Local officials are looking for ways to boost military-related business around northern Indiana's Grissom Air Reserve Base.
The Miami County Economic Development Authority has been awarded a $45,000 contract to analyze business opportunities in a six-county area surrounding the base near Peru. The Kokomo Tribune reports officials plan to offer incentives to businesses moving to area or providing goods or services for existing companies in the region.
The Miami County agency says the region saw an 8 percent decline in defense-related jobs between 2009 and 2015. The group says Grissom has seen its Department of Defense contracts fall by about $7 million in the last two years.
Grissom was downgraded from full Air Force base status to a reserve base in 1994. It mainly now operates KC-135R Stratotanker refueling planes.