Mayor Courtney: Madison will benefit from $50 million READI grant

Madison’s RDA, Our Southern Indiana, funded at the top level.

                                                                           (PHOTO PROVIDED)

Madison, Indiana (December 16, 2021) - Our Southern Indiana, the Regional Development Authority (RDA) that includes the City of Madison and Jefferson County, has been awarded $50 million in state READI grant funds. The announcement was made this week. The five-county Our Southern Indiana region was one of only five regions that received the maximum amount from the initiative. The funds will be used for multiple projects covering a wide range of areas from infrastructure to parks within Jefferson, Clark, Floyd, Scott, and Washington counties. “I was thrilled to participate as part of the presentation committee for our region’s READI grant proposal,” said Mayor Bob Courtney. “It’s exciting to see Madison’s RDA, Our Southern Indiana, funded at the top level.” The Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative (READI) was launched by Gov. Eric Holcomb as a bold, transformational initiative to distribute state funds to promote strategic investments on a regional level. Proposed projects for the Madison area focus on destination and workforce development such as an amphitheater, gateway improvements, new housing, improving the Mulberry Street arts corridor, restoring the Ohio Theater, completing our neighborhood market, development of a veterinary teaching center at Hanover College in partnership with Ivy Tech-Madison, and the Hanover-Madison Connector Trail. “This $50 million investment will go a long way toward our shared goals of improving quality of place, public safety, housing, infrastructure and more,” said Mayor Courtney. “I’m looking forward to the work ahead and will continue to push for READI grant funds to be put to the best use for the City of Madison. Our local plans were developed by the Mayor’s Office which included Nicole Schell and Alyssa Foltz.” This past spring, Indiana counties, cities and towns were encouraged to coordinate and selfidentify their proposed regions. Over the summer, each of 17 RDAs developed plans to outline the current state of their respective regions, their vision for the future and a game plan to invest in growth. All regions received funding, with $500 million in total being distributed.