The Southwestern Indiana cities of Princeton and Petersburg are finalists in a statewide program that would provide them with millions of dollars in grant funding.
The towns are among seven finalists in Indiana's Stellar Communities program, which will name two winners in May.
The program is a joint effort between three state agencies: the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority, the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs and the Indiana Department of Transportation.
Each of the finalists will submit detailed community development plans. The winning communities will receive grant funding from the three partner agencies.
The mayors of both Petersburg and Princeton say they have big plans should their towns win.
Major components of Petersburg's plan include building a business incubator for young entrepreneurs; redeveloping a former concrete plant; developing a truck bypass to divert coal trucks from downtown; and downtown revitalization efforts.
The estimated combined cost of the projects is $26 million, said Petersburg Mayor Jon Craig.
By the end of the year, I-69 should be complete between Evansville and the Crane Naval Surface Warfare Center. That stretch of the interstate will pass about a mile from downtown Petersburg.
"It really was just the right timing for us to apply this year," Craig said.
"For a community of our size of 2,400 people, our total budget for the city is only around $1 million a year. It's really a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," he said.
This will be the second time in the running for Princeton, which also was a Stellar Communities finalist in 2011.
"We're the only repeat city in the finals. I think that's a plus for us," said Princeton Mayor Bob Hurst.
Princeton's plan focuses on the city's downtown. It includes facade improvements, lighting and other "streetscape" improvement, the development of loft housing, sidewalk repairs and parks projects. The city will ask for $18 million in grant funding.
"Rather than a more piecemeal approach, it's something a community can take advantage of to really make a transformation," said Anne Bell, communications manager at the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs.
Last year's Stellar Communities winners were North Vernon and Greencastle.
Over a three-year cycle, the communities will receive a combined $31 million in grant funding while contributing an additional $9 million in private and local money.
In addition to Princeton and Petersburg, the other Stellar Communities finalists this year are Auburn (DeKalb County); Crawfordsville (Montgomery County); Delphi (Carroll County); Richmond (Wayne County); and Whitestown (Boone County).