Mayor, DPU president to give Stellar Grant update Oct. 27

Monday, October 17, 2011

Earlier this year, the Greencastle community was one of two cities in Indiana designated as a Stellar Grant Community.

This grant may provide up to $19 million to support projects to enhance Greencastle's downtown and the DePauw neighborhoods.

On Thursday, Oct. 27 at 7 p.m., Greencastle Mayor Sue Murray and DePauw President Brain Casey will hold a public forum to update the community on the status of the Stellar Grant.

After their presentation, there will be a hosted question-and-answer period for audience members.

The Stellar Grant Public Forum will be held in Watson Forum in the Center for Contemporary Media on DePauw's campus.

The event will be broadcast live on WGRE radio (91.5 FM) and Greencastle local access channels 2 and 3.

The event is sponsored by WGRE Radio and the Greencastle League of Women Voters. It is free and open to the public.

Greencastle's Stellar Communities grant proposal was approved in March by the State of Indiana as one of two pilot projects (North Vernon being the other community).

The Stellar Grant may provide as much as $19 million over the next three years to support core projects designed to enhance the economic, cultural and residential vitality of Greencastle's downtown and the "South Court" neighborhood which connects it to the university.

The scope of the project ranges from streetscape improvements to economic development initiatives and historic preservation efforts, primarily focused on the square and in the surrounding neighborhood.

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  • Held on Depauw campus. Used to benefit Depauw neighborhoods. But this grant wasn't about Depauw. Yeah, right.

    The brazen lies to our faces, then doing exactly what they say they aren't. Typical Putnam county politics.

    -- Posted by stranded67 on Mon, Oct 17, 2011, at 9:38 AM
  • my business is on one of the initial streets that connect to downtown and was suppose to benefit from the grant. but since i do not live in my business, i do not qualify for any grant money and the mayor told me that if i did live at my business then i would have to meet certain financial criteria. so yes depauw will keep most of this money and do with what they want. they are moving the bookstore back to the old depauw bookstore downtown. most of the money will be spent on downtown businesses and who they want. rumor has it that almost home and bright futures have been verbally oked and neither one of those ladies live at their business or need financial assistance. hope they make public how and where all of the $19 million is spent. we all should be watching

    -- Posted by badboy46120 on Tue, Oct 18, 2011, at 12:00 AM
  • I don't think it is financial assistance, but just an overpriced project to help contractors from outside of the community. Oh wait 10% maybe up to 20% has to be spent locally. As far as the living in the building that isn't so on the facade part of Stellar? The nice ladies of Bright Futures do not own the building, they pay a lease.

    -- Posted by macvrod on Tue, Oct 18, 2011, at 8:31 AM
  • thanks for the info macvrod!!! do u know what the stipulations are to be part of the grant? yes i told several of my contracting friends that this was going on and they called the mayor and were told that an out of town contractor would be hired to over see all the building needs and hiring of projects out. nice how we always give the big money to someone outside of our county.

    -- Posted by badboy46120 on Tue, Oct 18, 2011, at 10:04 AM
  • not positive if they (contractors) talked to the mayor or someone in her office!!

    -- Posted by badboy46120 on Tue, Oct 18, 2011, at 10:09 AM
  • I thought the mayor and chamber of commerce was imploring everyone to shop locally. If that is the way she feels, then I am going out of town for my purchases

    -- Posted by albert on Tue, Oct 18, 2011, at 1:02 PM
  • This is a grant from the State of Indiana so you play by their rules........

    -- Posted by kubotafan on Tue, Oct 18, 2011, at 2:39 PM
  • So if you don't personally benefit from this, they shouldn't take the grant money? Maybe you should all go Occupy DePauw!

    -- Posted by formerres on Tue, Oct 18, 2011, at 3:55 PM
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