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City officials on Monday released a long-anticipated request for developers to submit ideas for reuse of the 28-story Indianapolis City-County Building, along with studies that show it would take more than $35 million in basic upgrades to repurpose the structure.
The request for information was issued at the same time the city released an extensive, 196-page analysis of Old Indianapolis City Hall that estimates it could take an investment in the range of $36 million to nearly $55 million to redevelop that property into an office building with event space.
Officials said the future of the Old City Hall would be driven in part by the outcome of the City-County Building request for information because it is possible some local government offices could move into a redeveloped city hall building after they vacate the City-County Building.
The downtown City-County Building’s future has been in question since at least 2018, when work began on the new Community Justice Campus about three miles southeast of the city’s core, which will leave the building at 200 E. Washington St. half-empty when most law enforcement and criminal justice agencies move in early 2022.
Officials want developers’ best proposals on how to turn the 734,500-square-foot structure into residential or a mixed-use space, according to the formal request for information. The city is seeking ideas for projects that can be supported by the market and give downtown an economic boost.
“The potential redevelopment of the CCB will be transformative for downtown Indianapolis as a whole and the Market East District,” reads the request. “Overall, this project must add to the vibrancy and diversity of downtown, Indy’s fastest growing residential neighborhood.”
Developers will need to include possible building uses and development opportunities and challenges, plus answer more targeted questions on environmental sustainability, historical significance and how reuse will “positively impact the City Market,” which is across Market Street from the City-County Building.
According to a 2016 strategic plan, the city considers the historic Indianapolis City Market the anchor of the Market East District, established in 2014.
The area has seen significant investment in recent years, with the completion of the $9 million Lugar Plaza south of the City-County Building, IndyGo’s $27.4 million Julia M. Carson Transit Center and the $120 million 360 Market Square tower—along with a multi-stage rebuild of East Market Street underway.
In response to the city’s request, developers can also outline the incentives they’d want and estimate the cost of making their vision happen.
It will take a hefty chunk of change.
The City-County Building was completed in 1962, nearly 60 years ago, for $22 million dollars. That’s about $190 million in today’s currency.
An American Structurepoint assessment of the property’s condition estimates deferred maintenance and necessary repairs could cost $13.4 million. Converting the building from a government headquarters to a new use would take $29.8 million, the locally-based engineering and design firm estimated.
The conversion cost includes about $7.2 million for the 621-space underground parking structure and $1.1 million to divide the tower and its east and west wings into separate buildings. There is also asbestos in the tiles beneath the current floor finishes—and in the spray-on fireproofing on the underside of each floor level. Fire-protection fixes would cost about $15 million, the 95-page report estimated, for a total of $42.6 million in recommended upgrades.
In another assessment, Chicago-based Environmental Systems Design estimated that it would take at least $35.6 million to get the building’s mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems, as well as its fireproofing, up to date and up to code. Air-distribution system upgrades to enable tenant leasing would add an estimated $16.9 million, according to the 81-page assessment.
Both assessments noted that the building’s components were largely in good condition for their age, but that many elements, such as the garage sprinkler system and the elevator controls, were original—and therefore past usage life or technologically “obsolete.”
The Indianapolis-Marion County Building Authority will offer two tours of the building later this month, according to the request. Questions are due Oct. 13, and submissions are due Oct. 25.
Old City Hall
The new assessment of Old City Hall looks at what it would take to turn the 90,000-square-foot historic building at 202 N. Alabama St. into a “grey box”—a real estate industry term used to describe a building that’s largely move-in ready, but requires some tenant improvements like flooring and painting.
The “grey box” concept, as proposed, would allow for cultural and arts space, government offices, incubator space and not-for-profit offices, along with event areas. The costs could be reduced by anywhere from an estimated $3.8 million to $7.3 million if the work is done as a singular project, rather than in phases, according to the assessment by New York-based advisory firm JS Held LLC.
The biggest line items to reposition the 111-year-old property would include repairing windows and walls, an update to the water source heat pump system, modernizing the electrical systems, new fire safety systems and creating new restrooms.
