At a special public meeting at Prophetstown State Park on Wednesday, Lilly Endowment announced a grant of $50 million to help develop and grow Indiana’s state parks. Half of the grant will go towards furthering development of Prophetstown State Park, including doubling the size of the current campground and construction of interpretive facilities for the park. It has long been desired to develop a facility that, in addition to interpreting the unique natural features of the property, would also tell the story of Native American presence at the site. Improvements will also be made to the park aquatic center and additions to park trails. Prophetstown will not be the only state park to benefit from this grant. $21 million of the grant will be used for improvements to campgrounds and playgrounds at parks throughout the state. $3 million will be used to address deferred maintenance issues on historic structures, and $1 million will be used for purchase of motorized wheelchairs to further accessibility to trails for those with disabilities.
Indiana Parks Alliance is thrilled with this historic grant from the Lilly Endowment for long needed facilities. IPA president Tom Hohman stated “With this donation the visionaries at Lilly Endowment continue to invest in the state of Indiana, enriching the lives of Hoosier citizens. The work at Prophetstown, along with the future inn authorized by the Indiana legislature, will enable this park to continue progressing toward becoming not only one of the top state parks in Indiana, but in the entire Midwest.”
For more information on the grant, the DNR press release can be viewed at Lilly Endowment awards $50 million grant for Indiana State Parks – State of Indiana.