The city is taking redevelopment ideas for the former Oaktree Apartments site on the far east side.
Community feedback gathered in the Oaktree Revitalization Plan, released earlier this year, includes ideas such as housing, restaurants, greenspace, a library, office space and room for recreational activities.
“This request for the information of former Oaktree Apartment site is a step in the right direction as we continue to transform the far eastside of Indianapolis,” City-County Councilor La Kiesha Jackson said at a press conference Dec. 14 at the Community Alliance of the Far Eastside.
Related: What do far east side residents want at former Oaktree Apartments site?
The apartment complex at 42nd Street and Post Road was demolished in 2019 after a yearslong legal battle between the city and London-based owner Indy Diamond LLC. It had been empty since 2014, when the Marion County Health Department condemned the property and the Marion County Superior Court ordered the remaining 46 tenants to move out after the buildings became unlivable from years of neglect.
Before that, there were hundreds of police runs, incident reports and code violations. A tornado in 2008 destroyed nearly 50 units and damaged another 200, and many of the buildings had been destroyed by fires.
The city has spent more $3 million on the 19-acre site since 2018 on demolition and community planning.
“Every neighborhood in Indianapolis is Indianapolis, and each one tells its own story,” Hogsett said.
Responses to the Former Oaktree Apartment Site Request for Information are due to the Department of Metropolitan Development by Jan. 31, 2023. Visit indy.gov/activity/find-bid-opportunities to learn more.
