Wabash County named Stellar Pathways finalist

Wabash County, IN – On Tuesday, June 18, the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA) announced that Wabash County was one of four finalists for the 2024 Stellar Pathways program.

"The Stellar Pathways program empowers communities to invest in transformative improvements, and these four regions have displayed the vision required of a Stellar project,” Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch, Indiana’s Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development, said in a press release from OCRA. “All four of these teams have not only understood, but embraced the challenge of collaboration which is an important foundation for improving quality of life for Hoosiers in their communities.”

Wabash County and its three co-finalists were selected from 19 regions across the State of Indiana who submitted a letter of intent for the program.  

The Stellar Pathways program, a reimagined version of the Stellar Communities program that the City of Wabash participated in starting in 2014, encourages countywide collaboration and provides resources and funding for projects that promote countywide quality of life enhancements.  

The letter of intent, submitted to OCRA on behalf of Wabash County, outlined that the regional initiative was signed and supported by all incorporated communities in Wabash County involving the City of Wabash, North Manchester, Roann, LaFontaine and Lagro.

"We are excited to continue to bring our partners together to enhance the quality of life in Wabash County through this transformative initiative,” Tenille Zartman, president and CEO of Grow Wabash County, said. “Being a Stellar Pathways finalist will further our strong existing collaboration and commitment to progress and innovation."

The opportunities afforded to Wabash County as a finalist, as well as a potential Stellar Designee, will allow for the county to continue its forward progress to complete many of the projects and priorities outlined in the Imagine One 85 countywide strategic plan. The cooperation already in place countywide as part of Imagine One 85 made the Stellar Pathways collaborative requirement an easy one to fulfill.

“Opportunities like Stellar are exactly why you go through planning processes such as Imagine One 85,” Alex Downard, director of Imagine One 85, said. “Without the leadership of our communities, support organizations, and the private sector, opportunities such as this are not possible. The Stellar Strategic Investment Plan will allow us to advance projects and programs, founded through the work of Imagine One 85, and prepare a compelling case for why Wabash County should be awarded the Stellar Pathways Designation and receive the resources that accompany it to implement large scale initiatives moving our community forward.”

As a finalist, Wabash County will receive $50,000 to prepare a Strategic Investment Plan that will outline the county’s goals if named a Stellar Designee. The process will include feedback sessions with members of the OCRA team on the objectives outlined in the letter of intent, workshops, and ongoing consultation with OCRA to fine tune their proposals before submission on November 1, 2024.

The two Stellar Designees, which will be named in January 2025, will be allowed to apply for funding allocations from various state departments and agencies including: OCRA; Indiana Housing & Community Development Authority (IHCDA); Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA); Indiana Destination Development Corporation (IDDC); Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT); Indiana Department of Health (IDOH); and Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR).

More information about the Stellar Pathways program can be found online at www.in.gov/ocra/stellar .