Last night the Huntingburg City Council took it’s turn in passing a resolution to commit funding toward the Midstate Corridor Study.
Estimated around 7 million dollars, the study is the next phase to move the project forward which will see a bypass built for Dubois County, connecting Interstate 64 north to Interstate 69.
The Cities of Jasper, Huntingburg, and the Dubois County Council are expected to cover 3 and a half of the 7 million for the study over the next 3 years, while the rest will be covered by private donations.
While the exact cost of the study is only an estimate, Huntingburg is expected to chip in around 10% of the cost, currently estimated around 350,000 dollars.
In addition, due to projects the city is undertaking in 2019, Huntingburg will not have to dedicate funds until 2020 and 2021.
The 10% was agreed upon by the communities in the RDA, based on the EDIT redistribution formula. If fully funded, an environmental study will be conducted to determine the path of the interstate.
Different from past attempts, the Midstate Corridor will be given a project number, which will put it in line for federal dollars. This process is the first of its kind for the state, featuring local governments and private entities coming to together to get this project done.
Once more, the communities part of the RDA agreement with INDOT have veto power keeping control of the project in Dubois County. The County Council is expected to soon make a decision on their part of the funding which is expected to be at about 50% of the 3.5 million dollars.
