Mid-State Corridor moving forward; $7 million in private and public funding sought
Officials estimate the MidState Corridor could cost $300 million to construct but commitments for $7 million are needed to get things moving forward in 2018.
A group of local business owners and public officials has been pushing for the construction of the interstate-grade roadway designed to provide a better connection from the Ohio River in Spencer County through Dubois County to Interstate 69 since 2011. The connection is necessary, according to the group, to facilitate economic growth as well as attract new business to the region.
A study completed by Cambridge Systematics, Inc. in 2012 determined the economic impact on the region to range from $2.4 billion to $3.2 billion over 20 years after its completion.
The 2017 passage of an Indiana Senate bill authored by Senator Mark Messmer and then-Representative Mike Braun allowed the creation of public-private partnerships and regional development authorities to leverage federal highway funds for major infrastructure projects. Through the new bill, Dubois County has partnered with Spencer County to create a regional development authority to work on the Midstate Corridor and acquire federal FASTLANE dollars.
The regional development authority board is comprised of Mark Schroeder, chairman and CEO of German American Bancorp; attorney Scott Blazey; Barry Day, president and CEO of Superior Ag; Sue Ellspermann, president of Ivy Tech Community College; and Ken Mulzer Jr., president of Mulzer Crushed Stone. The members will serve four-year terms on the RDA.
The group is working on creating a memorandum of understanding with the Indiana Department of Transportation. The memorandum will allow the local RDA to be at the table and have input in the decision-making process with INDOT officials as they plan the route and construction of the highway.
Under the memorandum, the RDA is tasked with raising $7 million to facilitate the Phase I study that is needed to bring the group’s plans to INDOT for consideration. Attorney Bill Kaiser, representing the Midstate Corridor group, explained to the Dubois County Council Monday night that the $7 million would be split between private businesses and public entities including Dubois County, Jasper and Huntingburg. Each sector’s portion would be about $3.5 million to be paid over the next three years.
The $7 million is considered part of the local match needed to facilitate the federal investment, Kaiser added.
He told the council that the private portion of the funding is being solicited and letters of commitment to the funding have already been received from businesses.
Councilman Craig Greulich questioned whether the local citizens would have input into where the road gets built since they are putting up local public funds for the project.
Kaiser pointed out that although there will be matching funds from the county, 90 percent of the funding will come from federal highway dollars. “We will have to abide by the federal guidelines,” he said. “The thought process is that if the RDA is putting up money up front to fund this, then we should have a strong ability to have input with respect with how that roadway (is built).”
The study would cover the existing improved section of U.S. 231 from the Ohio River all the way to the I-69 connection.
According to Kaiser, the group and officials working on the project would like to see work begin on the study by the fourth quarter of 2018. From there, a tentative timeline has the study completed by 2021. Then, Phase II studies would be conducted from 2021 to 2023—these would prioritize the Dubois County section as well as fiscal issues.
Once that is complete, according to the memorandum of understanding, INDOT will push for the project to be placed on the Federal Highway Administration’s planned project list so it can receive federal funding. The road design and property acquisition would begin around 2024 with the road construction to start in 2026. The estimated completion is around 2028, according to the group’s projections.
Through the memorandum of understanding, the RDA is given the authority to choose the contractor for the Phase I study as well as participate in the planning and meetings with INDOT regarding the project. County and city engineers will also be given a seat at the table for the project management team.
The RDA and members of the private group that has been pushing for the highway will meet with Gov. Eric Holcomb and INDOT Commissioner Joe McGuinness on May 14. They will present the memorandum to them at that meeting.
“Dubois County is getting a lot of attention for the initiative it is taking,” Kaiser said. “Not only did the law get passed (to create the RDA) but we are taking local action to make sure that (highway) comes to fruition.”
Here are conceptual maps of the route.
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