Southern Indiana Business Report
BLOOMINGTON – Wininger Construction has been awarded a $900,000 Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative (READI) Grant from the Indiana Uplands READI Steering Committee, Regional Opportunity Initiatives (ROI) Board of Directors, and the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC).
Funds from this grant will be used to build infrastructure (water/sewer) for the Westcott neighborhood, a home development in Greene County. The development is in close proximity to WestGate@Crane Technology Park, where a November 2022 announcement was made about the construction of a microelectronics facility that will add about 550 jobs to the local economy.
Westcott will help add to the supply of housing needed to meet the demand of workers moving to the region.
Third-generation Indiana builder
“We are very grateful to have been awarded this READI grant,” said Tom Wininger, president of Wininger Construction. “This award will allow us to continue to develop and build housing and home ownership options for the growing workforce serving the South Central Indiana Innovation Corridor. We believe that by expanding the opportunity to buy newly built homes affordable to the area’s workforce, this will encourage a path for more to realize the dream of home ownership.”
Tom Wininger, president of Wininger Construction
Bloomington-based Wininger Construction has been developing and building South Central Indiana neighborhoods for over 80 years. Founded nearly a century ago by carpenter Henry Wininger, this third-generation Indiana family business specializes in residential/commercial development and construction and today is led by grandson Tom Wininger.
Westcott neighborhood near WestGate
This new neighborhood of modern lifestyle paired ranch and townhomes is adjacent to the WestGate@Crane Technology Park. The planned neighborhood of 120 new Westcott homes is designed to help meet the residential needs of a growing workforce in the area today and for the immediate future. Increasing the area’s supply of owner-occupied housing is a vital component of the Ready Housing program funding to meet the goals of the READI “Region on the Rise” plan.
READI funds enhance innovation, talent and place
In 2021, READI was launched by Indiana Gov. Holcomb and the IEDC with $500 million in state appropriations to promote strategic investments to make Indiana a magnet for talent and economic growth.
Seventeen regions, including the 11-county Indiana Uplands region, developed plans outlining strategies focused on improving the quality of place, quality of life, and quality of opportunity. To help achieve these goals, the IEDC awarded READI funds to accelerate the implementation of regional development plans and the programs and projects identified to catalyze economic and population growth.
The Indiana Uplands region (Brown, Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Greene, Lawrence, Martin, Monroe, Orange, Owen, and Washington counties) was awarded $30 million in READI funds to advance projects and programs identified in its “Region on the Rise” plan.