Montpelier investing to spur growth amid population decline
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A northeast Indiana community is making moves to provide a boost to the city after a series of closures and a continued drop in population.
Montpelier recently lost its elementary school due to a consolidation by Blackford County Schools, and last year, the bank that was located in the building where John Dillinger pulled off his famed robbery in 1933 also closed.
“I think Montpelier’s not any different than a lot of other small communities that continue to lose population and struggle to have the attractions that we need to compete,” said Mayor Kathy Bantz.
But Bantz told Inside INdiana Business efforts are underway to turn the tide, including a redevelopment of the former elementary school building and its adjacent 10-acre football field.
“We’re actively marketing the building. It’s a three-story building and really in good shape considering the age of the building,” said Bantz, who is finishing her third term as mayor. “We’ve had some developers come from California and several from Indianapolis that have looked at the building; we’ve had lots of very interesting proposals for the building different uses. And then the 10 acres, we’ve actually had a couple of developers look at maybe a housing addition in that area.”
She said continuing to use the school building for educational purposes is not out of the question. While no plans are set in stone, proposals have included a preschool, as well as apartments, a nursing home and an adult daycare facility.
The city has also received nearly $200,000 in Indiana Rural Development grants, which are being used to enhance two Main Street buildings.
One, a former appliance store, is being transformed into a doctor’s office from Bluffton Medical Group. The other, the former Chaney Hardware store, is being reworked to potentially house a restaurant.
The city acquired the building that housed the now-closed bank. Appraisals are currently being conducted and plans potentially call for an antique shop to open in the space.
While the bank has closed, Fort Wayne-based Star Financial Bank has agreed to install an interactive teller machine, which customers can use to have a face-to-face video chat with a teller during banking hours. After hours, residents can use the machine as an ATM.
“Right now, for anybody that lives in Montpellier, any businesses, whenever you have any banking to do, you have to drive to Hartford City,” Bantz said. “It’s very inconvenient and costly for our businesses. So we’re really excited about Star Financial coming; that’ll be a big asset for our community.”
The city said its population has dropped from 6,500 people during the natural gas boom of the late 1800s to just over 1,500 today. But Bantz said it’s a problem that is facing many communities of similar size.
Part of the effort to reverse the trend has been continued investments in stormwater and sewer improvement projects. The city has received a $4.5 million forgivable loan for the projects and will be able to finance the balance interest-free, which is estimated to save taxpayers about $3 million in interest,” Bantz said.
“It would cost them probably an increase of $80 a month on their sewer bills without any kind of financial assistance. And we’ve been able to get it done now for a $10 a month increase. So that’s that’s a huge savings.”
The city is also looking to upgrade its parks, including Baldwin Park on the west side. A redesign of the park is in the works, and the mayor said the project would cost between $1.2 million and $1.5 million to complete.
Bantz said the city’s financial picture has drastically improved since she took office. The city had $340,000 in the bank when she began her tenure, and now has $4 million. The city’s TIF district also averages over $1 million.
“I think that we’re at a really crucial point in our future,” she said. “We have to continue to make changes because if you don’t make positive changes, you will receive negative change, because nothing just automatically improves on it. So it takes work and it takes a commitment.”