Government

City of Muncie Awarded $2 Million Grant to Continue Urban Reforestation Efforts 

By Michele Owen— MUNCIE, IN—Trees play a critical role in air quality, property value, soil erosion and runoff prevention, temperature regulation, quality of life, and more. In 2020, Mayor Dan Ridenour announced the Thousand Trees in a Thousand Days initiative, aimed to aggressively combat the declining urban canopy in Muncie. The initiative, which has received recognition in other states and won Muncie a Tree City USA Growth Award from the Arbor Day Foundation, will successfully plant it’s 1,000th native tree…

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Cook Family Education Center Opens at Prairie Creek Reservoir

By Michele Owen— MUNCIE, IN—On Monday morning, dozens gathered to cut the ribbon at the brand-new Cook Family Education Center at Prairie Creek Reservoir. Once an unheated building without restrooms, the Reservoir Office has now been transformed into a natural history museum, complete with a timeline of Muncie history, interactive exhibits, full-size trees, a sailboat, live fish and turtles, and more.   The Education Center is dedicated to the Cook family, who have served a collective total of 87 years at…


Multi-Agency Task Force Mobilizes to Address Community Needs

By Michelle Owen— MUNCIE, IN—At the end of July, a tragic shooting killed one and wounded eighteen at the corner of Willard and Hackley. The Muncie Police Department, aided by many other agencies, were on scene immediately and have made two arrests in connection with the case. City Hall officials immediately began to mobilize other post-crisis planning, including organizing resources for the victims – and working towards prevention. Mayor Dan Ridenour began reaching out to community members just hours after…


CANPACK is Good for Our Community and is Bringing Back a Strong Well-paid Workforce

By James King, Delaware County Commissioner— DELAWARE COUNTY, IN—As a lifelong resident and longtime elected official in Delaware County, I have watched the evolution of manufacturing throughout our region.  When I was young, our community was proudly connected to the auto part manufacturing industry and had a rich history of hard-working men and women who dedicated their lives to advancing that industry.  With the North American Free Trade Agreement, we watched as jobs slowly consolidated and moved to China and…


Nominations Open for 5th Biennial Mayor’s Arts Awards

By Erin Williams— MUNCIE, IN—Save the date! The Mayor’s Arts Awards return September 30, 2023, and the event to celebrate our nominees and award winners will be bigger than ever. The Muncie Arts and Culture Council (MuncieArts), in conjunction with the City of Muncie, is excited to announce that nominations are now being accepted for the 5th Biennial Mayor’s Arts Awards. Nominees for this year’s awards will be celebrated at a special reception preceding the award ceremony on September 30th…


New Holiday Inn to Bring 50+ Jobs

By Michele Owen— MUNCIE, IN—On Thursday, May 25th, a new 105 room hotel was approved by the Board of Zoning Appeals. This was the final step to bring a new Holiday Inn Express & Suites to Muncie, located on Hometown Boulevard, near the Greg Hubler Hyundai dealership. A 2020 hotel study showed that Muncie could support at least three new hotels. “There’s definitely a need,” commented Mayor Ridenour. “There are so many conventions and events hosted in Muncie, and our…


New State Tourism Campaign Looking for Your ‘Home Again IN Indiana’ Stories

By State of Indiana Tourism— INDIANAPOLIS, IN—The Indiana Destination Development Corporation (IDDC) in partnership with the Indiana Association of Realtors, is excited to announce the launch of their new “Home Again IN Indiana” campaign. The campaign seeks to celebrate Hoosier pride by sharing the stories of those who were born and raised in Indiana and, after moving away, chose to return. “Indiana has a strong sense of community, and many Hoosiers have a deep connection to the state that brings them…


City View Groundbreaking Opens a New Chapter for Muncie

By Michele Owen, Director of Communications, City of Muncie— MUNCIE, IN—The Covid 19 Crisis introduced new variables for many industries, including construction. Inflation has made it difficult for many new developments to get off the ground.  Yet, on Wednesday, May 17, representatives from the City of Muncie, Pivotal Home Solutions, CPM construction, Industry Neighborhood Association, and the media gathered for a short ceremony at 1500 E 8th Street for the groundbreaking of a development project locally known as City View….


City View Groundbreaking Announced for May 17

By Michele Owen— MUNCIE, IN—City View Homes, a city-led effort to revitalize vacant lots and provide new housing stock, has been making steady progress since it was first announced in 2021. The original project involved building 48 new residences, in a combination of town homes and single-family houses. The project was then expanded with City View 2, which would transform 37 lots owned by the Muncie Redevelopment Commission into single family homes. Many of the properties, which are primarily located…


Today is Fentanyl Awareness Day

By U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of Indiana— What is Fentanyl? Fentanyl is a potent synthetic opioid drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration for pain relief and anesthetic. It is approximately 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times more potent than heroin. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, as little as two milligrams of fentanyl can be fatal, depending on a person’s body size, tolerance, and past usage. 6 out of 10 illegal fentanyl tablets sold…