Sarah Einselen, Pharos-Tribune
LOGANSPORT — Logansport is seeking a $22 million state grant that would be used to build at least 60 new housing units in exiting buildings downtown, construct an indoor/outdoor city center and improve infrastructure, local officials said.
The city submitted a letter of interest Friday for the 2012 Stellar Communities program, which is designed to fund “comprehensive community development projects in Indiana’s smaller communities,” according to the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs website.
About 40 letters of interest were received, and six to eight communities will be selected and announced as finalists on Feb. 21, said Anne Bell, OCRA communications manager.
If Logansport were to get the funding, the city would be expected to contribute financially to the projects as well.
“There’s certain criteria that places us in an enviable position,” said Mayor Ted Franklin, adding he didn’t want to get into that criteria because the grant was still in a competitive phase. “We just need to see how the cards fall.”
About 60 letters were submitted last year - the program’s first - with two communities receiving funding, Bell said.
Greencastle received $19 million and North Vernon got $13.8 million, according to each city’s Stellar Communities project website. The money was marked for a list of community development and quality-of-life projects.
North Vernon matched $2.4 million for its 10 projects, including renovation of its library and streetscapes. Greencastle also revitalized its downtown and established a more pedestrian-friendly neighborhood.
What’s unique about the Stellar Communities program is that it’s a collaboration of several state agencies, said Nolan “Skip” Kuker, president of Logansport-Cass County Economic Development Foundation.
“Indiana is really taking the lead in this, changing the way that the offices do grants,” he said.
The Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority is working with the Office of Community and Rural Affairs and the Indiana Department of Transportation to provide the funds, which come from a combination of state and federal moneys, according to the OCRA website. That’s a departure from the usual practice of each agency coordinating its own grants, Kuker said.
The local money would be allocated toward several projects.
Asked about the plan for the money, Franklin alluded to what’s important to the three agencies.
“We focused on the goals of all three of the state agencies that award money,” he said.
Logansport officials planned to try for an indoor/outdoor city center, which could house farmers’ markets and the like, said Brian Shafer, president and chief executive officer of the Logansport-Cass County Chamber of Commerce.
The city is also interested in connecting the River Bluff Trail and Little Turtle Waterway to create a loop.
The ideas came from the city’s comprehensive plan completed a few years ago. The city started work last year on formulating a list of projects for the Stellar Communities program, Shafer said.
Pharos-Tribune news editor Jason M. Rodriguez contributed to this report.