NWI 2050 builds on the successes of the award-winning 2040 Plan , which was the first comprehensive regional plan for the three-county region. NWI 2050 takes a bold approach by planning at the center of the linkages between transportation, the environment, and economic development.
NWI 2050 utilized a method that observes possible future states 30 years from now, allowing Northwestern Indiana regional leaders to contend with the uncertainty the future has in store.
The vision and investment areas described in the plan were prioritized through public outreach. These priorities became the cornerstone for how funding was appropriated through NIRPC’s Transportation Improvement Program, so that transportation investments will contribute to the plan’s vision of a northwest Indiana that is “connected, renewed, united, and vibrant.”
“We’re thankful to the Indiana Chapter of the APA for recognizing the region’s efforts to plan for its future,” said Ty Warner, NIRPC’s Executive Director. “Many northwest Indiana residents helped shape NWI 2050 through their participation in workshops and pop-up events across Lake, Porter, and LaPorte Counties over many months.
“This plan begins a new chapter in the region’s story, and this award helps that story to be told more widely,” Warner said
NIRPC’s Commission approved NWI 2050 on May 16, 2019. The plan can be accessed and read in its entirety at www.nirpc.org .
NIRPC is the Metropolitan Planning Organization and regional council of local governments for Northwest Indiana. NIRPC’s purpose, as put forth in Indiana state statute, is to "provide a coordinative management process for Lake, Porter, and LaPorte Counties and to institute and maintain a comprehensive planning and programming process for transportation, economic development, and environmental policy."