Walmart property in Zionsville getting new life

Archview Properties wants to build three apartment buildings on Michigan Road between 106th Street and Bennett Parkway. (Rendering courtesy of Zionsville Plan Commission)

A developer has proposed a 218-unit apartment complex on property that the town of Zionsville and retailer Walmart fought over for a decade.

Archview Properties LLC, an affiliate of Indianapolis-based Cityscape Residential, has petitioned the Zionsville Plan Commission to rezone 14.5 acres of land at 779 Lennox Court from the B-2 zoning district to the residential multifamily zoning district. The rezoning would allow Archview to construct three apartment buildings featuring a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units, with amenities including a fitness room, club room, game area, business center and pool.

(Rendering courtesy of Zionsville Plan Commission)

The site, along Michigan Road between 106th Street and Bennett Parkway, was the subject of a long legal battle between Zionsville and Walmart Inc., which proposed in 2006 to construct a 300,000-square-foot shopping center anchored by a Walmart Supercenter on the 22-acre property.

But town officials repeatedly denied the retailer’s proposals. The company filed multiple lawsuits and the case was finally resolved in 2016 when a judge ruled in favor of the retailer. About a year later, Walmart announced it would not follow through with its plans and put the property on the market with an asking price of $7.5 million.

The property is still owned by Walmart, records show. Representatives for Walmart could not be reached for comment.

Now, Archview Properties has new plans for the portion of the land in Boone County. Roughly one-third of the 22 acres fall in Hamilton County.•