$200,000 will go towards furthering program in Loogootee, Vevay and Washington

Lt. Governor Becky Skillman today announced new advances in the Real Estate Capital Access Program (RECAP) aimed at redeveloping commercial corridors  throughout rural Indiana. RECAP is a joint effort between Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority (IHCDA), the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA), and the Indiana Office of Tourism Development. Through the Indiana Association for Community and Economic Development (IACED), three RECAP communities will receive assistance to help promote real estate and business development in the main corridors of the selected cities.

"The RECAP program gives us a tool to help communities revitalize their main streets," said Lt. Gov. Becky Skillman. "This project is a collaborative effort, and we are already seeing results in the small towns involved. A vibrant and welcoming main street serves as a community's front door. By investing in these corridors, we can attract visitors, residents and businesses, and add to the community's overall economic health."

IACED was awarded $200,000 through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Community Development Initiative to complement the RECAP activities in the communities of Loogootee, Vevay and Washington. Each of the communities involved in the RECAP program were considered for the grant money, but three were selected on the basis of demographics, economic health and overall need. The USDA grant money will be used to help provide technical assistance and promote real estate and business development, as well as facilitate façade renovations.

"Economic development in rural communities is vital to our state's overall health, and this new allotment of grant money will help to build capacity in the RECAP communities selected, as well as allow for additional main street projects that might not otherwise have been possible," said Andy Fraizer, Executive Director of IACED. "We are very pleased to be partnering with these communities and collaborating on the RECAP initiatives."

With RECAP's flexible funding, developers can put commercial space on the ground floor to encourage business development, and living units on the upper floors to create homes. The cities of Wabash, Vevay, and Logansport were selected for the first round of the pilot and Columbia City,  Frankfort, Loogootee, Rising Sun, and Washington were included in the second. The communities involved in the RECAP program have made progress in the transformations of their main commercial corridors and have more plans on the horizon.

In downtown Loogootee, many of the building facades have been replaced and the town is moving forward with predevelopment work for several projects. Vevay has focused on the renovation of the Grisard Building, which will have a variety of potential uses including commercial, museum, and public space. The new exterior of the building has already made a significant different to the town's main corridor. In Washington, the first project includes substantial renovations to a large historic building on Main Street, and predevelopment activities have begun on several other proposed projects.

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