Vigo County council adopts riverfront master plan resolution over two dissenting votes

The Vigo County Council voted 5-2 to approve a resolution adopting a Riverfront Master Plan as a guiding document during its April meeting.

Lori Danielson, who presented the plan on behalf of local stakeholders and project partners, told the council “I can tell you it's $590,000 total for the plan, but $250,000 that was in kind from the Army Corps of Engineers.” She described the plan as a long-term, 200-page strategic master plan intended to attract private investment and guide redevelopment of roughly a 7,000-acre study area along the Wabash River.

The plan’s supporters said adoption would help the project team pursue grant and private funding because applicants and funders “want to see that there's support at a local level,” according to county legal counsel Michael Wright. Wright added that the resolution is not a contract obligating the county to fund future projects and that “any specific project would have to come back before you” if county taxpayer dollars were requested.

Council debate centered on two issues: whether a yes vote would commit county funds and whether council members had sufficient time to review the full plan. Councilman Randy Gentry and Councilman Steve Ellis voted no, both saying they had not read the roughly 500-page master plan. Councilman Ellis said he supported the concept but could not “represent the taxpayers” without reviewing the document.

Supporters, including Councilwoman Vicky Wager and Councilman Brad Anderson, said adoption would be a nonbinding affirmation of local support and that any future funding requests would require separate approvals. Danielson said the plan includes an implementation schedule spanning 0–2, 3–5 and 5–10 years, district-specific recommendations, and more than 40 potential funding sources of local, state, private foundation and federal origin.

Implementation details Danielson highlighted included recommendations to rename First Street to Riverside Drive, connect trails and pedestrian infrastructure to improve access, encourage mixed-use development and preserve historic buildings, and study three focus areas she called the Gateway District, Community District and River District. She said the project team received more than 1,500 survey responses and convened over 100 attendees at information sessions.

The motion to adopt the resolution was made by Councilwoman Vicky Wager and seconded by Councilman Brad Anderson. Roll-call votes were: Randy Gentry, no; Nancy Alsop, aye; Brenda Wilson, aye; Steve Ellis, no; Vicky Wager, aye; Brad Anderson, aye; David Thompson, aye. The motion passed 5-2.

The council and presenters agreed the resolution, as written, is intended to serve as a guiding document and to strengthen grant applications and private investment outreach; presenters and legal counsel repeatedly stated it does not, by itself, commit the county to provide funding.

Questions and next steps included forming an implementation team, continuing property-owner discussions and a public rollout scheduled for April 23 at the Hohman Center. Danielson told the council she would seek formal adoption by both the county and the city to improve grant competitiveness.

Votes at the meeting recorded the passage of the resolution; the council did not approve any funding as part of the resolution vote.

What’s next: presenters said they will pursue an implementation team, continue community outreach and coordinate with other riverfront projects to pursue grant funding; any request for county dollars would return to the council for separate approval.