By BOB SHRALUKA
WZBD.com
It’s not going to happen soon, but it’s going to happen: a downtown Decatur eyesore is in line for a major upgrade and a new tenant.
Decatur City Council recently approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Adams County Economic Development Commission (ACEDC) which will bring new life to the Faurote building in the heart of downtown.
The City of Decatur has obtained a READI grant of $290,000 to put toward the upgrade of the building at 138 N. Second St.
The ACEDC, through its own funds and some private donations, will be adding “somewhere around $600,000” to the project, according to ACEDC Executive Director Colton Bickel.
“We will know more about how much we will need when we get through the bid process,” Bickel continued. “We’re getting the bids (specs) ready now.”
Once all the work is completed, the ACEDC will be moving in and setting up its office in the building, Bickel said. The office is currently located in the Adams County Service Complex at Third and Jefferson streets.
The ACEDC will own the two-story building and will lease an unattached portion in the back to the city, which will use it for much-needed storage.
“This is going to make for a nice building downtown,” Mayor Dan Rickord said.
2021 START: The condition of the building first came to light around three years ago. It had been deteriorating for years and had become a safety problem.
In a special meeting in late November of 2021, building owner Paul Faurote agreed to deed the property to the city at no charge.
A lengthy city check inside and outside the building determined that it was extremely unsafe.
Council later spent over $150,000 to have Limberlost Construction Co. of Geneva secure the building. That included braces over an alley between the structure and the building to the south, which houses Monster Pizza.
READI TO GO: Indiana launched the Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative (READI) program in 2021.
The program allocated $500 million to 17 regions that represent all of Indiana’s 92 counties.
In 2022 alone, over 350 READI projects were proposed across the state of Indiana, with a focus on three key areas: Quality of Life, Quality of Place, and Quality of Opportunity.