The proposed use is similar to what was considered for the building in 2015, when Louisville-based 21c Museum Hotels was eyeing a 149-room hotel for the city-owned parking lot adjacent to the building, as part of a larger redevelopment project. That deal was abandoned after the city and the hotelier couldn’t reach an agreement over incentives for the project.
JS Held’s assessment also indicated a belief that development of the parking lot immediately north of the building, at 222 N. Alabama St., could help fund the restoration and improvements of the structure, with a variety of potential uses—mixed-use, hotel, and multifamily developments, among them.
The assessment also said to solely maintain the building as a mothballed historical facility would cost $3.3 million to $4.2 million to cover some deferred maintenance such as facade repairs, roof upgrades and mechanical system replacements or improvements.
A linked future
Officials said the future of Old City Hall and the City-County Building are linked.
“Until we know what’s happening with this [City-County] building, we don’t know what’s going to happen with Old City Hall,” City Controller Ken Clark told IBJ. “It’s obviously a valuable historic asset in [the Department of Metropolitan Development’s] ownership.”
Old City Hall has been largely vacant since 2007, when it was last used as a temporary site for the Indianapolis Public Library, during an expansion and renovation to the downtown central branch. Prior to that, it was the longtime home for the Indiana State Museum.
It has not been used by the city of Indianapolis for municipal operations since the construction of the City-County Building in 1962, with the exception of DMD’s bicentennial planning committee from 2018 to 2020. It was also home to a major arts event that ran concurrent with the 2012 Super Bowl.
The building has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1974 and under protection of the Indianapolis Historic Preservation Commission since 2017.
“I think you could very much see next year, us looking at if we’re going to have city or county offices in Old City Hall, or if we’re going to be seeking some kind of private-public use,” said Scarlett Martin, director of the DMD. “Old City Hall, unfortunately, has some deferred maintenance, because it hasn’t been occupied—we haven’t had to make those investments, but there’s a lot of investment to be made.”
Even if some government offices were to locate in the 90,000-square-foot building, it will not be large enough to house the government agencies now in the City-County building that won’t be moving to the new Community Justice Campus.
“It is not remotely the size that we need,” Clark said. “… It’s very clear that it would be a major undertaking. So I know that that’s what everyone—everyone dances around it, but it’s extremely inefficiently laid out and a very small space … in comparison to what we need for the remainder of city-county government.”
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Bull doze it…. It’s served its purpose..
This is the kind of mentality that kills cities.
Sell it
Nobody wants a dilapidated 60-year old building that still has some asbestos in it. They couldn’t even pay anyone to take it.
I think it’s insane to consider repurposing half of the C-C Building into multifamily. Who would want to live in a building shared with government offices, and all that goes with that?
Also wonder how much money has been paid out to consulting firms for all these repurposing studies.
The vast majority of new high rise structures are mixed use… Having a single occupancy type structure is the exception, not the rule.
Shared with local government offices? No thank you!
Old City Hall would make a beautiful museum/arts facility.
It’ll make a beautiful government administration building once the City sells the CCB
The convenience of Jim Irsay just announcing he would like to have a museum downtown, just made the Old City Hall a viable location for the Irsay Museum! Go Jim and use your influence, a perfect location for your $100 Million collection!!
It seems if we could see the amount of leases and rent the city pays to private developer owned buildings that house the many city and county departments and offices, the need for alternative uses in the CCB may not be needed. Move Indy Parks, DPW, Neighborhood Services-Code enforcement, etc., all back into the building they were intended to be in. Centralizing government offices, and a single public access to these offices, would bring the vibrance and vitality back and mostly fill the building again.
It’s also never been clearly stated is the IMPD to stay at the CCB, or move to the CJC? Makes sense to keep IMPD there! Of course the Sheriff will move to the CJC.
Kevin, sadly your idea makes too much sense.
Kevin is 200% on point.
