OCRA PR



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE




Feb. 11, 2021





Office of Community and Rural Affairs
awards 13 planning grants

*INDIANAPOLIS (Feb. 11, 2021) *The Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs today announced it is awarding 13 planning grants totaling more than $818,000 to communities to develop a specific plan to implement community and economic development projects.

"Planning grants are invaluable tools that can help rural communities properly shape and prepare their vision for improving the quality of life for its residents, said Denny Spinner, Executive Director of OCRA. I applaud the foresight by the local leaders and residents taking the time to plan for these significant investments within their communities.

The State of Indiana distributes the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Developments Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to rural communities to assist units of local government with various community projects. Planning grants are one type of grants offered through OCRAs CDBG Program.

"This funding will allow communities to make important investments to enhance the local quality of life, said Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch. Planning grants can lead to big differences as rural Indiana looks to support local infrastructure.

The Planning Grant Program strives to encourage communities to plan for long-term community development with the aid of subject matter experts and community input. The applications being funded this quarter are aiming to address water infrastructure and comprehensive community planning.

Water Infrastructure grants allow communities to take a holistic view of potential issues and opportunities across the drinking, waste and stormwater infrastructure. By completing this planning, communities will be able to make decisions regarding the most urgent water needs while understanding how each system works in context with other utility systems. The nine communities are awarded the following grants:


* The *City of Crawfordsville* is awarded $60,000;
* The *Town of Camden* is awarded $58,500;
* The *Town of Holton* is awarded $60,000;
* The *Town of Lynn* is awarded $85,325;
* The *Town of Mulberry* is awarded $58,320;
* The *Town of Seelyville* is awarded $60,000;
* The *Town of Spencer* is awarded $60,000;
* The *Town of Swazyee* is awarded $90,000; and
* The *Town of West Lebanon* is awarded $87,300.

Comprehensive Planning grants are designed to aid communities in assessing assets and identify opportunities to address current needs. Each comprehensive plan includes a holistic view and potential opportunities to improve in the following areas: land use, government capacity, public services, placemaking, economic development, housing, transportation, agriculture, natural resources, broadband access and historic resources. The four communities are awarded the following grants:


* The* City of Alexandria *is awarded $50,000;
* The* City of Elwood *is awarded $50,000;
* The* City of North Vernon* is awarded $50,000; and
* The* City of Tell City* is awarded $49,500.

Planning Grant applications are accepted on a quarterly basis. Based on the number of Planning Grant applications funded for the first quarter of 2021, funds will not be available to open applications for the second quarter. For more information, visit in.gov/ocra/cdbg. [ [link removed] ]

*-30-*

"Under the leadership of Lieutenant Governor Suzanne Crouch, [ [link removed] ] who also serves as the Secretary of Rural Development, the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA) mission is to work with local, state and national partners to provide resources and technical assistance to assist communities in shaping and achieving their vision for community and economic development. For more information, visit ocra.in.gov. [ [link removed] ]"





________________________________________________________________________

*Media Contact: *

Melissa Thomas
Office of Community and Rural Affairs
<[email protected]>[email protected]
(317) 727-7682
Follow us: Facebook [ [link removed] ],Twitter [ [link removed] ] & Instagram [ [link removed] ]* [ [link removed] ]*

________________________________________________________________________






SUBSCRIBER SERVICES:
Manage Preferences [ [link removed] ]|Delete Profile [ [link removed] ]|Help [ [link removed] ]

________________________________________________________________________

This email was sent to [email protected] using GovDelivery Communications Cloud on behalf of: State of Indiana 402 Washington Street Indianapolis, IN 46204 800.457.8283 GovDelivery logo [ [link removed] ]