On Thursday, June 12, the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority (RDA) board and various community members gathered to share some exciting updates about the future of the Region. RDA President and CEO Sherri Ziller presented their updated strategic plan, designed to keep Northwest Indiana moving forward.
For the past 20 years, the bipartisan-founded RDA has been a driving force behind some of the Region’s biggest projects. Since 2006, it has invested over $1.5 billion in commuter rail projects alone. These include the South Shore Double Track, completed just last year, that put Michigan City within 60 minutes of Downtown Chicago. They also helped develop the West Lake Corridor line, set to open later this year, which will go further South into Lake County.
“Commuter rail projects like the South Shore Double Track and West Lake Corridor have not only improved transit but have also reshaped how people live and work in this Region. They connect communities, create jobs, and attract new businesses,” Ziller said.
Looking forward to the next 20 years, the RDA assembled a team with expertise in land use, engineering, and transportation to help strategize what to do next. The team talked to more than 100 local civic and business leaders, elected officials, and Region-oriented organizations to find ways to apply these ideas in actionable, local ways that would positively impact the economy and raise the Region to even greater heights.
The top areas they chose to focus on are redevelopment, regional airports, national and state parks, the lakefront, commuter rails, and highway corridors.
To aid in redevelopment, there is a new Land Development Entity (LDE) dedicated to cleaning up environmentally contaminated and difficult-to-redevelop brownfield properties.
“While this LDE will work with agencies and municipalities to identify properties and procure grant funding for cleanup, the RDA is committing an initial $5 million in seed money from its own funds so that this entity can get down to business as soon as possible,” Ziller said.
The RDA also plans to pursue a National Scenic Byway designation for a portion of U.S. Highway 12, a scenic route that runs along the Lake Michigan shoreline and connects visitors to the Indiana Dunes National and State Parks. This designation could be a game-changer for tourism and small businesses in lakeshore communities.
“We are eager to get started on this effort, and already have secured the support of Lake, Porter, and La Porte County tourism agencies for the creation of a scenic byway,” Ziller said. “We have also had preliminary conversations with the Indiana Department of Transportation, and they are receptive to the idea as well.”
The updated strategic plan also includes supporting infrastructure improvements such as sanitary sewer connections for lakefront communities still on septic, and acquisition and cleanup of industrial properties as they become available to expand public lakefront amenities. The RDA will also continue to pursue Transit-Oriented Development in the shoreline communities served by the South Shore, including Portage, Porter, Beverly Shores, and Pines.
The RDA’s vision is clear: build on past achievements while embracing new strategies that reflect the Region’s strengths and potential. By combining transportation investments, environmental cleanup, tourism development, and infrastructure upgrades, the RDA aims to elevate Northwest Indiana.
“The RDA is uniquely positioned to meet the challenge of advancing its mission into the future. The result is a stronger Region and a more prosperous state of Indiana,” Ziller said.
It’s clear the RDA isn’t slowing down any time soon, and neither is the Region.
More information on the 2025 update to the RDA’s comprehensive strategic plan can be found at nwitdd.com/rda-strategic-plan.
