The Town of Culver is taking the next steps in preparation for what they hope will lead them to being named the winner of Indiana’s Stellar Communities program.
That program is designed to provide state resources and planning help for grant applications and project development. Culver applied earlier this year, and has experienced some recent success, being named a finalist for small population communities.
Culver Town Manager Jonathan Leist says he has contacted three engineering firms to help them best use the $10-thousand planning grants already awarded by the state of Indiana. There are a few requirements though.
“Basically to develop the Master Plan graphics and maps for all of the projects listed in our Strategic Investment Plan, complete and review preliminary cost estimates for all of the projects, and combine all of that into a clear Strategic Investment Plan that adheres to the Stellar Communities program requirements,” says Leist.
That booklet must be assembled by the July 1st deadline for the second round of applications. It will contain about 100 pages of material surrounding the projects being listed in the application. That deadline, however, will be followed by a state tour of the community later that month.
Leist says most communities are spending more than the grant in their planning.
“The planning grant is kind of to get you started,” says Leist. “They told us to expect $20-thousand or more. But also it depends on the size of your project, and our proposal is a little more modest than what some of the other communities are submitting.”
Apart from giving the projects additional specifics, the Town of Culver is also expected to develop an audited financial plan for how to support the projects they’re proposing.
A draft budget for the matching requirements is estimated at $874-thousand in both public and private dollars. The Stellar Communities steering committee will continue work on the project leading up to the July 1st application deadline.
