FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WOWO): A study released yesterday by Ball State University says the Regional Cities initiative is making a positive difference in Indiana.

Eric Doden, CEO of Greater Fort Wayne Inc., says one year into implementation, progress has been “pretty remarkable.”

“We always said we hope for at least 60% private money (in investments), so we’ve had our expectations exceeded by quite a bit,” Doden says. “Equally as exciting to me is that there was a project in almost every one of the 11 (northeast Indiana) counties and the stories behind that are just remarkable in terms of people having excitement in their communities and projects that would not have gotten done now are moving forward.”

The Phase One results peg the current total investment spurred by the initiative at more than $1.2-billion, with the majority of that coming from private investments.

Two such projects are both in downtown Fort Wayne: the nearly $40-million Ash Skyline Tower and the ongoing Riverfront Development project.

The study also suggests the program could bring in nearly 8,000 new Indiana residents within 8 years.