Carol Johnson | Southern Indiana Business Report
MITCHELL – The City of Mitchell has been awarded $500,000 in federal grant funding to demolish a building deemed unsafe on Main Street.
Vacant for about the past 15 years, the downtown structure has served as a bank, dry cleaners and later was the headquarters of the Mitchell Police Department.
Mitchell Mayor Don Caudell said the city had explored whether the building could be renovated and saved for a new use before making the decision to tear it down.
“We showed it to Indiana Landmarks and Radius Indiana to see what could be done,” Caudell said. “A structural engineering study was done. It doesn’t look that bad from the outside but the inside was really bad.”
Without a feasible option, the city applied for a grant from Indiana’s Office of Community and Rural Affairs, which administers a Blight Clearance Program.
Once the building is razed and the site cleaned up, it will become a public green space. Since it is located next to Friendship Park, it will allow the city to expand the green space that’s already there.
Demolition likely won’t happen until later this year. Caudell said architects and engineers will need to inspect the building and determine steps for removal since the building is adjacent to Main Street Raceway, a slot car racing business.
“It’s a wonderful blessing for the city,” Caudell said of the funding award. “I had major things I wanted to see get done when I took office in January 2024 and that was one of them.”
Across the street is another downtown building that is in disrepair and deemed unsafe. Safety fencing surrounds that structure that for many years was an antique shop.
Caudell said the OCRA grant has the potential to build momentum to make progress on other downtown buildings.
OCRA grants
Mitchell is one of several Indiana communities receiving a grant. Indiana Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith announced Monday that 15 rural communities will receive more than $10.2 million in federal grant funding to expand community facilities, improve water infrastructure and eliminate blight.
“This funding empowers local leaders to address long-standing infrastructure needs and create safer, more vibrant places for families and businesses,” Beckwith said. “This reflects Indiana’s ongoing commitment to strengthening the foundation of our rural communities and ensuring all Hoosiers have the resources they need to thrive.”
OCRA distributes Community Development Block Grant funds to rural communities, which assist units of local government with various community projects such as infrastructure improvement, downtown revitalization, public facilities and economic development.
“Congratulations to these 15 communities for successfully earning this grant funding,” OCRA Executive Director Fred Glynn said. “There is a clear commitment from local leaders to improve the quality of life for their residents.”
Mitchell was the only Radius Indiana community that received a Community Development Block Grant this funding cycle.