Even if the rain came down, the spirits of community and regional leaders could not have been dampened Thursday morning during the groundbreaking ceremony for the Washington/Daviess County Commons.
The $3.1 million project, located in the heart of downtown Washington, that will feature a pavilion and stage, has been in the works for a number of years.
“This is incredibly exciting,” said Daviess County Economic Development Executive Director Bryant Niehoff, adding talks on the project started when former mayor Joe Wellman was still in office. “It’s taken some time and we are finally here.”
Funded through a variety of public and private funds. Daviess County pledged $750,000 toward the multi-use facility that will feature a market pavilion, stage and event pavilion among other amenities. The Knights of Columbus contributed $300,000. The city of Washington pitched in $2 million toward the effort and the Regional Opportunities Initiative, commonly known as ROI, pitched in $200,000 to help prepare the site for the future structures.
ROI President and CEO Tina Peterson said five years ago ROI launched the Ready Communities program to help empower communities to grow and develop quality of place projects. The Washington/Daviess County Commons project checks off all those boxes.
“The Commons project, is a perfect example of what we hoped to achieve,” said Peterson. “While ROI’s foundational funding laid the groundwork for the Commons, Daviess County’s collaborative approach has given this project the vision, momentum and energy to reach the finish line. This will be a place where people will gather and be a great part of the everyday life.”
Washington Mayor Dave Rhoads said when he took office, there were talks about three things: housing, Old U.S. 50 and downtown. With work started on the Commons and the launch of a new Discover Downtown Washington group that recently became part of the Indiana Main Street program, those three items can be scratched off the list.
“We expect to see thousands of visitors and residents take part in a broad array of activities that will draw people to Washington, especially as we see continued growth in the coming microelectronics campus in the WestGate@Crane Technology Park,” said Rhoads.
Daviess County Council President Tony Duncheon admitted he wasn’t so sure the Commons would ever become a reality.
“It was touch and go there for awhile,” he said adding a project like this one will be beneficial to not only current county residents but future ones as well.
On any given day, Duncheon said around 4,600 people come to work in Daviess County from other areas. This project, along with new housing, may be steps in the right direction to get those workers to make a move.
“For our city, county and region to advance in a highly competitive environment, quality of place and quality of life issues must support workforce development and employee retention and attraction,” Duncheon said. “The Commons project represents a broad spectrum of positive collaboration and commitment from many partners to achieve this.
Taber Owens Construction Group will be doing the work to transform the spot that was once a parking lot and older buildings into what will become the centerpiece of downtown Washington.
Denny Spinner, former Huntingburg mayor and current Office of Rural and Community Affairs executive director said Indiana Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch calls rural Indiana, “the next great economic frontier.”
“She tells us that every week,” said Spinner. “This solid quality of life project will positively impact the entire region and support overall rural life in Indiana.”
Dean Merder, president and CEO of Truescripts and Neil Dauby, president and CEO of German American Bank also announced the roles their respective companies will play in the new facility. Both business gave $250,000 to become corporate sponsors of structures.
“The new German American Bank Stage and TrueScripts Market Pavilion will be key features and the site of many activities within the Commons,” said Niehoff, adding a facility corporate sponsor for an event pavilion is currently being sought.
Dauby said it’s an important company value of German American to give back to the communities they serve.
“The German American team is excited to see this important project move into the construction phase and we count it a privilege to be able to support Washington and the entire Daviess County community with our sponsorship of the German American Bank Stage,” he said.
“The Commons will serve as an attractive centerpiece for Washington and Daviess County both now and for many years to come. Given that our headquarters is here and the fact that our team members largely live in the area, our sponsorship of the pavilion reflects our commitment to the growth of the community and its quality of life,” said Merder.
The groundbreaking also served as the formal launch of the Our Common Heritage Fundraising Campaign. The campaign will add funding for event programs, amenities, facility sustainability and more. To make a donation to the campaign go online to https://ourcf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/create/fund?funit_id=1264 or contact Our Community Foundation at 812-698-5413. Donations are tax deductible.
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