Mayor Greg Ballard recently joined Indianapolis Downtown Inc. to outline a goal of creating Indy’s 7th cultural district to be called Market East.
The district centers on new development taking place on and around the former Market Square Arena site.
“As we see in our other great cultural districts, urban residents want unique places to live, work, shop and dine,” said Mayor Ballard. “Market East will be an area of architectural and urban planning excellence that will help Indy attract new people and companies to this thriving area of downtown.”
Market East will build on the great architectural history of the City Market and old City Hall and add new signature structures like the IndyGo Downtown Transit Center, the Market Square North Tower, Cummins global distribution headquarters and the newly completed first phase of the Artistry Project.
City leaders anticipate Market East will, over time, become a cultural focal point similar to that of the existing cultural districts: Broad Ripple Village, The Canal and White River State Park, Fountain Square, Indiana Avenue, Mass Ave and Wholesale District.
“Just as our Velocity plan referenced, Market East is about to become one of the hottest addresses in the state of Indiana,” said Sherry Seiwert, president of Indianapolis Downtown Inc. “From the continued vibe of the City Market to the growth and energy coming from our other Market East stakeholders, the focus and naming of Market East will harness this collective urban momentum and create something truly fantastic that will impact and help redefine Downtown for years to come.”
In order to provide a signature public greenspace in this new district, the city is launching a competition to redesign the plaza at the City-County Building. The current plaza bordering Washington Street is deteriorating.
The competition will be funded by a $50,000 grant from the Central Indiana Community Foundation through its Inspiring Places Initiative. Once a design is chosen, the city will begin seeking partners and funding for construction of the project.
Final designs will be reviewed by a panel of local city stakeholders. The winning design is expected to be announced in October.
Details on the submission deadlines and requirements are available on line at marketeastindy.com/ccbplaza.
