Letter: Keep Jasper strong

In 2022, Jasper was the winner of the Strong Town Contest. I nominated Jasper in the contest because I believe that Jasper is a great place to live, work, and raise a family. Here is what the Strong Town organization wrote about Jasper after we won.

A place that gets things done.

Nestled in the rolling hills and wooded forests of Southern Indiana is Jasper, a town with a budding population of about 17,000 in 2022. Jasper won the annual Strong Towns contest for its dedication to community fiscal strength and for its unique collaboration between government departments and local entities. Through conscious and deliberate collaboration with daily focus on a city-wide comprehensive plan, the city of Jasper is a place where “things get done”.

Jasper is in the process of developing an updated comprehensive plan and I think citizens and businesses in Jasper need to be reminded that our focus should always be on quality of place and quality of life. The reason I say this is that I am so concerned that some people continue to think the Mid-States Corridor is needed for Jasper to grow. But research has proven over time that building new roads and highway bypasses around small and medium size towns does not result in economic growth and instead puts a strain on the community. Economist and Professor Michael Hicks continue to state that roads do not bring economic growth to a community, it is quality of place. Chuck Marohn, former transportation engineer and founder of Strong Towns, has written several articles, with research, that building new roads and highways does not result in any measurable economic development.

The reason I, along with many others living in Jasper and Dubois County, do not want to see the Mid-States Corridor happen is because it will destroy the fabric of our community. We have a unique, vibrant community, and we should be focused on marketing how great Jasper is in order support our current businesses and attract new ones. We do not need a new highway for that. 

Some people want to cite traffic and congestion issues. What I experience is an occasional line up of vehicles at a couple times of the day, morning traffic going to work and afternoon traffic leaving work. I may look at it differently than some because I consider that’s part of a vibrant town that we should be happy about. What periodic traffic back-up we do have is nothing compared to the congestion in places like Evansville and Bloomington and Indianapolis.

Mark Nowotarski
Dubois County