On Wednesday, the Legacy Joint Funding Committee denied a request to fund a Fort Wayne shooting range.
The shooting range requested $2.5 million from the Legacy Fund, but the committee says it only funds capital needs, and the shooting range would have used the money for operational costs. Committee Chair Ron Turpin says the proposal wasn’t what the committee would consider “transformational.”
Turpin says that by the end of 2017, the committee will have $37 million. That number is expected to grow as projects repay loans from the committee. Turpin thinks this means the Legacy Fund is a success.
“As you look back in the last two and a half years, we’ve certainly slowed down considerably the amount of projects being funded. We have a lot more vetting that’s happening with that,” Turpin said. “Consequently, we can ensure the public that there is plenty of money in that fund for future needs as they may come available.”
If no other projects are approved, the committee estimates the fund will have more than $60 million by 2025, but Turpin says there will likely be more proposals soon.
