My wife and I just booked a reservation at a new restaurant in our community – The Depot in Greenfield.
The Depot’s owners recently converted a grain elevator built in 1906 into a family restaurant that’s already quite popular. The restaurant flanks a new downtown soundstage that’s in production and other new amenities for Greenfield, many of which are results of the Stellar Communities Program awards set aside for Greenfield/Fortville in 2018.
The Greenfield Daily Reporter has more:
“For us, we got really lucky with our Stellar designation that is helping us to realize our goals and actually build some of the projects that will help us meet our vision,” Fitzwater said.
She was referring to Indiana’s Stellar Communities Program, into which a partnership among the city, county and town was accepted in 2018. The designation is providing $15 million in community improvement projects. Those funds have been matched by millions of dollars from local sources and have been joined by additional grants that have been leveraged, growing the benefits even more. They’re helping the communities achieve objectives by helping to fund developments like new outdoor amenities, housing and historical building improvements.
A partnership of several state government agencies powers the Stellar Communities Program, including the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs, Housing and Community and Development Authority, Department of Transportation and Department of Health, among others.
One product of the program is Depot Street Park in downtown Greenfield, estimated for completion next month with a grand opening slated for next June. Located along the Pennsy Trail, the park will feature public art and a stage. The project stemmed from a desire outlined in a 2013 downtown revitalization plan to expand the downtown’s footprint away from State and Main streets.
The park is also next to the historical grain elevator that recently finished a transition to The Depot restaurant and bar.
“One of the big reasons for municipal and state governments investing in public spaces like this is the private investment that it initiates, and the grain elevator is a great, great example of that,” Fitzwater said.
Another outdoor project resulting from the Stellar Communities Program is a recreational trail in Shirley. Both work toward the local Stellar partnership’s goals of improving cultural amenities and tourism, Fitzwater said.
“We hope to increase the number of attendees within our community by building great spaces that they’ll want to come to,” she said. “This in turn of course promotes economic development, social interaction opportunities and it serves our ever-growing population.”
Fortville is benefiting from the Stellar program through an award that will help fund a 58-unit apartment building at 215 S. Madison Street. The apartments will be for those making certain percentages of area median income, and the development aligns with the Stellar partnership’s goal of providing housing serving all income levels.
Matt Ottinger is director of digital media and legislative communications for the Indiana Chamber. He is also a writer for the Chamber’s award-winning BizVoice magazine and has been with the organization in this tenure since 2007. He also worked for the Chamber in 2003 before moving to Wyoming for several years.
