State announces $31M in Next Level Trails grants
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Gov. Eric Holcomb and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources on Wednesday unveiled the 14 recipients of the fourth round of Next Level Trails grants. The governor’s office says the combined $31.2 million will support 28 miles of new trails throughout the state.
The grants are split into regional and local project categories.
The largest regional grants went to the Marquette Greenway in Burns Harbor and the Fall Creek Greenway in Lawrence, which each received $5 million. The largest local grants were awarded to Roberts Park Trail in Evansville, which received $2 million and Riley Trail in Vigo County, which received just under $2 million.
“I am thrilled we received funding from the state to move this project forward,” Vigo County Commissioner Mike Morris said in a news release. “We have big dreams and plans for trails in our community, and receiving these important funds will help us move faster. We couldn’t do this without a collaborative approach, including funding from our own County Council and many others.”
The grant recipients are contributing $15.5 million in matching funds. The Next Level Trails program requires a minimum 20% project match, which can include monetary contributions, land value, and in-kind donations of materials and labor.
The fourth round Next Level Trails grant recipients are:
Regional Projects
- Fall Creek Greenway, Lawrence: $5,000,000
- Grand Kankakee Marsh Trail, LaCrosse: $2,101,920
- Marquette Greenway, Burns Harbor: $5,000,000
- Marquette Greenway, Porter: $2,077,016
- Poka-Bache Trail, Angola: $1,505,960
- Poka-Bache Trail, Steuben County: $3,723,140
- Vision Trail Phase 1, Randolph County: $4,096,800
Local Projects
- Illinois Road Trail, Fort Wayne: $1,000,000
- Lincoln Discovery Trail, Santa Claus: $796,015
- Oldenburg Heritage Trail, Oldenburg: $406,000
- Rebekah Extension, Greensburg: $417,818
- Riley Trail, Vigo County: $1,946,901
- River Road and Tiger Drive Trails, Yorktown: $1,166,435
- Roberts Park Trail, Evansville: $2,000,000
“Across the state, trails are making connections – bringing people and communities together in ways we’ve never seen before,” Holcomb said. “The Next Level Trails program has elevated those connections with record trail funding and palpable energy. Through $180 million across four rounds, we’re funding important infrastructure that is making an impact now and will continue to be felt for generations to come.”
The first three rounds of Next Level Trails awarded a total of $120 million to 73 communities to buildk 190 miles of trails throughout the state. An additional $29.5 million was awarded in January to begin development of the 62.3-mile Monon South Trail along the abandoned Monon Railroad, running through Clark, Floyd, Washington, Orange and Lawrence counties.
You can learn more about the Next Level Trails program by clicking here.