OCRA Grant Funded Bike Racks Arrive, Just In Time For Festival
Terre Haute, Ind. – Just in time for the Birthplace of the Coca-Cola Bottle Festival, Downtown Terre Haute is celebrating the arrival of new bicycle racks, which signify the city as the “official birthplace of the Coca-Cola bottle”.
“I was thrilled that the custom bicycle racks were able to be delivered and installed in time for the festival on Saturday,” says DTH Coordinator and festival organizer Stephanie Pence. “This is a useful way to embrace and celebrate a part of Terre Haute’s history and provides a place for bicyclists to secure their bicycles while they live, work and play downtown.”
The bike racks were made possible by a grant through the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs. The money comes from the Quick Impact Pacebased Grant to support quality of place initiatives. A small ceremony to officially unveil the bike racks will be held during First Friday events on Oct 5th with OCRA and other local organizations.
Susan Tingley of the Vigo County Historical Society created the design that was used on each bike rack.
Tingley and Pence have worked closely together to bring Saturday’s festival to fruition.
Downtown Terre Haute is one of 13 Indiana communities to receive the grant funding. The Chamber of Commerce Foundation, which supports many DTH efforts, was awarded $4,995 to fund the creation of eight custom bike racks throughout downtown, which will feature art panels signifying the city as the official birthplace of the Coca-Cola Bottle. The racks will also support the Indiana State University’s bike share program. The initiative is also a partnership with the Vigo County Parks and Recreation Department, which will provide 20 hours of bike safety education during monthly First Friday events.
The City of Terre Haute donated time and supplies for the bike rack installations.
The funding is doubly exciting for the Terre Haute community, as students from a grant writing course at Rose-Human Institute of Technology prepared the grant research and application as part of the student’s coursework.
Pence worked alongside RHIT Assistant Professor of English Dr. Sarah Summers to guide students through the process and gain unique perspectives on the project. The new bike racks will be on display during the Birthplace of the Coca-Cola Bottle Festival on Saturday.
For more information about the event visit cocacolabottlefestival.com.
For more information, visit www.in.gov/ocra/quipgrant.htm.
