Noblesville council gives final OK to two major redevelopment projects

The Noblesville City Council this week approved two significant projects that city leaders hope will help transform the community.

One finalizes plans for Noblesville’s first new downtown apartments in more than a century and the other will see a substantial piece of land redeveloped from a junkyard into a corporate campus.

Council members approved a request from Rebar Development to rezone a half block in the city’s downtown to include a downtown mixed use overlay and approved site plans for The Levinson project.

The Levinson is a $24 million mixed-use project that includes 73 market-rate and 10 affordable-rate apartments with a rooftop deck and contemporary amenities, 5,100 square feet of commercial space, and a four-level, 300-space parking garage.

Noblesville officials and Rebar Development first presented The Levinson project in August. Since then, the developer has made several changes to ensure the new building blends with other historical buildings in Noblesville’s historic downtown.

“When we announced the Noblesville NOW capital improvement plan, one of our top objectives was to strengthen the downtown with more residents and more parking,” Mayor John Ditslear said in written comments. “The Levinson helps us achieve that objective, as well as accomplishes some of the goals that came out of the housing study and parking task force while setting the stage for further enhancements like those proposed in the downtown streetscape plan.”

With the final approval, the city will turn its attention to developing a communications plan to keep the public informed about downtown parking and potential street closures or issues during the Levinson construction period.

Also this week, the city council approved bond financing for a $31 million redevelopment project on the northeast corner of 146th Street and Promise Road. The city council voted to issue a $7.7 million tax increment financing bond for the project.

A large portion of the site is currently being used as an auto salvage business. Jackson Development plans to redevelop the 38-acre site into 200,000 square feet of office/flex buildings in what will be known as the Campus Center Business Park. The project also features 80,000 square feet of commercial and retail space in the area known as The Shoppes at Campus Center.

Jackson Development plan to close on the real estate this month. Utility work should be completed and the salvage cars should be removed by summer, and then construction will begin.