City of Rushville – Love Community Center

Rushville leaders were faced with a challenge when a Walmart store closed down, leaving a large retail space to rehabilitate. But Rushville was up to the challenge and combined private donations and municipal dollars with READI and Lilly Endowment funding to create a 53,000-square foot community center serving residents of all ages. The center has a food pantry and meals program, a senior center, a fitness center, childcare space and the Rushville Public Library. The $22 million project also added on extra space to the old Walmart building to include basketball courts, a walking track and a new aquatic center. The project showed how small communities can work together to take on daunting redevelopment challenges.