READI Submissions Completed
(photo courtesy of the State of Indiana)
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe Indiana Economic Development Corp. says 17 regions representing Indiana’s 92 counties have submitted proposals for the $500 million Indiana Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative. Each region is seeking up to $50 million to bolster their economies, accelerate growth and strengthen their workforce pipelines. The proposals represent more than $1 billion in projects.
The IEDC says cities and counties worked collaboratively on the campaign, outlining a series of strategies focused on physical projects and sustainable, multi-year programs to advance quality of place, quality of life, and quality of opportunity.
“Secretary [Brad] Chambers and I are impressed with and appreciative of all the hard work and collaborative energy invested in the READI regional development plans submitted across the entire state,” said Governor Eric Holcomb. “I have no doubt these plans will be the beginning of transformational progress that will impact Hoosiers for generations to come.”
A committee will now start to review the proposals and should narrow does its list of regions to receive the funds by the end of the year.
Click here to link to the regions’ proposals.
The regions that submitted READI regional development plans are:
- 70-40 Greater Mt. Comfort Corridor, led by the Hancock County Economic Development Council
Counties: Hancock, Marion
Proposal Themes: Improve quality of life to increase region’s vibrancy, attractiveness, sustainability and affordability; attract, train and retain highly skilled workforce; increase diversity, equity and inclusion
- 80 Alliance, led by the West Central Indiana Alliance
Counties: Boone, Hendricks, Montgomery, Putnam, Johnson and Morgan
Proposal Themes: Bolster region’s quality of life, outdoor recreation, arts and culture, housing for talent attraction, infrastructure improvements and talent development
- Accelerate Rural Indiana, led by the Decatur County Community Foundation
Counties: Decatur, Rush, Shelby
City: Batesville
Proposal Themes: Increase connectivity, make place-based investments including housing projects and public infrastructure, market the region and create career pathways for new students and adults needing to upskill
- East Central Indiana Regional Partnership, led by the East Central IN Regional Partnership
Counties: Blackford, Delaware, Fayette, Grant, Henry, Jay, Randolph, Wayne
Proposal Themes: Boost population trends to end population decline, mobilize learning systems to increase educational attainment and build equitable economic opportunities to increase median household income and earnings
- Greater Lafayette Region, led by the Greater Lafayette Commerce Community and Economic Development Foundation
Counties: Benton, Carroll, Fountain, Tippecanoe, Warren, White
Proposal Themes: Retain existing talent and welcome new talent to increase the region’s population, along with increasing housing opportunities, accelerate digital adoption among industries
- Indiana First Region, led by the Southwest Indiana Development Council
Counties: Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Harrison, Knox, Martin, Pike, Orange, Spencer, Perry
Proposal Themes: End population and job losses through investments in training programs, public infrastructure, fiber optics, transportation and improved connectivity throughout the region
- Indiana Uplands, led by the Regional Opportunity Initiatives Inc.
Counties: Brown, Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Monroe, Orange, Owen
Proposal Themes: Scale and differentiate targeted industry clusters, ensure talent strategies meet industry demands, invest in key quality of life initiatives
- North Central, led by the North Central Indiana Regional Planning Council
Counties: Cass, Clinton, Fulton, Howard, Miami, Tipton
Proposal Themes: Attract and retain people, develop the talent and skills of its current and future workforce, and connect talent with the jobs the region needs to be successful
- Northeast, led by the Northeast Indiana RDA
Counties: Adams, Allen, DeKalb, Huntington, LaGrange, Kosciusko, Noble, Steuben, Wabash, Wells, Whitley
Proposal Themes: Grow population, increase educational attainment and raise per capita personal income
- Northwest, led by the Northwest Indiana Forum
Counties: Lake, Porter, LaPorte, Jasper, Newton, Pulaski, Starke
Proposal Themes: Build on success of IGNITE the Region plan, which focuses on business development and marketing, entrepreneurship and innovation, infrastructure, talent and placemaking
- Southern Indiana, led by the Our Southern Indiana Regional Development Authority
Counties: Clark, Floyd, Jefferson, Scott, Washington
Proposal Themes: Nurture a diverse economy by improving destinations, workforce and entrepreneurship, real estate development, natural assets, connections and gateways, and infrastructure
- South Bend/Elkhart, led by the Northern Indiana Regional Development Authority
Counties: Elkhart, Marshall, St. Joseph
Proposal Themes: Raise post-secondary talent attainment, improve minority income disparity, provide higher wage job opportunities and stimulate positive in-migration
- South Central Indiana Talent Region, led by the Southern Indiana Housing and Community Development Corporation
Counties: Bartholomew, Jackson, Jennings
Town: Edinburgh
Proposal Themes: With its largest anchor institution Cummins, Inc., this region is focused on advancing new and emerging technologies, ensuring careers are well-paying and equitably distributed and people are well-educated and trained; and to cultivate a culture of resiliency
- Southeast, led by SEI READI Inc.
Counties: Dearborn, Ohio, Switzerland, Union, Franklin, Ripley (excludes city of Batesville)
Proposal Themes: Prioritize talent attraction and development as the region’s foremost opportunity for growth
- Evansville Region, led by Southwest Indiana RDA (SWIRDA)
Counties: Gibson, Posey, Vanderburgh, Warrick
Proposal Theme: Bring new high-paying job opportunities, increase population, reduce the number of households living in poverty and improve the health and well-being of residents
- West Central, led by the Wabash River RDA
Counties: Clay, Knox, Parke, Sullivan, Vermillion, Vigo
Proposal Themes: Leverage the region’s higher-educational access, its destination assets and its proximity to Illinois to attract and retain students and visitors in the region
- White River Regional Opportunity Initiative, led by the Central Indiana Regional Development Authority and Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Organization
Counties: Hamilton, Madison, Marion
Proposal Themes: Foster entrepreneurial ecosystem, generate high-quality and high-wage job opportunities and create vibrant places that attract and retain high caliber talent