More Regional Cities Projects Advance

Pictured: Signature School in downtown Evansville.

Two projects in southwest Indiana have been approved for Regional Cities Initiative funding from the Indiana Economic Development Corp. The funds will support work at The Signature School in Evansville and the Warrick County Wellness Trail.

The Economic Development Coalition of Southwest Indiana says nearly $1.5 million has been approved for quality of life improvements within the Warrick Wellness Trail Medical District by providing assistance to complete a trailway and add streetscapes. The trail runs east-to-west within the larger medical footprint of Warrick County, which is anchored by two major healthcare providers St. Mary’s and Deaconess Health Systems.

Plans at The Signature School, the state’s first charter school, calls for an expanded science center for 90 additional students. The state will invest $511,216 into the $560,688 project.

Southwest Indiana Regional Development Authority President Beth McFadin Higgins says "becoming a national brand is one of the goals of the Regional Cities plan; Indiana’s number one high school, Signature School, and the Warrick Wellness Trail are two of many assets helping to make that happen for southwest Indiana."

Southwest Indiana was selected for the statewide quality-of-place initiative on the strength of 11 proposed regional development projects in four counties that could amount to $926 million in public and private investments.