ANDERSON — A plan is in place to rebuild a manufacturing region with new infrastructure, while eliminating blight and capitalizing on a young and talented workforce.
Anderson has formed a partnership with Muncie and New Castle to develop a strategic plan thanks to a new collaboration called The Manufacturing Triangle. The tri-county effort promises to benefit the region’s combined population of 297,000.
“We learned what we can accomplish when we set aside boundaries, the politics and simply focus on what is best for the communities and what can happen when we all work together,” said Pam Price, executive director of East Central Indiana Regional Planning District. “We will continue to work together to guarantee our region with quality of place, the skilled workforce the vibrant downtowns and urban neighborhoods that will attract and retain residents and manufacturing jobs to our region.”
Price said new initiative allows the communities to retain their unique attributes, but apply for federal funding as a united entity, improving their chances of receiving funding.
Catalyst projects Anderson plans to focus on include its Flagship-Purdue Polytechnic Institute Project for hands-on education, innovative startups and incubators; and prioritizing improvements in the downtown area, including a mixed-use riverfront, downtown housing and eliminating the one-way street system.
Muncie plans to focus on a manufacturing pathway project, a university corridor to enhance and connect Ball State University to its downtown and redevelop its riverfront, and a number of housing plans to stabilize and improve targeted areas.
New Castle has similar plans as Anderson and Muncie, including a sports, health and wellness district.
The East Central Indiana Regional Planning District plans to administer the project on behalf of the region and seek funds from a variety of sources to support the different catalyst projects.
“We all have great uniqueness in our communities, but now we are striving toward the same goals,” Price said.
Forming a manufacturing region for federal funding was due in part to the 40,000 jobs lost from Madison, Delaware and Henry counties with the closure of the General Motor plants, Borg Warner and other suppliers. Service positions were also lost.
Brad Bookout, project manager for ECIRPD and City of Muncie, said the communities are almost identical when it comes to their challenges and needs.
“There are housing projects in Anderson that mirror projects in Muncie and New Castle,” he said. “We have the same needs and same problems. We are basically mirrors of one another.”
As a united region, Bookout said the communities can compete with federal funding against cities like Cleveland, Milwaukee and Chicago.
“We are working together for funds — not against each other — against the rest of the nation,” he said.
Price said during the creation of The Manufacturing Triangle, the communities discovered a viable green space that can be developed to connect them to each other. The idea of improving the area for everyone’s benefit has created a great deal of excitement, she said.
“I think you are going to see something within the next 18 months,” Price said. “We are not going to be able to build a highway in 18 months, but there are things already happening.”