5/6/2005
Media Contact:
Justin Ohlemiller, City of Indianapolis, [317] 327-6709
Meghan Keck, Sen. Bayh's office, [202] 494-7930 |
 |
Sen. Bayh, Congresswoman Carson, Mayor Peterson kick-off major revitalization effort on northeast side
Residents, community partners celebrate as neighborhood eyesore is demolished to make way for new, quality, affordable housing
INDIANAPOLIS - U.S. Senator Evan Bayh, Mayor Bart Peterson and Congresswoman Julia Carson joined community partners today in kicking-off an extensive revitalization effort that will breathe new life into the city's northeast side and create hundreds of quality, affordable housing opportunities for residents.
National, state and local leaders celebrated as crews continued work to demolish buildings on site of the former Parkwood apartments, a blighted, dilapidated rental complex located on the 3500 block of East 38th Street in an area known as the Meadows. The structures are being razed to make way for a new housing development, Villages at Mill Crossing, which will create 200 new, affordable rental townhomes and flats.
The multi-million dollar redevelopment of Parkwood, headed up by The Community Builders, Inc. in partnership with United Northeast Community Development Corporation and the city, was made possible by an $8.3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and more than $400,000 in community development block grant funding from the City of Indianapolis.
"The construction work begun today will revitalize a neighborhood, create a new community, and help more Indianapolis families take the next step toward achieving the American Dream of owning their own home," said Sen. Bayh, who played a leading role in securing the federal funding for the project. "I am proud to have played a role, along with Mayor Peterson and Congresswoman Carson, in providing this opportunity to more hardworking Hoosier families."
All of the new housing opportunities at Villages of Mill Crossing will be priced below market rate and will be affordable to a mix of low and moderate income working families. Residents will have access to a variety of services including child day care, after-school programs and career advancement opportunities with area employers. These services, as well as the availability of units for very low-income households, are consistent with the community's efforts to prevent homelessness through implementation of the Blueprint to End Homelessness.
"The development of Villages of Mill Crossing is yet another example of our community's commitment, from both the public and private sectors, to provide more quality affordable housing in Indianapolis and reinvest in neighborhoods that have faced challenging times," said Mayor Peterson, who pledged city support in improving the quality of housing in the Meadows area, including the Parkwood redevelopment, in his Peterson Plan II. "After years of struggling with blight, crime and disinvestment, the future is bright for the Meadows as an infusion of investment -- unlike any seen here in decades -- helps lift up this community."
Peterson pointed out that the Parkwood redevelopment is one piece of a larger Meadows revitalization effort. Another initiative, also part of the overall Villages of Mill Crossing development, is underway that will create 54 new townhomes and rehabilitate another 137 rental units. This redevelopment is taking place at the site of Sherman Forest, an apartment complex just east of Parkwood. In total, the two developments that comprise Villages of Mill Crossing will create or revitalize nearly 400 units and spur more than $35 million of investment in the Meadows area.
"Each thing we can do to renew our neighborhoods helps mend the fabric of our city," Congresswoman Carson said. "Our attention to the quality of housing opportunities affects entire lives, the entire community. This is fortunate funding, filling a vital need, and I greatly appreciate Mayor Peterson's vision and Sen. Bayh's efforts to help make this happen."
The demolition of Parkwood will be finished by the end of May, followed by the construction of entirely new infrastructure, including streets, sidewalks, landscaping and a bus stop. Work on phase one of the new housing development will begin this summer and is expected to be complete by Summer 2006. The entire Parkwood redevelopment is slated for completion by Spring 2008.
Patrick Clancy, President and CEO of Community Builders, which has successfully developed similar projects throughout the Midwest and eastern parts of the country, echoed the comments of the Senator, Mayor and Congresswoman.
"We expect that the investment in Villages of Mill Crossing will lead not only to wonderful housing and a better community for its residents, but a repositioning of the market and a more attractive community across the Meadows and beyond," he said.
Along with Community Builders, the City of Indianapolis, HUD and United Northeast CDC, other contributors to the Parkwood revitalization include the Indiana Housing Finance Authority and Local Initiatives Support Corporation. Goodwill Industries of Central Indiana and United Way of Central Indiana have also been collaborators on the development.
Earlier this year, the Mayor joined Congresswoman Carson and other public and private partners in breaking ground on another major revitalization effort at the site of the former Brokenburr Trails apartments, a southside rental complex that had been plagued for many years by crime and blight. The run-down buildings have been razed to make way for a new mixed-use, mixed-income development that will create 217 quality housing opportunities and approximately 10,000 square feet of retail space.
|
