County 11: White

In this job, I meet and have conversations with a lot of people I’ve never met before. One of the things I ask most often in these situations is, “Are you a native of this area?”

I ask that for several reasons. Sometimes I find a person is from a part of the state I used to represent in the Senate. Sometimes I find a relatively new Hoosier. And it always breaks the ice. But in White County last week, I heard an answer that brought a smile to my face.

One of the leaders in White County’s Hometown Competitiveness program responded to the question by saying she was born and raised in Monticello, but she left after high school. It wasn’t until several years later she decided to return to her hometown.

That’s the type of story that keeps me interested in developing even our most rural cities and towns, and it’s the type of story that makes the Hometown Competitiveness program a success. HTC is about the spirit of continuous improvement for a community. It doesn’t involve a lot of grant dollars to construct buildings or roads like many of our programs do, but it builds leaders and an atmosphere of progress in a community. (Read about another HTC success in Ferdinand, Indiana below).

White County HTC has one of the most successful leadership trainings in the state, helping adults to be strong, civically engaged contributors in the community. They also have programs I’ve never heard of before, like a Youth Chamber, training up the next generation of leaders.

Keeping your hometown competitive in a global economy is very, very difficult. The fact is, not every child will want to stay near where they grew up. But those who do want to stay should never be forced away for lack of opportunity. We’re happy to have partners in White County living that out every day.

County 10: Dubois



If you blink, you may miss the tiny town of Ferdinand – population 2,157. However, this Dubois County town has been on my radar for years. Local leaders were one of the first Indiana communities to sign-up to be part of a state pilot program, the Indiana Hometown Competitiveness program.



Officials from Ferdinand's Hometown

Competitiveness program give the

Lt. Governor a tour of the new YMCA.

Local residences have created a

community area by building the

new library, YMCA and park in the

same area.



I sat down with the leaders of Ferdinand’s Hometown Competitiveness program in the new library to get an update. Keith Fritz, a talented craftsman whose fine furniture pieces are featured in showrooms across the United States, was one of the first to tell me how the program has changed his business.



Keith started his business in D.C. but realized, with the steep cost of doing business in Washington, he could do better back home in Indiana. He told me how the local bank gave him special financing and how others helped him set up shop in Ferdinand – assistance that is not found in a large city like D.C. he said.  At 34-years-old Keith is receiving national recognition for his furniture and is employing the local community.

The Hometown Competitiveness program gives rural communities a comprehensive framework for economic and community development. Ferdinand is focused on not only entrepreneurship but leadership, charitable assets, tourism, youth engagement and population growth – areas of growth the local leadership decided to focus on. Thanks to the dedication of the local leaders, I expect even more growth in Ferdinand in the years to come.  

There are more than a dozen communities who are taking part in the Hometown Competitiveness program. To find out more visit, http://www.in.gov/ocra/2351.htm.



County 9: Hancock

While in Greenfield, I found myself surrounded by pigs and the family of farmers that cares for them. As Indiana’s Secretary of Agriculture this is not an unusual day for me. In fact, I enjoyed rolling up my sleeves, getting my hands a little dirty, and experiencing Indiana agriculture with the Hill family. 

Lt. Governor Skillman tours one
of the hog barns at the Hill
Family Farm in Greenfield with
one of the Hill children.

Marc and Heather Hill were named Pork Producers of the Year in 2010. These outstanding pork producers are also currently going through our Certified Livestock Producer Program. More than 50 Indiana farmers have completed this voluntary program, and have demonstrated their commitment to the industry’s best practices (environmental practices, animal well-being, food safety, biosecurity, emergency planning and being a good neighbor).

The Hill family is also teaching the fifth generation all that they know about farming. Their three young children are already excited about agriculture (they couldn’t get their youngest little girl away from the pigs). And their son couldn’t wait to show me their new climate-controlled barn. Here is a video of him explaining to me how the water system works.

Read more about the Certified Livestock Producer Program here, http://www.in.gov/isda/2441.htm.

County 8: Allen

On both the state and national levels, we’ve had debates on how to best create jobs and opportunities. I firmly believe that the government does not create jobs, nor can it create demand where none exists.

But we found when we visited Huntertown, just north of Fort Wayne, that when the demand exists, a little tax incentive can help turn that demand into reality. I visited Cameron Crossing, a new neighborhood by Fort Wayne’s Keller Development, in early September. Finishing touches were being put on the residential units, which ranged from one- to four-bedrooms. A waiting list for these units developed even before the company began advertising available units.

On the first day in-person applications were accepted, Keller staff expected the crowd to be so large that they asked the utility companies to send representatives to sign up new residents while they waited.

To build these units, Keller took advantage of Section 42 Rental Housing Tax Credits. This program, administered by the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority, simply provides a federal tax incentive to build affordable housing units.

