Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb visited La Crosse Wednesday to celebrate a Next Level Trails 4 award for the construction of a trail segment between La Crosse and North Judson.
Governor Holcomb and Indiana Department of Natural Resources Director Dan Bortner announced 14 communities will receive a combined $31.2 million for 28 miles of new trail as a part of the fourth round of the Next Level Trails program.
A $180 million grant program, Next Level Trails (NLT) is the largest infusion of trails funding in state history. In rounds one, two, and three, a total of $120 million was awarded to 73 communities to build 190 miles of trails throughout Indiana. In January, an additional $29.5 million was awarded to acquire and begin development of the 62.3-mile Monon South Trail.
In the fourth round, grant projects all across the state were awarded. The award announcement was made in La Crosse where Governor Holcomb visited. The La Porte County town was awarded a fourth-round grant of $2.1 million to build the Grand Kankakee Marsh Trail, a 3.1-mile trail that is part of the Great American Rail-Trail, which is a planned route from Washington, D.C. to Washington state organized by the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (RTC). Approximately 56 percent of the Great American’s 214 planned miles across Indiana are complete.
The fourth-round grant recipients are contributing $15.5 million in matching value, resulting in a $46.7 million total investment in trails. The program requires a minimum 20 percent project match, which can include monetary contributions, land value, and in-kind donations of materials and labor.
Including the newest projects in the fourth round, NLT has awarded grants to 89 different projects across the state. Of the now 89 projects, 32 are complete, adding more than 97 miles of new trail for Hoosiers to access.
