A handful of county improvements associated with the state’s Hoosier Enduring Legacy Program (HELP) have recently been approved by the Office of Rural and Community Affairs (OCRA) and are set to be presented to elected officials this month as a strategic investment plan to get the wheels in motion.

So said Franklin County Economic Development Director John Palmer at the commission’s monthly meeting Monday morning.

“The good thing is the town (Brookville) and county have three or four good projects that have been chosen not by us or elected officials but by the people,”said the president about a process that began with public input earlier this year.

There were four areas of focus: quality of place, economic strengthening, wellness/health and econnectivity. The county’s goals are two to improve quality of place and one each for connectivity and health. A fledgling program in Brookville is a business incubator to spark econ development.

“You need a place where people can start a business,”Palmer explained. “You help them learn how to run that business. Then hopefully after a year or so, they go around to someplace else (in town).

“Main Street still has empty storefronts,”he continued. “They still have people who need assistance to get started. It’s not to give people money, it’s to give them assistance based on resources they already have.”

He said the county could investigate something similar, but the immediate goals were projects centered around existing buildings and improving those. The largest undertaking will be establishing a Laurel Community Center in the former high school. Classrooms will get a makeover, filling them with opportunities like childcare (early childhood), food banks and health assistance (doctor availability, telehealth).

“We’ll likely use that to tell the state, hey we’e got new water and sewer systems and community center, how about we do something about downtown …to get more tourist business,”said Palmer.

He added the trick is finding the best way to implement the projects with the allotted money from the state as well as the local matches. Palmer wished to consolidate into a single presentation and was eyeing the Sept. 20 commissioners’ meeting as a starting point.

Brookville representative Jessica Hansel, also the town’s special projects director, said she is happy to “see the finish line”on the PreservINg Main Street façade improvement program. There has been a change to the scope of the overall work, she announced, due to one owner –of three previously approved buildings at 315, 572 and 766 Main –not committing to the 5% (per building) property owner match. 

Hansel said a public hearing will need to be conducted soon to change verbiage on contracts between the town and OCRA. The hope is to hold one-on-one meetings with the general contractors in early October to kickstart the construction phase.

Palmer asked how the reduction to seven buildings would affect the overall pool of grant money.

Hansel said that after meeting with property owners and Administrative Resources association, the idea was to have owners pay for 100% of cost overruns and distribute excess funding among the seven property owners –though there was no guarantee of a minimum amount.

The second round of the state’s Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative (READI) is underway, said Palmer. He noted some differences from the first go-round; state, not federal, money will be utilized and Indiana this time wants to see how projects are flowing together within a region to improve economics. The goal remains the same, however –improving the regional population and the workforce talent base. An 80/20 private-public split of funding is again likely.

As an example, Palmer cited the agriculture-based study on the I-74 Corridor which was to identify agribusiness-related industries with a focus on not only production but also food processing.

“Is there a food processor that takes all the corn and turns it into something?”said Palmer. “Are they here? If not, could they be?”

Member Greg Orschell said challenges are uncertain total volume, low profit margins and finding qualified ag labor. 

An invoice for roughly $5,000 was approved for Nick Lawrence (The Wheatley Group) to cover work the county economic development consultant did in the first half of the year.