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March 27, 2013 Vol. 36, No. 2
The Paper adds free community calendar to website by Brent Swan The Paper of Wabash County recently unveiled its updated website with the addition of a free community events calendar. “By adding the calendar to our webpage, we are hoping to allow our readers to add upcoming events at any time by using our form online,” Mike Rees, general manager of The Paper said. “It is our goal to continually create a user friendly website, with features our readers ask for such as this community calendar and Wabash WebTV.” The community calendar is exclusively available online and entries to the online community calendar will not be printed in the newspaper. “By putting this calendar online, we are able to create a more current listing of upcoming events, and at the same time allow readers to add their own events,” Rees said. “We will continue to offer all of our existing advertising options for those who wish to publish their event inside the newspaper.” Those interested in publishing an event for the community calendar should visit the website at www.thepaperofwabash.co m and click on the “Community Calendar” link at the top of the page. Fill out the form entirely and the event should be published within 24 hours. “This is just another way for us to provide a service that our readers have asked for,” Rees said. “With our newspaper being a free publication, we are dependent upon advertising. This community events calendar will allow for meeting notices, fundraisers, and other community happenings in addition to our loyal advertising base.” Events eligible for publication in the community calendar include meetings, revivals, benefits, and seminars. Items such as garage sales and classifieds/items for sale will remain as paid classifieds. For more information, contact The Paper at 260563-8326.
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Stellar Communities grant would bring major change to Wabash County by Ashley Flynn features@thepaperofwabash.c om Wabash County was recently named one of six finalists in the Stellar Communities Pilot Program, which is a collaboration between the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA), Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority (IHCDA), and the Indiana Department of Transportation) (IDOT), to give rural communities funding for comprehensive community development projects. Twenty-four communities submitted Letters of Interest outlining a 3-5 year comprehensive plan. A steering committee of 15 people helped identify needs of Wabash County. “We’ve focused on downtown,” Bill Konyha, President and CEO of the Economic Development Group of Wabash County, told The Paper of Wabash in an interview. “In essence, we’ve focused on Wabash Street, Canal Street, Market Street and Miami Street in an effort to make a high visibility, high impact change in the
PICTURED IS THE CHARLEY CREEK INN, which was one of the projects included in Wabash’s Letter of Interest. If Wabash is chosen for the Stellar Communities grant, Charley Creek Inn would be expanded, along with a new Ivy Tech campus, restoration of the Eagles Theatre, a Splash pad added to the existing skate park, Paradise Spring Outdoor Amphitheater, Public Arts Program, completing and extending the city trail system, working on the exterior of the Wabash County Historical Museum, rehabilitation of Market Street housing, Rock City lofts, and creating a Community Service Center. (photo by Brent Swan) community to continue our drive to make Wabash a destination, and the tactics are arts, entertainment and education,” he said.
Konyha has held his position at EDGWC for six years and has spent three of them working toward this grant. “It would be a game changer
CONTINUED RESTORATION OF THE EAGLES THEATRE was also in Wabash’s Letter of Interest.
for us. We want to be a destination for arts, entertainment and tourism. We will end up there, but this grant would make us end up there maybe five years sooner,” Konyha said. Projects included in the Letter of Interest were a new Ivy Tech campus, restoration to the Eagles Theatre, Charley Creek Inn Expansion, a Splash pad added to the existing skate park, Paradise Spring Outdoor Amphitheater, Public Arts Program, complete and extend the city trail system, façade improvement program, exterior work to the Wabash County Historical Museum, Market Street housing rehabilitation, Rock City Lofts and create a Community Services Center. The Letter of Interest states that many of these projects are already underway, which the Stellar Communities program will like. Bill Konyha, Mayor Vanlandingham, and other members of the community attended a Stellar Communities workshop in Indianapolis last week where they met with representatives from OCRA, IHCDA and IDOT. “We talked about our proposal, Letter of Interest, and what their expectations were. We learned how important it is to them for us to include projects that can happen this year. They want that, and we have three or (continued on page 5)