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.







County 5: Kosciusko

The first rule of traveling is flexibility.  I learned that lesson yet again during my trip to Kosciusko County, where I met with another group of outstanding local leaders – and a little bad weather.

Missy Cook (left) and Kelly Britton (right) give
the Lt. Governor a tour of Giverny Fitness

Studio in Warsaw.  

My afternoon visit to the Louis Dreyfus biodiesel plant unfortunately had to be canceled due to our air travel issues.  I was looking forward to seeing this impressive facility again, after speaking at the plant’s grand opening several years ago.  It is an important economic driver for Claypool, Kosciusko County and for all of Indiana. 

Thanks to the investment of this fine company, our state has of the world’s largest biodiesel and soybean crushing operations – and an ongoing national leadership role in renewable energy.

Things ran according to plan in the morning, however, and I was able to meet with local elected leaders and to tour Giverny Fitness in Warsaw.  Giverny completed its main street remodel project with grant dollars from our Office of Community and Rural Affairs, and they have created a three-story fitness center that has given local residents an attractive and useful resource.

Giverny is a great success story in many ways. Not only was the state proud to partner in turning a downtown eyesore into a beautiful space, but the gym is now a thriving business. Two entrepreneurs – women in business, if you will – are creating jobs and helping people live a healthy lifestyle.

I look forward to seeing many more projects like this in the coming months. 

I’ll be traveling again soon, so keep checking in for more notes from the road!

County 4: Wayne

My trip to Wayne County was one of my most successful trips to date. After a record number of local officials showed up for our roundtable discussion, we enjoyed lunch at Little Sheba’s restaurant, and went to the ribbon-cutting for the U.S. 40 upgrade near Earlham College.



Vicki Melek, Cambridge City's library director,

gives Lt. Governor Skillman a tour of the new

library. Library officials received a state grant

to turn an abandoned Chevy facility into a library.



The upgrade of the National Road was a $9 million project funded with Major Moves proceeds. Major Moves, our road-building program funded by the lease of the Indiana Toll Road, celebrated its fifth anniversary this year, and it has been a success by any and all measures.

Yet, as I meet with local officials on the Hoosier Crossroads Tour, a common thread has always come up: the rising costs of infrastructure.

It’s not a surprise. Gas tax revenues, which fund most local road building, have not kept up with need. And, with the exception of Major Moves, the state has not been in the financial position to provide a boost to local coffers for roads and streets.

So consider this the first open thread on my Hoosier Crossroads Tour blog. Is road funding the biggest problem local governments face? And what creative ideas do you have for funding this infrastructure?

County 3: Montgomery County

My trip to Montgomery County last week reminded me about the importance of bringing every community along in our quest to be the best state for economic growth. Small towns add loads of character to this state, and they were out in full force last week.



Vicki Powers, town clerk-treasurer, gives the

Lt. Governor Skillman a tour of the new Ladoga

fire station. Local officials received a $500,000

grant for the station.

 As part of the Hoosier Crossroads Tour, I’ve been having a roundtable discussion with some local elected officials. We invite leaders at the county, city, and town level. But Montgomery County was our best showing of town representation to date.

Officials from Linden (population: 759), Darlington (843), Waynetown (958), and Ladoga (985) were all on hand to share their views on how government can operate more efficiently. As we’ve said in these brainstorming sessions, no idea is too small to matter. And no town is too small to matter. These officials had very real concerns about risings costs of government, including infrastructure, insurance, and inconsistent regulations.

But the towns of Montgomery County have been proactive in responding to those challenges. Their local units of government have won more grant funding than most counties this size, and it’s all because they asked and competed for it. Many communities, surprisingly, don’t take that step. And many more are not as organized and forward-thinking as those in Montgomery County.

I saw one example of that in Ladoga, where the town is building a new fire station with a $500,000 grant I awarded from our Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA). It’ll be a big improvement over the one-door station that is presently attached to the town hall. The day we visited, the town council also happened to be opening bids on a new storm water project, also funded through OCRA.

The town of Linden also benefits from employment at the Valero biofuels plant, which employs nearly 100 Montgomery County residents. I toured the plant and enjoyed meeting all the partners in progress.

I can’t wait to see more of these success stories throughout my tour of the state.