Evansville Mayor Lloyd Winnecke Discusses Plans for Recently Awarded $50 Million READI Grant
The City of Evansville and the surrounding counties scored a major win earlier this week when it was announced the area would be receiving $50 million of the state's $500 million READI fund for projects designed to boost the local economy.
READI, or in its longer form, the Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative, is a program designed by the state of Indiana "to promote strategic investments that will make Indiana a magnet for talent and economic growth." The $500 million amount comes from "four consecutive record-breaking years for job and investment commitments," according to the Indiana Economic Development Corporation. To apply for funds from the initiative, the state encouraged leaders from neighboring counties and cities to work together to create proposals that detailed projects they would like to complete in their regions they believe will accomplish the goal of the initiative.
Our region, the Evansville: Southwest Region, includes not only the City of Evansville, but all of Vanderburgh County, along with Warrick, Posey, and Gibson Counties. Back in late November, a small coalition of community leaders representing our area traveled to Indianapolis to present their 58-project proposal to the READI committee, alongside representatives of the state's 16 other regions.
While each region received some portion of the $500 million, the amounts varied. Some, like our region, received $50 million, the maximum amount the committee rewarded to one region, while others received anywhere between $2 to $30 million. The complete breakdown of what each region received can be seen in the graphic below.
On Friday, Mayor Lloyd Winnecke was kind enough to take time out of his busy schedule to stop by the studio and discuss a few of the projects the grant will help cover, as well as the impact those projects will have on their areas of our region once they're complete.
You can hear the interview in its entirety in the player below.