Younger Life Plaza 618 Receives $50,000 Grant From IOTD and OCRA

Younger Life Plaza 618 Receives $50,000 Grant From IOTD and OCRA

Lt. Governor Eric Holcomb announced today the Indiana Office of Tourism Development (IOTD) and Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA) awarded four communities funding for quality of place initiatives through the Place Based Investment Fund (PBIF).

The City of LaPorte will receive grant funds of $50,000 to fund Younger Life Plaza 618,

“The Placed Based Investment Fund is a terrific partnership opportunity between state government and local communities,” said Lt. Governor Holcomb. “High quality of life is a trademark of Indiana communities all across the state, and local leaders know better than anyone how to enhance and promote their appeal. We look forward to continued collaboration with the winners and are excited to see the results of their PBIF awards.”

The PBIF program, now in its fourth year, is a competitive matching grant program administered as a partnership between OCRA and IOTD. The grant program supports community and economic development projects across the state. Initiatives that promote quality of life, improve tourism experiences and develop multi-purpose gathering places are specifically targeted for the grant.

“The new venues and gathering places that will soon be built because of the PBIF grant will enhance the vibrancy and destination qualities of these communities,” said Mark Newman, IOTD Executive Director. “This fund was designed to reward creativity and community ingenuity and the winning projects are terrific examples of those qualities.”

“The Place Based Investment Fund is an essential partnership and a vital way that OCRA fulfills its mission of improving quality of place in Indiana’s rural communities,” said Bill Konyha, OCRA Executive Director. “The parks and community gathering facilities developed through this fund will serve and benefit Indiana rural communities for years to come.”

The intended recipients of these grants are performance-based quality of place initiatives that maximize investment and collaboration by local governments, economic development organizations, convention and visitor bureaus, Indiana Main Street organizations, public or private schools and community foundations. The aim of the program is to provide funding opportunities for unique projects that seek to create jobs and further establish a diverse local, regional and state economy. For more information on PBIF, visit http://in.gov/ocra/PBIF.

For more information on the Younger Life Plaza 618 project, check out our coverage of the progress made and the fundraising efforts being made