Renovations are now underway at the former Indianapolis Veterans Administration hospital as part of a $137 million investment aimed at revitalizing the Near Northwest neighborhood.
Marian University and the Cold Spring Innovation Corporation hosted a construction kick-off event to mark the start of the project, which seeks to transform the historic site into a center for lifelong learning.
Supported by public and private funding, the initiative includes over $38.5 million already committed for both redevelopment and educational programming to benefit schools and families in the area. The effort is part of the broader Riverside Education Innovation District project, which focuses on literacy, early childhood education and workforce development.
Gov. Mike Braun, Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett and Marian University President Daniel Elsener joined other civic leaders at the ceremony to emphasize the project’s impact on the local community.
“I’d like to thank Marian University, the Lilly Endowment and their community partners for spearheading this Riverside Education Innovation District initiative to support literacy, revitalize the former Larue Carter hospital property and improve the Near Northwest Area community,” Braun said.
The Larue Carter property, long vacant, will be converted into a hub offering educational programs for children and adults. Hogsett said the redevelopment brings “a new sense of possibility” to the neighborhood and stressed the importance of improving student literacy.
“Once completed, this will not only revitalize a long vacant property, but it will also bring a new sense of possibility to the Near Northwest side of Indianapolis,” Hogsett said.
Elsener announced a planned partnership with St. Mary’s Early Childhood Center to provide more early learning seats and revealed that Vincennes University intends to establish a career and technical center on the property.
“The data is clear. Increasing educational attainment provides the talent needed to attract investment, opportunity and advance the dignity of everyone in a community,” Elsener said.
The historic restoration is part of a long-term vision to create an innovation district that empowers residents through education and economic opportunity.
To read more like this, click here.
Contact Health & Environmental Reporter Hanna Rauworth at 317-762-7854 or follow her on Instagram at @hanna.rauworth.
Hanna Rauworth is the Health & Environmental Reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper, where she covers topics at the intersection of public health, environmental issues, and community impact. With a commitment to storytelling that informs and empowers, she strives to highlight the challenges and solutions shaping the well-being of Indianapolis residents.
