Efforts target blight on 16th

The Indianapolis
Housing Agency has bought a troubled low-income housing project called Caravelle Commons and is working on plans to redevelop
the complex to better connect with the Herron Morton Place neighborhood. Next door, Kroger has revived
efforts to acquire land and plan a new supermarket at 16th and Central Avenue to replace an old location. The
chain bought the corner a few years ago and closed on a vacant parcel that was previously part of Caravelle earlier this year.
Together, the developments could represent a turning point for a blighted stretch of 16th Street. At a minimum, the housing
agency plans to reopen Park Avenue, which now dead-ends in the complex, and take down fences that surround
the apartment buildings. But there’s a “good chance” the plans will involve demolition
of the existing complex, at 1643 N. Park Ave., and the construction of a more urban-looking replacement,
said Bruce Baird, the group’s director of strategic planning and development. Check out the full story here. (You can sign up for a free 12-week subscription
to IBJ.com.)