The City of Lebanon parted ways with the county in an effort to attract more grant money for regional development.
Boone County and all its municipalities, except Zionsville, joined the 180 Alliance in 2021 to go after $50 million in Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative, or READI grants, from the state. Zionsville joined another alliance.
The 180 Alliance also included Putnam, Morgan, Johnson, Hendricks and Montgomery counties. The state encouraged counties and municipalities to form alliances and design grassroots projects to attract more people to their regions to live and work.
The projects should enhance quality of place and quality of life. Stone Eater Bike Park received a $750,000 grant. The park is expected to draw tourists from all over the state to compete here.
Municipalities and private businesses must contribute money to match the grants.
But the 180 Alliance dissolved after the first round of grants, and another round is on the horizon, Lebanon Mayor Matthew Gentry recently told the city council. Lebanon and the county must join another alliance to go after the next round.
County officials were checking with other counties, including Tippecanoe, Hendricks and Clinton, but have not yet made a decision.
“We need to decide which boat we’ll be in,” Gentry told the city council recently.
He proposed, and the council unanimously voted, to seek membership in the Central Indiana Regional Development Authority, CIRDA, which includes Zionsville and now Whitestown, plus other Marion County doughnut counties.
“It’s a larger group with a lot of other entities in it,” Gentry said. “We are naturally falling into that group more and more as Indianapolis grows.”
Councilman John Copeland agreed that it makes sense to join CIRDA for a five-year commitment without cost to the city. The Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Organization handles the administration and costs.