It could be financially feasible for a developer to purchase the current City-County building at a low-ball price taking into account the cost of the deferred maintenance, gut the building and rehab it into a mix of office suites/co-working spaces on floors 2-3 with a hotel occupying floors 4-14 and affordable (i.e., not a la Conrad) condominiums on floors 15-27 topped by a restaurant on the 28th. If Keystone can convert the former AT&T apartments into retail, parking, and apartments, then such a make-over of the CCB is doable. As for relocating the city-county functions, the old City Hall makes the most sense if the adjacent parking lot (also already owned by the city) is used for a newly-built, modern multi-story addition with underground parking at whatever size is needed to accommodate the functions and people to bring all city and county functions into one site.
The 21C was an excellent use for the old City Hall. Not sure why the deal feel through. There has not been a better proposed use. These hotels are so unique and is needed in Downtown Indy. The empty parking lot to the north if not a hotel could be an excellent condo/apartment project. The plaza in front of the City County building has become a hangout for homeless unfortunately. I’m sure that would make it less desirable for housing.
(Different Robert H. here)
It fell through because 21C got denied for the 21C federal grant that their business model relies on. The city should move back there if they can. Donate the building to a developer and let them put forth the $35m to redevelop – that is about the same cost as Carmel’s new Keystone/465 interchange.
People pay $5k/month to live across the street from the jail. A few homeless people hanging out in the park at the CCB isn’t going to scare people away who already want to live in a city. And I’d wager that there will be fewer homeless people hanging out there when city offices move and the jail isn’t releasing people right there.
Robert H.-
Real estate is all about location, location, location. The CCB has that and more. As a private property, I would imagine a tall wrought iron fence and tall evergreens would close the south plaza to the public. Problem solved.
The folks basically wanting the city to give the CCB away have got to be joking. Or are jokes. Kind of hard to tell.
Muncie is trying to repurpose a jail to mixed-use, that’s crazier than repurposing this place.
We all know it’s going to get redeveloped into multi-family apartments and mixed use commercial. It’s just a matter of grants/funding/tax breaks to get the deal done. Robert, nailed it on the head with his comment about the 21C Hotel. The location is amazing and people love older buildings repurposed into apartments.
I can’t imagine how converting the CCB to residential would have a positive impact on the City Market compared to having office workers there.
The improvements that are described sound like features that are needed in the building even at its current use. You only need to spend a day at jury duty to discover that the bathrooms are so limited that they have a male restroom on one floor, female on next, etc. And even then, the bathrooms are much too small for the building capacity. Same goes for the windows and heating, both needed for efficient heating and cooling. The building’s current systems cause some rooms to be very cold while others are extremely hot. I can only imagine what it took to piece together a modern electrical and internet system in that building. Any future use of the building will require these improvements.
“Deferred maintenance”. What a statement. Taxpayers pay millions & millions of dollars that the city can’t use to maintain property yet spend hundreds of million dollars to go build something shiny and new. CCB BS is a microcosm of how government operates. City council basically just wrote a 126 million dollar blank check to build more offices!! FIX WHAT YOU HAVE & STAY IN YOUR BUDGETS!
Would be totally phenomenal if government was run like a business. Poor management, lack of vision, no accountability and demand more money! VERY Poor excuse and modeling for leadership.
Its a good basic building. It was cheaply built and finished. It was a typical 60s steel building that looked like dozens of others at the time. Indy does not have a good habit of going for top flight buildings. You don’t tear down a building of this size because you have a bunch of morons here that don’t know what they are talking about. Plus it cost this city the demolition of the old Courthouse which was a prize. If for no other reason than knocking down a masterpiece to put this up. You re-develop it only this time you trick it out and make it the building and place it should have been to begin with. Don’t cut it cheap. Put 100 to 150 million into it. Make it a place to go to use or even put high residences on the upper floors. Don’t mess this up. Indy has to get its collective heads where they belong and do the right thing.
Tear it Down! Come up to Date!!!! Towers!!!! Residential mixed use with shopping,food and entertainment!!! All over the whole county!!! Call in investors from all over the Globe to come transform the whole county!!!!!!!!