Southern Indiana Housing and Community Development Corporation (SIHCDC), located in Columbus, won the 2020 Lt. Governor’s Excellence in Housing in a Rural Community Award for its $8 million renovation of two historic properties in Rushville, Indiana recently. Diane Doup, SIHCDC Board President, received the award on behalf of SIHCDC at the Indiana Virtual Housing Conference on August 14. The award was presented by Indiana Housing and Community Development on behalf of Lt. Governor Suzanne Crouch.
SIHCDC, working in partnership with the City of Rushville and Milestone Ventures, SIHCDC redeveloped two of the oldest buildings in Rushville. The Historic Durbin Hotel served as destination, a place for family celebrations, and, most notably, in 1940, the site of Wendell Willkie’s presidential campaign headquarters. The other building, The Windsor, served as the Knights of Pythias Lodge and, later, the Boys and Girls Club.
The Campaign Quarters development is an illustration of the hardships of downtown Rushville over time and the recent resurgence that has breathed life back into Rushville’s downtown. “This project has helped transform our downtown with a significant investment, returning two faded historic buildings into symbols of a community that is moving forward, ” according to Rushville Mayor Mike Pavey.
SIHCDC Executive Direction Eric Frey said, “This is a wonderful honor that we share with our partners. During the construction a section of the Durbin Hotel collapsed and we feared that the project might not be viable. But with the support of Milestone Ventures and City officials in Rushville, together we were able to regain momentum and save the building.”
