State Approves $30 Million for Northeast Indiana Strategic Development

Release courtesy of NEI

Fort Wayne, IN. __  The State of Indiana Budget Committee approved the $30 million grant for programs designed to grow population, wages, and credential attainment in the 11-county region of Northeast Indiana.

The State Budget Committee voted Friday to approve the $30 million grant from the state of Indiana to the Northeast Indiana Strategic Development Commission (SDC) that was appropriated by the General Assembly in 2023. With this milestone, the SDC expects to begin considering a higher volume of requests aligned with its strategic plan.

“We are profoundly grateful to the State for entrusting the Northeast Indiana Strategic Development Commission (SDC) as stewards of these resources by resourcing the aggressive 5-year plan our region spent nearly two years assembling,” said Ron Turpin, Chair of the Strategic Development Commission. “As the only region in Indiana to have a plan, this support will enable us to further amplify the remarkable momentum across the 11 counties within the SDC membership.”

Recently, the Northeast Indiana Strategic Development Commission (SDC) partnered with the Northeast Indiana Regional Development Authority to launch a project intake portal to solicit innovative project and programming ideas designed to grow population, wages and credential attainment in the 11-county region of Northeast Indiana.

Through the portal at www.neindiana.com/sdc, groups can submit project ideas for review as a first step to applying for funds.

The Strategic Development Commission is acting as the steward for a $30 million appropriation from the State of Indiana. Funding recommendations will be made on a rolling basis.

The SDC was mandated by the Legislature to prepare a five-year strategic plan (with the initial plan spanning 2023–2028) that aligns regional and state resources to accomplish these objectives. It serves as the conduit for at least $30 million in state funding to be deployed in the region annually. The plan is publicly available for download here.