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A local developer plans to spend at least $60 million to create an expansive, upscale apartment complex on the southern side of the Marion County and Hamilton County border, with the potential for office uses along Interstate 465.
J.C. Hart Co. Inc. plans to build the 376-unit project at the southeast corner of 96th Street and Westfield Boulevard, on 15.2 acres of wooded land the Carmel-based firm now has under contract. The property will have the addresses of 9495 and 9530 Kerwood Drive.
Initial plans for the development call for seven apartment buildings and a clubhouse, although an alternative plan includes four apartment buildings, the clubhouse and two headquarters-type office buildings fronting the Interstate.
John Hart, president of the firm, said he expects the development to cost about $66 million, but said that figure could change depending on the ultimate configuration—either all apartments or including office space. He said the firm does not expect to request incentives from the city of Indianapolis for the project.
The apartment units are likely to be priced at or above market-rate, he said.
“We have looked at this area for some time and felt, due to [its] visibility … it would be a perfect location for us to build an upscale apartment community,” Hart said. “Because of the location—we’re right at the very edge of Marion County—in a lot of ways, our property will feel like it’s part of Carmel.”
Plans for the complex include 32 studios, 150 one-bedroom units, 160 two-bedrooms and 34 three-bedroom apartments, although that figure would be modified if office space was incorporated into the project.
The largest building—a five-story, podium construction—would include a first-floor parking garage, while the six other apartment buildings (all of which would be three stories) would have tuck-under parking. In total, there would be about 209 covered parking spaces, at least 379 surface parking spaces and 79 street or parallel parking spaces for a total of 667 spaces.
The 96th Street project will be about three-quarters of a mile east of the Monon Trail, and Hart said he expects some residents to utilize the trail for leisure and work. But he expects most tenants will rely on automobiles due to the suburban nature of the development.
“I think there will be more of a traditional demand for parking,” he said. “Not quite the normal suburban level of parking but probably more than we would expect” in more urban areas like Broad Ripple, downtown or Carmel.
In fact, the parking space-to-unit ratio for the development is just under 1.8. Suburban apartment developments typically have a ratio of 2, he said.
The alternative office plans call for two two-story buildings—one at 21,000 square feet and another at 18,000 square feet—in place of two smaller apartment buildings on the southeastern portion of the property. The office buildings would have a combined surface parking lot with 161 spaces and 10 parallel parking spaces on a roadway running between them.
Hart said the office market will still be recovering from the pandemic as work gets underway on the project, so apartments are a far more likely choice.
He said that if office buildings ultimately are placed there, they would be built for a “signature corporate headquarters” for specific users, rather than on a speculative basis.
“As you might imagine, offices are a really tough use right now,” he said. “Not only since the pandemic but even before that, to make the economics work on office developments can be very challenging.”
The developer said the company has had “a tremendous amount of success” with its Carmel apartment properties, such as the Midtown Flats, Legacy Towns and Flats, and Lakeside Apartments. The firm has also developed a handful of projects in Indianapolis and elsewhere in central Indiana, including The Line Urban Flats, a project along the Monon Trail in Broad Ripple that opened in November.
Hart said the project’s size means multiple phases or stages of construction will likely be necessary. A timeline has not yet been finalized for the project’s development.
J.C. Hart is expected to seek approval from the city of Indianapolis Metropolitan Development Commission on Wednesday to rezone the land from the DA (dwelling agriculture) designation to DP for a planned development.
City-County Councilor Keith Potts, District 2, said in a letter to the commission he supports the project and the rezoning effort.
Indianapolis-based Blackline Studio is the architect on the project, with Kimley-Horn as a design and engineering consultant. Storie Co. Development is a consulting firm on the project.
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Interesting another major apartment complex going up in the suburbs. I thought the hipsters were all about living downtown?
Kudos for being in Marion County. But who is going to rent an “upscale” apartment next to the interstate?
Interesting that you think Indianapolis is full of “hipsters” (said no one else, ever). And, the north side has long been the preferred location for residential and business development.
Use of hipsters seem to date you to may the 60’s.
Not everyone is 25 years old, and not everyone works downtown.
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There are only 100,000-150,000 jobs downtown and hundreds of thousands more distributed around the suburban areas of the metro.
I did not mean for my other comment to be in reply to Chuck W.’s
Your point is well taken when I look a that drawing I think the same thing. I certainly wouldn’t pay a premium to live next to a noisy interstate with a small strip of trees to separate, but I’ve also wondered that about all the expensive houses butting up to I465. It must be something people are ok with.
Great idea but details are few and questions numerous. Upscale with ‘luxury’ residences facing an ocean of parking? If the majority of parking were underground or in structures and each unit faced a greenway or natural area, the ‘upscale’ description might be appropriate. The graphic representation in this article reflects a so-called lifestyle center, at best, or an unremarkable shopping plaza. What, pray tell, is attractive about what’s depicted.
Luxury apartments right next to 465? I don’t see how they’ll be charging above market rate for that. It might be close to the Monon trail, but good luck with that daily run when you’re breathing in smog from the freeway every day.
People who move there will see it as an amenity since it allows for an easy commute, and access to the rest of the city. And, I am sure the development will have significant buffers and landscaping. It’s not like someone is going to have a window 5 feet from the road. But, yes, there will be some noise, etc., and people will still pay high rents to live there.
Well I guess we’ll just have to agree to disagree, and see what rents they end up getting if it’s built. I just don’t know anyone who would pay above market rate to live next to a freeway. Sure, there are luxury apartments in Downtown Indy close to the freeways, but that’s Downtown. People move there knowing it’ll be noisy, but worth it for the ability to walk to amenities they value. I feel like people moving to suburban areas generally like quiet. I think it’d be a better location for slightly below market rate apartments, or Class A office buildings. There’s a reason you don’t see luxury apartments surrounding the rest of 465.
Hope they use heavy masonry and triple glazed windows or this landlord will be holding onto an experiment in very short-term leases. Ask me how I know.
how do you know?
The road noise will be continuous and elevated, and not likely to be moderated much by design, landscaping, etc.
these comments are comical and narrow minded at best.Just because you woulndnt live in these apartments doesnt mean others wouldnt see this as an alternitive to living downtown. I would like to point out the issue folks from out of town have with Hoosiers and thier backwards outdated mindset. Theres plenty of cities around the country that has this exact same concept.If indy is to grow and compete with its peer cities then it must have a wide varity of amenities that fits the needs of all walks of life and especially attract to out oft owners.Most people from out of town will judge the city on if theres things here they can relate to and that reminds them of the quality of life they had wherever they relocated from.
My wife and i were looking at apartments a few years back and we found one along US-31 in Carmel. We commented on how quiet it was even though 31 was right there. I think with the right building materials and whatnot, they can minimize the noise of the interstate.
I’m really disgusted that the developer for this is ruining a very pretty and greatly needed area of natural habitat, full of native trees and wildflowers. The enormous hh gregg site is right down the road, screaming for something to be done, as is the five seasons property, desperate for redevelopment, with a pool already in place that could be used for these “upscale” interstate-lookers. Shame on the planning commission for only seeing dollar signs and not actually giving any thought whatsoever to good planning!
When is this coming?