Leaders across North Central Indiana will host Regional Cities “Watch” events on Tuesday

SOUTH BEND, Indiana (December 11, 2015) –  Leadership groups in Elkhart, Marshall and St. Joseph counties, collectively known as The Regional Cities of Northern Indiana, are planning “Watch” events open to the public at three digitally connected locations Tuesday afternoon as information about $84 million in economic development grants is shared statewide via “live” streaming from Indianapolis.  The events, while physically hosted in Elkhart, Marshall and St. Joseph counties, will be cross-linked via Twitter’s Periscope application over the Internet.

“This tells you just how engaged our region is and how high the level of anticipation is,” commented Regina Emberton, President of Michiana Partnership and Vice Chair of the Regional Development Authority (RDA) for the Regional Cities of Northern Indiana.  “Residents from 22 cities and towns in North Central Indiana are gathering at three locations across the region to watch history in the making.  And they’re using Periscope to connect all three sites at the same time.  With things like this happening, it’s easy to see how Regional Cities has already had a big impact on North Central Indiana.”

Each ‘Watch’ event is scheduled to start between 12:30 and 1 p.m. when the “live” web feed from Indianapolis begins.

At 1 p.m. the Strategic Review Committee will go “live” on the Internet. At some point during the meeting, their recommendations will be made public. The IEDC board is then expected to vote on the committee’s recommendations.  Once the voting takes place and the regional grants are made official, Governor Pence will announce them in a live press conference from the same location.  The press conference is currently scheduled for around 2:30 p.m.

In Marshall County, the event will be at Swan Lake Resort, 5203 Plymouth Laporte Trail, Plymouth.  The Elkhart County event will be in the Crystal Ballroom of the Lerner Theatre at 410 S. Main St., in downtown Elkhart.  In St. Joseph County, the event will be at Union Station Technology Center in the Renaissance District, 506 W South St. in downtown South Bend.  Some, if not all locations, will offer light refreshments.

To see any of the Periscope video feeds from the three “Watch” events on Tuesday, visit the Regional Cities of Northern Indiana Facebook page.  Feeds will also be linked to the Regional Cities of Northern Indiana Twitter page.