It’s a program that has provided excellent housing opportunities across Indiana. And when the project is in the hands of a good developer like Keller, they are housing opportunities that last. One of their employees said a similar development in Fort Wayne several years ago met some community resistance because of the stigma of “affordable housing”. But decades later, that development and many others are as peaceful and as beautiful as ever.

Cameron Crossing is a good example of the positive projects that can be built when the government simply incentivizes private investment.

Lt. Governor Celebrates Terre Haute’s Neighborhood Revitalization

TERRE HAUTE – Lt. Governor Becky Skillman congratulated Terre Haute Mayor Duke Bennett today on making Terre Haute the first community in Indiana to complete work under the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP). Skillman visited Vigo County today as part of her Hoosier Crossroads Tour.

The city, which was awarded $1,850,000 of NSP funds in May 2009, has completed the construction, acquisition, and demolition of targeted properties in the Central Eastside Neighborhood. Now, 90 percent of the 28 new residential units are occupied.

“This program has made an impact on meeting the housing needs and preventing blight in cities across the state, and none has done it better and faster than Mayor Bennett and the Department of Redevelopment in Terre Haute,” Lt. Governor Becky Skillman said.

Thirty recipients shared more than $78 million of NSP funding. The City of Terre Haute, through its Department of Redevelopment leveraged an additional $1,415,000 in local grant resources and private financing to assist three non-profits with the construction of 28 new residential units (including 4 handicap accessible units). It also allowed the Department of Redevelopment to acquire 23 parcels for land banking to develop new residential units and demolish 36 abandoned/vacant residential structures.

“We’ve successfully filled abandoned properties, stemming the decline in neighboring property values and stabilizing a neighborhood struggling to recover from foreclosures and lack of development,” said Mayor Duke Bennett.

The City’s desired impact and outcome for the Central Eastside Neighborhood was to provide opportunities for low- to moderate-income citizens to live in decent, safe, affordable housing, and develop stronger partnerships with non-profit organizations.

Vigo County was Lt. Governor Skillman’s seventh stop on her Hoosier Crossroads Tour. For updates, visit www.beckyskillman.blogspot.com.

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County 7: Vigo

As I walked up the sidewalk to a new home in an old neighborhood in Terre Haute Tuesday, I noticed the sign hanging over the door: “The Sheltons”. Of all the impressive features of the city’s housing efforts, this touched me the most.

Lt. Governor Skillman tours a new housing
development in Terre Haute that received
state funding to create affordable housing
for families.

Terre Haute was one of 21 cities to receive funds from our Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) in May of 2009. These funds were to be used to demolish abandoned and blighted properties and to build new, affordable housing in these struggling neighborhoods.

No city has fared better than Terre Haute at putting these dollars to work quickly and effectively. They cleared away nearly 40 abandoned homes, built 28 new residential units, and banked nearly 20 lots for future development with $1.8 million from the state through NSP and another $1.4 million in other leveraged local funds.

But what I realized as I approached the Shelton residence and their welcome sign is that we are not only building houses, we’re building homes. They are homes for families who might not otherwise be able to afford this American dream.

And these homes are already having a ripple effect. In this older neighborhood, local leaders told me that when they started removing dilapidated structures and building new ones, neighbors started making improvements to their homes on their own. Across the street, one neighbor put new siding on his home to improve its appearance. Others added new roofs, a paint job, or simply cleaned up lawns.

Improving the housing climate in a city has a ripple effect throughout the community. I was pleased to see the progress being made in Terre Haute.

County 6: Posey

One of the great things about traveling the state is seeing all the unique features of Indiana. We’re a Midwestern state, so it’s often noted that we don’t have mountains or oceans, but that doesn’t mean each community doesn’t have its own flavor.



Officials from Mt. Vernon show the
Lt. Governor a new park on the Ohio River.

The most successful communities are the ones that use their local landscape to their advantage and improve their “quality of place”. Mt. Vernon, in Posey County, offers a great example of that.

While visiting there on Thursday, I saw their work to demolish an old abandoned silo along the Ohio River and turn it into a beautiful riverfront park. The park is just a stone’s throw away from the downtown, and the historic courthouse – where I met with local elected officials earlier in the day – is visible from the new trails.



The project might not have been possible without the state’s Office of Community and Rural Affairs granting the funds to tear down the silo. That’s exactly the type of improvement I had in mind when creating this state agency in 2005.

I mentioned “quality of place” earlier, and some people ask what that means. Well you’ve heard of quality of life, how we measure the well-being of individuals. Quality of place is about the well-being of communities and whether local leaders are getting every ounce of potential out of their corner of Indiana.



Mayor John Tucker of Mt. Vernon shows
Lt. Governor Skillman plans for a community
and economic develoment project.



In Posey County – quite literally a corner of Indiana – I’m happy to report that it’s happening.