Category: Blog

People gathered for commuity meeting

Promise Zone Bus Tour Promotes Redevelopment of Industrial Sites

On Friday, September 13th, a group of nearly 50 community partners and developers took a bus tour of the Promise Zone, stopping at many former industrial sites. The tour was used to highlight the development opportunities offered by the abundance of sites in the Promise Zone that once housed industrial operations. The tour stopped at

Read More »
Governor's Workforce Cabinet meeting

Governor’s Workforce Cabinet Awards to Help Fund Career Coaching Strategy on Near Eastside

On Thursday, August 22nd, the Governor’s Workforce Cabinet announced nearly $1 million in career coaching planning and implementation grants. Among the awardees were the John Boner Neighborhood Centers, awarded a $10,000 planning grant, and Indianapolis Public Schools, awarded a $503,854.95 implementation grant. Indianapolis Public Schools is one of the ten implementation partners for the IndyEast

Read More »
Makers and Artist Space

201 Studios Provides Makers and Artists with Space to Work and Grow

The Near Eastside is home to a wide variety of former industrial sites. As the economy has shifted throughout the past half-century, many industrial facilities have been abandoned or sold by their original owners, oftentimes leading to destruction and decay. While these old sites and buildings pose a challenge to the redevelopment process of the

Read More »
Factory workers

RecycleForce Set to Use Federal Funds for Reentry Job Training

On July 17, 2019, the US Department of Labor (DOL) announced nearly $86 million in grant awards through its Reentry Projects program, including a $1.5 million award to Indianapolis-based RecycleForce. RecycleForce is a social enterprise located on the Near Eastside of Indianapolis that focuses on the environmentally-sustainable disposal and destruction of electronics. Though electronic recycling

Read More »
Person planting seeds

EPA Investment Highlights Variety of Redevelopment Opportunities on Near Eastside

The recent award of a Brownfields Multipurpose Grant to the City of Indianapolis marks the fifth investment by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) since 2015 that will directly affect the IndyEast Promise Zone (IEPZ). This latest award represents a continuing commitment to environmental remediation and redevelopment by the EPA, the City, and our community.

Read More »
Minnie Hartmaan Senior Apartments

Now Open: Minnie Hartmann Center, Affordable Senior Housing

Near East Area Renewal (NEAR) and development partner TWG have completed the housing portion of the Minnie Hartmann Center, a multifamily senior affordable housing building redeveloped from IPS School #78. The Minnie Hartmann Center consists of 64 affordable rentals for adults 55 and older. The Center will also include a full-day childcare center for 150+

Read More »
People walking through park

A New Life for Sherman Park

For most of the past century, the 50-acre parcel on the northwest corner of Michigan Street and Sherman Drive on the Near Eastside of Indianapolis was a bustling economic hub. Having hosted General Electric (GE), the RCA Corporation (formerly the Radio Corporation of America), and Thomson Consumer Electronics in succession, the tract was a worksite

Read More »
Building with flag

Façade Grants Enhance Appeal of Near Eastside Commercial Spaces

Aging Commercial Spaces in Eastside of Indianapolis Many commercial spaces in the IndyEast Promise Zone have been around for several decades, longer than even their most resilient tenants. Peeling paint, burned-out lights, cracked windows, dead plants, and other indicators of deterioration are telltale signs of their age, especially at sites that have been vacant for

Read More »
People gathered at an art show

Hoy Polloy Brings Accessible, Community-Curated Art to St. Clair Place

The Near Eastside of Indianapolis is home to artists of all disciplines and experience levels, but nonetheless has a dearth of permanent spaces specifically dedicated to community-oriented artistry and art exhibition. Hoy Polloy, an artist-run gallery, performance venue, and event space at 2121 East 10th Street, was established by Near Eastside community members in the

Read More »