What can $50 million buy? Population growth, Southwest Indiana leaders hope

The grant of $50 million-plus would kick-start a mix of projects, all of which are aimed at fostering population growth in Southwest Indiana communities.

These include an indoor sports facility in Warrick County, a YMCA for Princeton and a larger nursing program at the University of Southern Indiana.

Other objectives are a regionwide approach to new housing, more riverfront developments in Evansville, Newburgh and Mount Vernon, and an expanded network of trails.

The grant also could be used to develop a marketing strategy. Officials said marketing is needed to recruit more talent to the region and keep talent that’s already here.

Southwest Indiana in 2015 received $42 million from a statewide economic stimulus program called Regional Cities Initiative, championed by then-Gov. Mike Pence. Those dollars contributed to a dozen area projects, such as Downtown Evansville's Ascension St. Vincent YMCA, Post House and Stone Family Center for Health Sciences.

Local officials are banking on more success in the new grant program, Gov. Eric Holcomb’s Regional Economic Acceleration & Development Initiative. In total, READI is making $500 million available to 17 regions statewide.

More:Summary of the Evansville's region's READI plan

“There’s no absolute guarantee, but that said, we think there’s a high likelihood that those of us who have proved success in the past will get an opportunity to continue to be successful,” said Tara Barney, CEO of the Evansville Regional Economic Partnership.

Southwest Indiana has plenty of room to grow.

Except for Warrick County, which saw a 7.1% increase, the region’s population was stagnant from 2010 to 2020, Census data shows. Many other areas of Indiana outside the bustling Indianapolis area also saw flat or negative population trends.

Before READI grants are awarded, state officials want to know “what’s your strategy, what’s your overall plan and how are you going to be measuring it,” said Greg Wathen, president of E-REP. “And they’ll make a determination if it fits the criteria.”

Growing population requires a multifaceted approach, officials said, and the READI grant application reflects that.

They said the 240,000-square-foot indoor sports complex — which is being called Warrick County Sports Park and Field House — the YMCA for downtown Princeton, and the regional trails initiative are examples of quality-of-life enhancers.

In addition to increased capacity in USI's nursing program, the grant calls for a robotics program at Vincennes University's Gibson County campus, and a Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Clinic and Research Center at the IU School of Medicine Evansville campus.

A mobile STEM instruction unit for Ivy Tech Community College would reach students across 10 area counties.

If awarded, the grant would target three, $35 million new housing developments in rural and urban areas. This housing would serve the needs of the region's major employers, officials said. They cited, for example, a need for extended stay, rural housing for medical students completing clinical rotations.

The grant application seeks more active local riverfronts, with new public-private projects that include rental housing, restaurants and retailers, park amenities, art installations and trail activity, as well as seating for events.

Wathen said the READI grant would provide only 20% or so of the money needed for most of these projects, but it would incentivize the private sector to get involved.

Local government money is possible for some of the projects, too. The city of Evansville invested up to $57 million in the Stone Center, which opened in 2018.

Wathen said the various investments will allow the region to take full advantage of the new I-69 Ohio River bridge, which is expected in the next several years. 

A decision on the $50 million grant request is anticipated by mid-December.

"If we are fortunate enough to receive this allocation, this would be transformational in many ways — from housing to quality-of-life projects, to everything in between," said Vanderburgh County Board of Commissioners President Ben Shoulders, an E-REP board member.

Evansville Mayor Lloyd Winnecke, also an E-REP board member, said private-sector involvement will be key to making projects in the region's READI application come to life.

City officials frequently hear calls for the Evansville riverfront to be more active, and Winnecke said READI dollars would create new possibilities.

"We clearly need more housing downtown, and if we want to meet the goals we've set out — more population and more jobs — we know Downtown and the riverfront have to continue to develop in new and exciting ways," Winnecke said.