Reply to each discussion post. 150 words or more

Alyson Keaton

DB 1: Economic Development Project Attachment

Collapse

.

The Terre Haute bypass, also known as State Road 641, was opened for use in January 2017. This road was first discussed in 1989 when the City of Terre Haute and Vigo County approached the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) about building a road on the East side of the County to relieve congestion along the U.S. 41 corridor in Terre Haute (Indiana Department of Transportation, n.d.). In 1990, the West Central Indiana Economic Development District included it in their long term plans (Greninger, 2014). INDOT conducted a feasibility assessment and determined that the project was needed. It was included in the Indiana State Highway Improvement Program in 1991 and an engineer’s report for the bypass was completed in 1995 (Indiana Department of Transportation, n.d.). The $150 million project took 13 years to build the 6.2 mile bypass (Greninger, 2017).

“And it will be said: "Build up, build up, prepare the road! Remove the obstacles out of the way of my people."” (Isaiah 57:14, New International Version). This verse captures the thoughts of the politicians involved in the planning for this road. They believed that this road would increase the region’s economic growth by encouraging new development along the road and allowing easier access to the Vigo County Industrial Parks located on the south end of the County. Terre Haute Mayor Duke Bennett stated “This new corridor will definitely help the Terre Haute economy by allowing for new developments. I look forward to seeing the economic impact for our future” (McGowan, 2017).

The six phases of planning as described in Leigh & Blakely (2017) can be seen in this project. However, they may not have always been completed in order. The City and County appears to have completed phases 2 and 3 first. They developed their goals of relieving congestion and increasing traffic to the South end of the County (phase 2). They also determined that their local development project would be to build the bypass (phase 3). When INDOT became involved in the project, they completed phase 1 and phases 4 to 6. They started by gathering data of the area, identifying the project structure, specifying the project details, and preparing and implementing the construction schedule.

The final phase (6) of the project was the most time consuming. Construction began in the summer of 2003 and was designed and contracted in phases. However, it was not expected to take 13 years. Many delays occurred due to contractor issues, permitting, and environmental mitigation issues. Funding was provided entirely by the State of Indiana and stayed within budget even with the delays (Greninger, 2013).

This project seems to be entirely government led. There is no evidence that any citizen or not-for-profit organizations were involved in the planning of the bypass. There is also no evidence that any citizen or groups opposed the planning or construction. This seems to be a great achievement of the City and County development teams. It also helps support that the need for a bypass was understood by the Community.

The desired outcomes of the bypass were to relieve congestion on U.S. Hwy 41, increase development along the new corridor and to allow easier access to the Industrial Parks. Impact Evaluation is the assessment of the difference the intervention is making to the society (McDonald, 2016). While it may be too soon to complete the Impact Evaluation, some positive differences have been seen. New businesses are starting to be built along the corridor and employees are complementing the ease they can get to work in the Industrial Parks (Adams, 2016). While it can’t be directly connected to the new road, new industry has committed to building within the Vigo County Industrial Parks (Greninger, 2018).

I believe the bypass around the East side of Terre Haute is making a positive impact on the community, workers and businesses. In turn, this construction will help improve the economic development on the East and South sides of Vigo County.

References

Adams, C. (2016, December 1). Business Ready for Impact of 641 Bypass.

Mywabashvalley.com. Retrieved from https://www.mywabashvalley.com/news/business-ready-for-impact-of-641-bypass/614423708

Greninger, H. (2014, March 30). Still a long road: Completion of Terre Haute’s $150 million

bypass almost 3 years away. Tribune-Star. Retrieved from https://indianaeconomicdigest.com/main.asp?SectionID=31&subsectionID=237&articleID=74109

Greninger, H. (2017, January 20). Indiana 641 bypass finally, entirely open. Tribune-Star.

Retrieved from https://www.tribstar.com/news/local_news/indiana-bypass-finally-entirely-open/article_1cadee4e-bf50-5d13-b618-7187786f6f67.html

Greninger, H. (2018, September 10). Vigo County successful in landing jobs, says Terre Haute

economic development official. Tribune-Star. Retrieved from https://indianaeconomicdigest.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=93435&SectionID=31&SubSectionID=285&S=1

Indiana Department of Transportation. (n.d.). State Road 641 Terre Haute Bypass. Retrieved

from https://www.in.gov/indot/projects/2388.htm

Leigh, N., & Blakely, E. (2017). Planning Local Economic Development: Theory and Practice

(6th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.

McDonald, O. (2016). Collaborative Stewardship: Analytical Approach to Improving Quality of

Life in Communities. United States of America: Grace House Publishing.

McGowan, D. (2017, January 23). High-Profile Bypass Open in Wabash Valley. Inside Indiana

Business. Retrieved from http://www.insideindianabusiness.com/story/34320559/high-profile-bypass-open-in-wabash-valley