Downtown Indianapolis Ranks: Number 3! Out of how many cities in this country?

Indianapolis teeters at the top of the list for best downtowns according to the numbers gathered by Livability.com in their Top 10 Best Downtowns of 2014. Their study points out that, “By 2017, downtown Indianapolis expects more than 50 new projects representing an investment of $3 billion. Of these projects, 21 are residential and will add more than 3,200 new homes to the area. Through public and private partnerships, 20 previously unattractive sites have been transformed into landscaped gateways and gardens since 1993.”

New residents calling downtown “home” was one of the biggest reasons Indianapolis climbed to the top of the heap. Creating affordable, clean, safe and friendly places for people laid the groundwork for attracting young professionals and retirees into Indianapolis’ urban center. Driving much of the influx of new residents are visionary developers like Milhaus that have overcome the risks associated with building new downtown residential properties. [Circa](www.liveatcirca.com), [Artistry ](www.artistryindy.com)and [Mozzo](www.mozzoapts.com) were all built on challenging, abandoned building sites. Yet each project is now contributing new life in old neighborhoods downtown.

Downtown residents are not shy in boasting about all the great things the city has to offer. Revitalized historic neighborhoods convinced new business owners to open restaurants, clubs, and urban retail shops. Improvements to infrastructure, especially green spaces and outdoor active spaces like the Cultural Trail and the Canal have become the benchmark for engaging lifestyles. Providing not only places to live, but also areas where people can interact, meet friends and socialize are essential ingredients in the development of communities.

Anyone can build an apartment, but that isn’t what makes people want to live in a particular place. Most developers building residential units downtown understand that people want to live in communities, not just apartments. As a city, we have to do everything in our power to focus on creating and maintaining that support structure for our residents. For example, two initiatives that will have the greatest influence on the quality of life downtown over the next 10 years are the Velocity Plan and Reconnecting to our Waterways. The results produced by the implementation of both of these community-connecting strategies should draw even more people to the core of the city. According to Livability, “the number of people living in downtown Indianapolis is on track to double by 2020.” The job of making neighborhoods has only just begun for downtown Indianapolis, but based on results, we are right on track.