Subscriber Benefit
As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe Now
Indianapolis firm Keystone Group has acquired the former Anthem headquarters on Monument Circle, with undetermined plans to redevelop the property.
The company said Tuesday it has acquired the property at 120 Monument Circle for an undisclosed price. The property has been mostly empty for seven years—except for a few retail spaces—after Anthem, now known as Elevance Health Inc., vacated the site to move to its Virginia Avenue headquarters in late 2018.
“120 Monument Circle is more than just a building, it’s a centerpiece location in the beating heart of our city,” Ersal Ozdemir, Keystone’s founder, said in a written statement.
The company said it has not finalized its long-term plans for the building, but Ozdemir said many options would be considered, noting the desire to transform the space into “vibrant hub of activity, innovation, and community.”
“The sky is the limit for the redevelopment of 120 Monument Circle, presenting a generational opportunity to remake the face of Monument Circle and will stand as testament to Keystone’s ongoing dedication to visionary development of our state capital,” Ozdemir said.
Those changes, company officials said, will likely mean a major overhaul to the property that will include “sweeping rooftop views, high-end outdoor amenities, parking and maximized retail and restaurant space for locals and visitors to enjoy.”
Multiple scenarios have been examined for the property over the years, including the possibility of converting a portion of the four-story building’s basement level into parking.
The possibility of adding more retail tenants has also been floated in recent years, as has splitting up the building to accommodate multiple office users. Current storefront tenants include FedEx Office, H&R Block and Forum Credit Union, which collectively occupy a total of about 11,000 square feet.
The building first hit the market in October with an undisclosed asking price. The move came after years of then-owner Franklin Street Properties, a Boston-based investment firm, seeking to backfill the building with new office users.
The plans to redevelop the building come as Downtown Indy Inc., the city and other partners continue to evaluate long-term plans for Monument Circle.
Since 2023, a quarter of the circle has been closed to vehicular traffic from early summer to late autumn to accommodate Spark on the Circle, a pop-up park.
While there’s no firm plans for continuing the activation after this year, there have been ongoing conversations about whether a portion of the Circle could be closed permanently to vehicles and made into a pedestrian-only space.
Keystone’s acquisition and ongoing planning for what to do with the former Anthem building comes just over a week after plans to redevelop Circle Tower at 55 Monument Circle were unveiled.
That $40 million project from an affiliate of Holladay Properties is set to convert the upper floors of the art deco-style building into a 175-room AC Hotel, with the first three floors remaining office and retail space.
Earlier this year, Keystone completed a $120 million overhaul of the Illinois Building just a block away. That conversion to the InterContinental Hotel was completed in tandem with the first phase of the company’s work at 220 N. Meridian St., which saw a 20-story office tower formerly occupied by AT&T converted to more than 200 luxury apartments. A second phase of that $124 million project is now underway to add another 57 units.
Another building on Monument Circle is also being eyed for potential changes, as Indianapolis-based Emmis Corp. continues to look someone to buy its property on the southwestern portion of Monument Circle. The firm listed the seven-story structure for $35 million in September 2023.
Please enable JavaScript to view this content.
Interesting! We have high hopes for this building, if done right! Total demolition and a new 21st century design is the best solution. All retail on first floor is the other. The 1980’s facade is so dated and lacks aesthetic! The structure is a 1949 redo that restricts modern innovation.
Good luck Ersal
I agree I think this should be a total demolition and a nice redo with a mid to high rise with lots of retail on the first floor.
We definitely need more residential high-rise properties downtown.
I have always thought it was odd that Ersal as a developer has been so harshly criticized by a large number of people in this town. As a developer, he operates exactly like every developer in this city, yet he is routinely attacked with particularly vicious venom that other developers don’t receive. Could it be he is an immigrant?
I’m just impressed the big time developer has finally started paying his home property taxes on time consistently the last few years.
No. It’s because he was among the first to expect the City to fund everything for him…now everyone does that.
I’m rooting for Ozdemir to convince the City to stop closing the Circle to traffic.
If you need to use the Circle to get around downtown you should probably not be driving downtown.
You are correct Chris!
Why? It’s not a major thoroughfare and the foot traffic skyrockets every time it’s closed to cars. If you’re using the Circle as a key thoroughfare to get around Downtown, you’re doing it wrong.
Y’all have apparently never driven south through downtown at evening rush…especially since Capitol is down 2 lanes south of Maryland and Penn is down 1 south of Ohio. West, East, Penn, and Capitol are all rush hour parking lots.
Sliding around the Circle and down Meridian in light traffic at 15-20mph was heavenly by comparison.
1) Penn isn’t “down to one lane” south of Ohio. There may be some temporary restrictions from construction, but that’s not a normal condition. This is a bad-faith talking point.
2) Capitol is three lanes south of Maryland, not two.
3) There’s never going to be a situation in which Downtown because an easy place to drive through and a lovely place to walk in. These are mutually exclusive. At worst, Downtown traffic gets mildly inconvenient for about 30 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes in the evening. People really need to suck it up and stop thinking that the City owes them a fast commute back to the suburbs. It doesn’t.
This building takes up a quarter of the frontage on Monument Circle and has no real streetfront activation. This is potentially very good news.
Rooftop bar, restaurant, and mixed space on the ground level? Yes please.
it should be another 40-50story building preferably all hotel and retail. 35 years is long enough for one america tower about tallest building.
The Salesforce tower is the tallest building in the city.