13 WTHR - Indianapolis News |Experts target inner city Indianapolis neighborhoods in study

Experts target inner city Indianapolis neighborhoods in study

Mary Milz/Eyewitness News

Indianapolis - A national team of experts is in town this week to come up with ideas for redeveloping two Indianapolis neighborhoods, Martindale Brightwood and the King Park Area. The epicenter is 22nd Street and the Monon Trail on the near north side. It extends roughly a mile in each direction.

It's an area that's struggled with vacant homes, boarded up buildings and more than 30 contaminated properties but some see the potential for much more, especially with the possibility of a light rail system in the area.

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) Sustainable Design Assessment Team will the study the area, hold focus groups and talk to residents before coming up with recommendations. The team includes urban planners and designers.

Dennis Andrejko, is an architect from Buffalo, New York and a team leader. He said the goal of the three-day workshop was to "allow outside people to come in with a clear set of eyes to see what the community is about" and to turn "challenges and obstacles into real opportunities."

Andrejko said the possibility of light rail provided a lot potential for the area. "I think the the light rail discussion provides a catalyst for the community to come together rather than dividing it."

The last time an AIA study group came to Indianapolis was 1974 when they weighed in on plans for developing White River State Park. Sanford Garner is president of the Indiana Institute of Architects and a resident of the area now under study.

"It's a huge opportunity having national experts helping us and bringing all the neighborhood constituents together. It's exciting to talk about about what it could be," Garner said.

He said the near north side neighborhoods were chosen primarily because of the "large proliferation of brownfields and the potential for being a transportation hub," two issues relevant to other urban areas.

Maury Plambeck, Director of the city's Department of Metropolitan Development, said he was eager to take the team's "ideas and use our tools to implement them over the next few years as new development happens we hope it brings in a sense that revitalization is happening and businesses and investors can come in without city assistance."

The team will share their initial recommendations for the area Friday evening with a full plan provided later this year. Team members are volunteering their time with the cost of the workshop picked up by Citizen's Energy.