City requests $1 million in Community Crossings money

Poplar Street could be a popular spot for city street improvements this summer.

The City of Greencastle has requested the maximum grant sum of $1 million from the state’s Community Crossing Matching Grant Program and three of the six street segments identified in the application involve Poplar Street projects.

The street projects enumerated in the request for a Community Crossings grant, which typically is announced in April, are:

• Poplar Street from Jackson to Locust Street.

• Poplar Street from Madison to Jackson Street.

• Madison Street from Poplar to Franklin Street, including storm water improvements involving pipe and catch basins.

• Gardenside Drive from Wood Street to Hammond Drive.

• Hammond Drive from Gardenside Drive to Washington Street.

• Ohio Street from Locust to Crown Street.

All of the project areas will also include miscellaneous curb and sidewalk work, Mayor Bill Dory noted.

Additional streets are likely ticketed for improvement projects. That list, the mayor said, will be created for improvement via city funds.

With Greencastle’s population now less than 10,000 according to the 2020 Census, the city will be responsible for a 25 percent match for the project.

Launched in 2016, the Community Crossings Matching Grant Program provides funding to cities, towns and counties across Indiana to make improvements to local roads and bridges.

Community Crossings is a partnership between INDOT and Hoosier communities, both urban and rural, to invest in infrastructure projects that catalyze economic development, create jobs and strengthen local transportation networks.

Since 2016, the state has awarded more than $1 billion in state funds to support local road and bridge projects throughout Indiana.

INDOT holds two CCMG Call for Projects each year, one in January and one in July. Projects that are eligible for funding through Community Crossings include road and bridge preservation projects with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance in connection with these projects. Material costs for chip sealing and crack filing operations are also eligible for funding.