State launches ‘CreatINg Places’ crowdfunding campaigns
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The Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority has launched crowdfunding campaigns for quality of place projects in Madison and Porter counties. Developers are looking to raise money through the agency’s CreatINg Places program, which provides matching grants if the fundraising goals are met.
CreatINg Places allows nonprofits and local governments to set up crowdfunding campaigns on Patronicity. The IHCDA provides funding matches of up to $50,000 if the campaigns are successful.
Frankton Students in Action is looking to raise $25,000 to purchase at least two inclusive pieces of playground equipment to add to their existing playground at Frankton Elementary School.
The student organization says it wants to provide all students, including those with disabilities, access to their local playground.
“When most people think about elementary school, they think of all the fun times they had at recess playing with their friends and making memories that would last a lifetime,” Students in Action said. “Now think of what it might be like to not have that opportunity to make those memories and have that enjoyment in your life. This is what it is like for children who are wheelchair-bound or have other forms of disabilities who attend schools with non-inclusive playgrounds.”
The Frankton crowdfunding campaign is open for donations through April 25.
Meanwhile, a team in northwest Indiana comprised of Indiana Dunes Tourism, the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma, the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi and the Indiana Dunes National Park seeks to raise $50,000 to create the Indiana Dunes Indigenous Cultural Trail.
The team says the trail will serve as an interactive experience, weaving Indigenous cultures with the natural ecology of the Indiana Dunes. The trail will feature a fire pit, murals of native animals, a tree trail, colorful crosswalks, a limestone sculpture of a turtle and interpretive signage.
“The response to the Indiana Dunes Indigenous Trail concept has been overwhelmingly positive. Visitors and locals are looking forward to seeing the trail develop,” said Christine Livingston, vice president of Indiana Dunes Tourism. “The Indiana Dunes Visitor Center welcomed nearly 200,000 people to the dunes last year. Having the trail located here will elevate Indigenous voices in the Indiana Dunes and introduce thousands to this important part of our story.”
The Indiana Dunes Visitor Center would serve as the trailhead for the project. The trail campaign is open for donations through May 16.
The IHCDA says projects have raised more than $7.5 million in public funds, and the agency has provided $6.3 million matching funds since the CreatINg Places program began in 2016.