Peru mayor touts downtown progress in his annual State of the City

Greer, who is serving the third year of his first term, said the community came together last year to move forward major initiatives such as the Riverview Landing Project, which includes the construction of a new YMCA on 10 acres of land along the Wabash River.

The $13-million development project will also include an extended biking and walking path that will connect to the Nickel Plate Trail and more parking for a nearby city park.

“This project represents a large, multi-organization collaboration that will serve as a huge economic driver for our community,” Greer said.

He also pointed to major projects being pushed forward through the city’s partnership with ReDiscover Downtown Peru, which has given out dozens of grants to downtown businesses to help fix up building facades and bring commerce back to the city’s core.

One of their most successful initiatives has been the Second Saturday events, which brings locals into the city for shopping and other activities such as live music and free horse-drawn carriage rides.

Greer also said the city is now in the middle of revitalizing two downtown buildings that officials hope will be filled by new businesses.

The city has owned the building at 20 E. Fifth St. for a number of years and is partnering with local entrepreneurs and the Miami County Economic Development Authority to get the building back into use.

Greer said the city is in the final steps of approving the plans for a new business to remodel the building and start serving customers next year.

The city last year also purchased the building at 1 S. Broadway that was formerly owned by Dr. Tristan Stonger, who prosecutors said was running a “pill mill” on the first floor.

Greer called the building an “eyesore at the heart of our downtown.” He said city workers have been working to install a new roof to preserve the structural integrity of the building and stabilize the interior. The city is also in the process of putting work out to bid to finish fixing the outside of the building.

“This will turn the property from an eyesore to a centerpiece of our downtown,” Greer said.

In the meantime, the city is making big strides towards extending and upgrading its trail system, he said.

The city secured 4,600 feet of bike lanes in the downtown area at no cost after the Indiana Department of Transportation agreed to add them along the streets as part of a resurfacing project on Indiana 19.

Then, last winter, the city traffic department took unused materials it had and made bike racks to place downtown, along with new benches, trees and planters.

Greer said the city is also taking on a project to expand the Nickel Plate Trail from the Lovers Lane trail on the city’s north side into the downtown area. The extension will connect the trail to the new athletic fields being built by Peru schools and then extend the trail down to Ninth Street.

But it wasn’t all good new last year, Greer said.

Local manufacturers such as Schneider Electric’s Square D plant implemented steep layoffs that hurt the city’s workforce and economy.

However, the city is “being proactive to address the problem,” he said, and working with the county economic development group to talk to other manufactures about coming to Peru.

Greer said they plan to announce news about goodpaying manufacturing jobs coming to the city that will “more than make up for the numbers lost.”

He said the opioid crisis has also taken a toll on the community, but the city has partnered with the Miami County Systems of Care Governance Coalition to locally combat the crisis.

That includes a new program providing unclaimed bicycles to residents who don’t have transportation and rehabilitating unsafe houses to provide places to live for the city’s homeless population.

“We are tackling problems as a community, and as a community we are finding solutions and implementing them,” Greer said. “Our future is bright as long as we continue to work together.”

Looking back, he said, that’s exactly what Peru did last year.

“If I had to sum up last year in one sentence, it would be, ‘A community coming together,’” Greer said.