GREENFIELD — It’s been five years since the City of Greenfield, the Town of Fortville and Hancock County teamed up to win the multi-million-dollar Stellar Communities grant, which gave them five years to use $15 million in state funding to enhance their communities.
With that window coming to a close, the partnering communities are celebrating all the great enhancements the grant has made possible in a relatively short amount of time.
At the Greenfield City Council meeting Dec. 13, planning director Joanie Fitzwater shared what a big impact the Stellar Designation has made for the city and its Stellar partners.
She said among the crown jewels for Greenfield is the award-winning Depot Street Park and Amphitheater, which has drawn tens of thousands of people to its summer concert series and other events since it was dedicated in June 2021.
The popular park was but a 1.2-acre patch of grass just three years ago, said Fitzwater, which shows just how big of an impact Stellar grants can make.
Greenfield, Fortville and Hancock County teamed up in 2017 to pursue the Stellar grant, dubbing its collaborative as the Health & Heritage Region.
Since winning the award in 2018, the communities have each made their mark with their portion of the grant, in addition to local funding.
Throughout the region, Stellar grants have leveraged approximately $48 million in new community assets, said Fitzwater.
“Attaining a Stellar Designation isn’t possible without regional collaboration,” added Greenfield’s mayor, Chuck Fewell, who recognized many of the city’s Stellar partners at last week’s council meeting.
“We want to take this moment to extend a heartfelt thank you to these local sponsors and partners who have come alongside the city and the region,” he said before presenting Distinguished Service Awards to representatives from Hancock Regional Hospital, Hancock County Tourism and the Community Foundation of Hancock County.
The tourism commission contributed $100,000 that was shared between Greenfield, Fortville and Shirley for Stellar placemaking projects and marketing to attract locals and tourists.
Hancock Regional Hospital donated $60,000 and offered ongoing support to Talitha Koum Women’s Recovery Home, which received Stellar funding for training and marketing.
Fitzwater also credited the Community Foundation of Hancock County.
“The foundation has been a big part of the day-to-day actions of the Stellar interlocal team, making grant donations for various projects throughout the years, being a strong representative for Shirley, managing our community sponsorship funds, our construction mitigation grant, and hosting a Stellar endowment for ongoing maintenance of our quality of place projects,” she said.
The Greenfield City Council also dedicated $3.5 million to support Stellar-funded projects.
Fitzwater said the investment is paying off big-time for the city, with enhancements that will serve its residents and guests for generations to come.
Depot Street Park has received multiple accolades throughout the state, she said, including a Monumental Award from the Indiana Chamber, A Placemaking Award from Association of Indiana Communities, and an Exceptional Facility Design Award from Indiana Park & Recreation Association.
The Stellar grant also enabled the city to do more than $1.3 million in façade restorations to historic buildings, including assisting with the restoration of the grain elevator which is now the home to The Depot restaurant.
Stellar funds were also contributed to a new mobile green room for performing artists, a Depot Street brick repair project and construction of the Brandywine Trail that connects the Pennsy Trail with Brandywine Park.
The funds were also used to create the new Lizabuth Anne’s Kitchen and parking lot at the Riley Boyhood Home & Museum, and Michael’s Inclusive Playground, a play space for children of all abilities.
Fitzwater said a couple more Stellar projects are still in progress and scheduled to be complete next year, including the creation of The Riley Trail. The trail will create a one-mile loop around downtown Greenfield, featuring various spots to stop and learn about the city’s history and culture.
In Fortville, Stellar projects include the development of Madison Lofts, a workforce and senior housing initiative, as well as a multi-million dollar “road diet” initiative designed to enhance safety and ease congestion along the town’s main thoroughfares.
In Shirley, funding from the Stellar grant and the Community Foundation of Hancock County enabled the town to create a paved one-mile trail leading into the park, as well as park enhancements.
Andy Ebbert, a member of the Shirley Community Visionaries group that oversaw the project, said the improvements would never have been possible without the help of Stellar funding.
“We were looking at maybe doing some gravel trails but this catapulted things to the next level. We were able to create something we never really considered an option because of the funding we had available,” he said.
Stellar funding not only enabled the town to create the trail but to upgrade the park’s softball diamond and tennis and basketball courts, as well as enhancing the park’s drainage and parking and adding a few amenities like benches and water fountains.
“It’s made a huge impact in how much use the park gets, with more and more people coming in there and experiencing it,” said Ebbert, adding that Stellar-funded enhancements have also paved the way for ongoing park improvements.
“We’re looking at adding a pickleball court when we have the ability, and are hoping to add a second baseball diamond, softball diamond and possibly some soccer practice fields,” said Ebbert, who also hopes to add more signage about the town’s history along the trail.
“Without Stellar none of this would have been possible,” he said.
