Gov. Holcomb awards $500 million to Ind. READI regions

EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WFIE) - Governor Holcomb joined the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) board meeting to announce the READI awards Tuesday afternoon.

Gov. Holcomb approved plans to award $500 million to support regional development plans across 17 regions representing all 92 counties.

“The 17 regions submitted innovative, creative and visionary projects that will result in a positive economic impact on Indiana’s future,” Gov. Holcomb said.

The regions, with the counties the region represents, and its specific award are:

• 180 Alliance – awarded $20 million Boone, Hendricks, Johnson, Putnam, Montgomery, Morgan
• 70-40 Mt. Comfort Corridor – awarded $5 million Hancock
• Accelerate Rural Indiana – awarded $20 million Shelby, Rush, Decatur
• East Central Indiana Regional Partnership – awarded $15 million Blackford, Fayette, Muncie-Delaware, Jay, Henry, Randolph, Wayne, Grant
• Greater Lafayette – awarded $30 million Tippecanoe, Fountain, Warren, Benton, White, Carroll
• Indiana First – awarded $15 million Harrison, Knox, Perry, Pike, Spencer
• Indiana Uplands – awarded $30 million Brown, Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Monroe, Orange, Owen, Washington
• North Central Indiana Regional Planning Council – awarded $30 million Fulton, Cass, Miami, Howard, Tipton, Clinton
• Northeast Indiana, led by the Northeast Indiana RDA – awarded $50 million Lagrange, Steuben, Noble, Kosciusko, Whitley, Allen, Wabash, Huntington, Wells, Adams
• Northwest Indiana, led by the Northwest Indiana Forum – awarded $50 million Lake, Porter, Laporte, Starke, Pulaksi, Jasper, Newton
• Our Southern Indiana RDA – awarded $50 million Washington, Floyd, Scott, Jefferson, Clark
• South Bend-Elkhart RDA– awarded $50 million Joseph, Elkhart, Marshall
• South Central Indiana Talent Region – awarded $30 million Bartholomew, Jackson, Jennings
• Southeast Indiana READI – awarded $15 million Dearborn, Union, Franklin, Ripley, Ohio, Switzerland
• Southwest Indiana Regional Development Authority – awarded $50 million Vanderburgh, Warrick, Gibson, Posey
• Wabash River Regional Development Authority – awarded $20 million Clay, Knox, Parke, Sullivan, Vermillion, Vigo
• White River Regional Opportunity Initiative – awarded $20 million Hamilton, Marion, Madison, City of Zionsville, City of McCordsville

Officials say the IEDC will begin to execute grant agreements with regions while providing training and guidance on federal requirements.

You can watch the full announcement here:

[Previous: Evansville Regional Economic Partnership presents development plans to state]

As we’ve reported, the Evansville region competed against 16 other Hoosier regions for a cut of $500 million in READI grant money.

Mayor Lloyd Winnecke said in a statement, “I’m very grateful to Governor Eric Holcomb and the Indiana Economic Development Corporation for their confidence in the Greater Evansville Region. The $50 million in READI funding will be the catalyst for significant projects in Gibson, Posey, Vanderburgh and Warrick Counties. The READI grants will spur everything from housing to quality life projects, and fund other important initiatives designed to grow our region’s population and improve workforce readiness.”

“The READI grant award is the result of countless hours of hard work and collaboration among many public and private sector leaders in the Greater Evansville Region. Their thoughtful approach to regional collaboration is a model for the rest of the state,” Mayor Winnecke continued.

Mayor Winnecke said the next step is to allocate those funds to all the projects in motion.

You can learn more about READI here.

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