Developer plans mixed-use revamp of block cater-corner to Children’s Museum

New City Development is planning apartments, townhouses and a nonprofit headquarters for the parking lot at serves 2955 N. Meridian St. (Image courtesy of Google)

An Indianapolis developer plans to build apartments, townhomes and a youth dance studio on a 5-acre parking lot cater-corner from The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis.

The project from New City Development aims to repurpose the lot adjacent to the three-story office building at 2955 N. Meridian St., which is home to several companies and nonprofits, including United Way of Central Indiana, the Indiana Association for the Education of Young Children and health insurance firm MD Wise.

The 190,000-square-foot office building, owned by New City, won’t be impacted directly by the project. The remainder of the block—bordered by Meridian Street to the west, 30th Street to the north, Talbott Street to the east and 29th Street to the south—is expected to see significant changes.

The developer plans to add a four-story, 100-unit apartment building on the corner of Talbott and 29th streets and along the southern boundary. The studio for nonprofit Kids Dance Outreach is set for the corner of 30th and Talbott streets. Four buildings comprising 16 townhouses are planned along Talbott Street on the eastern edge of the site.

A retail outlot is planned for the corner of 29th and Meridian streets, just south of the office building. The interior portions of the existing parking lot will retain a couple hundred parking spots.

“We’re trying to do [this] in the way where we’ve got the right uses in the right parts of the property to make sure that they’re all successful long-term,” founder and CEO Isaac Bamgbose told IBJ. He declined to disclose an anticipated development cost for the project.

In total, the entire block spans about nine acres. New City Development bought the block through an affiliate for $14 million in 2021, according to county assessor records.

The apartments are expected to be mixed-income, with some focused on tenants making average median income or less. The remainder are expected to rent at market rate. The for-sale townhomes will be advertised at market rate, Bamgbose said.

While specifics on apartment composition were not immediately available, site plans show the walk-up style building would comprise about 43,750 square feet across one acre. The townhomes are expected to range from 1,100 to 1,400 square feet. 

Kids Dance Outreach, which is currently without a physical headquarters would move to the new, 11,170-square-foot building at the corner of 30th and Talbott streets. The building is expected to offer office and meeting space, as well as a large studio area.

The organization, which serves over 2,000 children annually through in-school and extracurricular programming, is expected to own its building upon completion. It currently rents space from organizations like The Athenaeum and the Indianapolis Movement Arts Collective, local community centers and partner schools.

Mónica Muñoz, executive director of Kids Dance Outreach, said that after the nonprofit learned of New City’s plans for the 2900 block of North Meridian Street, it saw an opportunity to collaborate and create a space that complemented the remainder of the development. The group has seen a 40% increase in enrollment in its program year-over-year, particularly through its in-school operation.

It offers its programming without a cost to participants, as well as scholarship programs for more advanced dancers and programs for individuals with disabilities.

The organization is still in the silent phase of a fundraising effort, although Munoz declined to discuss the financial component of the project. She said the project’s proximity to the IndyGo Red Line along Meridian Street and its location within a midtown neighborhood were big factors.

“Accessibility is a big factor for us, and it’s important being along a main artery,” she said. “When looking at what a future home might look like, this opportunity presented itself. It’s been an exciting journey and a thrill to be able to be part of something that’s going to transform the city and house KDO’s mission, both meeting all of the needs of the organization and in turn, allowing us to meet the needs of the community.”

The retail building, being constructed for a yet-unidentified user, would occupy a pair of lots totaling 25,400 square feet and would have a drive-thru and 21-space parking lot at its rear.

Bamgbose said the goal of the redevelopment project is to bring additional investment to the Mapleton-Fall Creek neighborhood and create new amenities for residents, workers and students attending Ivy Tech Community College nearby.

“We believe that Mapleton-Fall Creek has a lot going for it and has a lot of potential,” he said. “It starts to create some connective tissue between” different pockets of the neighborhood.

In letters to the city, neighborhood representatives and a leader of the Mapleton-Fall Creek Development Corp. expressed support for the project.

New City Development is scheduled to appear before the city’s Metropolitan Development Commission hearing examiner on June 25 to request a rezone of the property from the C-1 commercial designation to that of C-S, which allows for mixed-use developments.

It also plans to ask the property be subdivided into 21 total lots to accommodate the commercial development and townhouses. New City also is seeking variance approvals to allow for the drive-thru retail establishment and for reduced setbacks for the new buildings.

Indianapolis-based DKGR Architects is the design firm on the project.