality of life features are becoming more and more important and these projects take us to the next level.”
Hanna, a former longtime chief executive officer of the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority, talked about READI and the potential impact on this weekend’s edition of Inside INdiana Business with Gerry Dick.
Hanna, who served on the READI Review Committee, notes the $500 million in grants could leverage private and philanthropic investment that brings the total value of the projects to more than $15 billion.
The Indiana Economic Development Corp. Board of Directors last week approved grants to all 17 regions that applied, including five that received the maximum $50 million allocation.
In all, 800 projects were proposed by regions representing all 92 Indiana counties.