Lynn Sullivan remembers when Greencastle, Ind., was a bustling town, and all the action was on the square.
"The square was full of stores," Sullivan said. "There was an A&P grocery store, Prevo's Dept. Store and the building next to Old National [bank] used to be a movie theatre."
Sullivan grew up in the Greencastle of the 1960s, when the square housed "two grocery stores, two or three hardware stores, a toy store, clothing stores and restaurants" and at least two movie theaters.
Today's square looks nothing like the one Sullivan remembers: the A&P is gone, Prevo's is gone and the hardware stores are gone. The original building facades have been covered with metal siding. The square's main attraction is a handful of restaurants, not the retail shops.
But Greencastle residents and administrators expect the Stellar Communities Grant to change that, and they are already seeing results.
The Stellar Communities Grant is an award given to small, rural communities by the Indiana lieutenant governor's office. These communities have populations smaller than 50 thousand and therefore do not receive any entitlement funds, which are given to communities by the government to help pay the costs of running the community.
In 2011, the first year the grant was awarded, Greencastle partnered with DePauw University and applied for the grant. Out of the 42 communities that applied, Greencastle was one of two winners.
"We got the award because our goal is to become the next big college town in the Midwest," Greencastle mayor Sue Murray said.
The Stellar Communities Grant awarded Greencastle $19 million in funds dispersed over three years for several projects aimed at creating a "vibrant downtown." The process is currently at the end of the first year.
One of the major projects, the construction of a $3.65 million parking garage near the square, has been approved and the city is currently negotiating for a plot of land on the corner of Walnut and Indiana St.
The restructuring of building façades on the square already underway is also a part of the Stellar Grant. The work will total around of $2.9 million.
Sullivan's antique shop, Vintage on Franklin, is currently being redone.
"I think it's hurt business some, having the work being done [out front]," Sullivan said.
But Sullivan is particularly excited about the historical restoration.
"I think old buildings should be protected," she said. "People put metal siding over the facades. It's fun to see what was there when the metal comes down."
The Stellar Grant will also give homeowners within a two block radius of both Town Hall and Hannah St. $20 thousand for rehabilitation work on their homes as part of the Owner Occupied Rehabilitation Project. There is also the possibility of a community health clinic opening downtown and the development of Wi-Fi bubble around the square. People can also expect to see major streets such as Washington, Indiana and Locust being redone in the next couple years.
According to the Stellar Communities Proposal, the total cost of all the projects will be a little more than $26 million. Greencastle will have to fund the $7 million not covered by the state. Some of the money that used to cover the gap will come from DePauw, like the $2.6 million the university is paying for the Anderson St. construction.
"DePauw got the money for the construction from donors and Greencastle hired and paid the contractors," said Brad Kelsheimer, vice president of finance and administration. "We then paid Greencastle. The state also reimbursed Greencastle for the job. Essentially, the city got paid twice for Anderson St., but the money DePauw gave them will be used to match the state on the other Stellar Grant projects."
Greencastle and DePauw have also partnered on the relocation of the bookstore, forming a relationship with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and linking People Pathways and Nature Park trails.
"We're already seeing results [from the bookstore relocation]," Murray said. "The Starbucks is bringing people downtown, and businesses are seeing more traffic. People are finding places they didn't know existed."
The grant came a year after DePauw adopted its 2020 plan in 2010. The simultaneous advancement plans have provided the university and city with a unique opportunity to work together, one they are taking full advantage of.
"We're not always on the same page since we have different missions," Kelsheimer said, "but everyone wants to be part of the upward path."
DePauw and Greencastle want to use the Stellar Grant to merge the city and university more and to improve town-gown relations.
"The more we get to know each other, the more we help diminish stereotypes and improve relations," Murray said.
Kelsheimer added: "It's a once in a generation opportunity. Ten years from, five years from now. ... people will look back and say, 'This was our downtown?'"