Fast-growing burb gets branded

Fast-growing burb gets branded

HANCOCK COUNTY – McCordsville may be a small town, but it thinks big. The fast-growing suburb in northwestern Hancock County has hired a marketing firm, Indianapolis-based Hirons & Co., to launch the brand, er … town. “Next Stop McCordsville” is the new slogan, complete with an interurban rail car, harkening to the days when the passenger trains ran to Indianapolis. Today, a CSX rail line runs through town. McCordsville is spending upwards of $30,000 on the marketing campaign; $17,500 of that was raised through private donations, according to Hirons & Co. The logo was unveiled earlier this month at the Indiana State Museum by former Greater Indianapolis Chamber President John Myrland, who is now a pastor in McCordsville. In nearly a decade, McCordsville’s population, which was around 1,500 during the last U.S. Census, has soared to somewhere between 4,000 and 5,000 people, town officials estimate. Mount Comfort Road, which runs through town, has become an increasingly popular alternative for northeast-side commuters. Housing and shopping have popped up in droves. But to diversify, McCordsville officials want to lure life sciences, information technology, logistics and light manufacturing. The McCordsville Redevelopment Commission and the Town Council in 2006 adopted an economic development plan. “We didn’t want the [plan] to just sit on a shelf. We wanted people to know about McCordsville and the plans we had for economic development,” said Town Manager Tonya Galbraith. But McCordsville also wants to ensure “high quality” development, said Town Council President Barry Wood. McCordsville officials in recent years became increasingly selective about the types of building materials and densities of housing developments, mindful of problems that came along with the fast growth of nearby towns such as Fishers and Lawrence. Town officials have outgrown a former veterinary clinic that now serves as city hall and envision a municipal complex someday within a large retail and office development.