$1 million grant boosts North Vernon Education & Training Center

"This is great news for North Vernon and Jennings County," Hall said. "We know the center will be very valuable to the community. Now it will truly be a first-rate facility."

Other area officials are equally jubilant.

"I am extremely ecstatic," said Kathy Ertel, Jennings County Economic Development Commission director. "This grant is a perfect fit for a great project. The money will go a long way to get what is needed so we can go ahead with finishing the center."

The total grant is for $1,083,500, which will be used to complete the rehabilitation and development of the NVETC facility. Some of the money will go toward reimbursing the city's Tax Increment Finance district fund for work already done at the center.

The grant program is financed by the city of Lawrenceburg through its Municipal Development Fund, which is solely funded with gaming revenue from the Argosy Casino in Lawrenceburg.

A grant committee of seven individuals, including four from Lawrenceburg, two appointed by Gov. Mitch Daniels and a citizen at large reviewed 40 applications. The committee selected seven that will receive $8,336,500 for various projects. Only one, $4 million for Greensburg to assist in financing the new Honda automobile assembly plant being built there, exceeded North Vernon's grant.

The committee considered aspects such as impact on the existing tax base, job creation or retention, expansion of existing business, partnerships, matching funds and overall potential for being successful in selecting the grants.

The NVETC is exactly the kind of project the committee was looking for when deciding which grants to award, Hall said.

"The center is vital for our future economic development," Hall said. "What impressed the committee was how far ahead we are of other communities with our center."

The NVETC was previously housed on a temporary basis in the First Financial Bank building in downtown North Vernon.

Earlier this year, North Vernon purchased the former Community Care Center nursing home building on West O&M Avenue from Dean Ford for $700,000. Contractors are now converting the 33,000-square foot facility into a learning and job training facility to serve Jennings County and the surrounding area.

Initial plans called for the construction a new building for the NVETC on the Yux land located on North Vernon's north side. However, bids came in considerably higher than the $1.5 million estimated, so officials decided to purchase the former nursing home.

The new facility will not officially open until later this month, but it is already being put to use. Jennings County Schools began utilizing the NVETC last month for its adult education and alternative high school programs.

"We hope to offer Ivy Tech and other college classes there too," Hall said. "The center is really going to be good for North Vernon."

The NVETC is operated by the Jennings County Economic Development Commission in cooperation with South Central Workforce Development and the Indiana Department of Workforce Development. The center coordinates job related initiatives by working with local businesses, industries and schools in the areas of job assessment, training and placement for workers. In addition, the center provides space for customized training, meetings and job fairs.

"Last year, our center had seven percent of the state total of people taking the WorkKey assessments tests," Hall noted. "That tells you right there how much the center is needed."

Ertel said community officials deserve much credit for working together closely on the successful grant application.

"The mayor, city council, North Vernon Development Board and EDC Board collaborated to make this possible," she said. "There are a lot of people in our community who believed in the center from day one and have continued to work to make it a reality. This grant is a tribute to all their hard work."

Among the grant applications rejected reportedly was one from the county of Jennings for road improvement.

Besides Jennings, counties in the program's target area are Jackson, Decatur, Ripley, Jefferson, Bartholomew, Franklin, Fayette and Union.

The funds will begin to flow to the projects as soon as grant agreements are signed and the stated milestones are reached.

The Lawrenceburg Revenue Sharing's 2007 grant program is tentatively scheduled to begin on Jan. 1. The committee will review the 2006 program process and results as well as the application and guidelines to see if any program adjustments are needed.

It is hoped the 2007 program will be funded at $10 million, the same as 2006, according to Mayor Bill Cunningham of Lawrenceburg. That determination will be made when Tom Steidel, Lawrenceburg's city manager, presents the 2007 municipal development budget to Lawrenceburg's City Council for approval later this year.

"The City of Lawrenceburg realizes that its gaming revenues must be used to ensure a bright and prosperous future for the region," Cunningham said in a news release. "We are meeting that challenge in many different ways. This revenue sharing program is just one of many. We are thankful for the opportunity assist our neighbors this year and look forward to doing more in the future."

The other grant amounts and projects are:

• $860,000 to the city of Batesville in Ripley County to construct a new elevated water storage facility to serve the Batesville Industrial Park along with other areas of both Ripley and Franklin counties.

• $850,000 to the city of Versailles in Ripley County to purchase property and begin the development of an industrial park.

• $742,500 to the city of Seymour in Jackson County to assist in the construction of a new highway section that will serve Seymour's growing industrial complex.

• $500,000 to Jefferson County and city of Madison for the purchase of 80 acres for a new industrial park in Madison.

• $300,500 to the town of West College Corner in Union County to provide storm water protection in the downtown business district.