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The city of Indianapolis is moving ahead with plans to tear down the former Marion County Jail as part of an ongoing effort to redevelop the southeast side of downtown—an area that includes the proposed site for a Major League Soccer stadium.
Demolition of the Marion County Jail I building at 40 S. Alabama St. is set to begin in October and conclude by next summer. The 2-acre site would be made available for potential redevelopment sometime in 2025.
The jail has not housed inmates since January 2022, when those operations moved to the Community Justice Campus in the Twin Aire neighborhood. The Community Corrections Department left in May, making the Indianapolis-Marion County Forensic Services Agency laboratory as the sole remaining tenant. That entity is expected to move to its new home at the CJC in early October.
The city has submitted the demolition plans to the Metropolitan Development Commission’s regional center hearing examiner for approval, with a hearing set for Aug. 15.
Efforts to tear down the jail, which was initially constructed in 1965, come as the city moves ahead with the creation of a taxing district—known as a professional sports development area (PSDA)—to fund a new soccer stadium on the site of the Indianapolis Downtown Heliport and an adjacent parking lot. They are east and southeast of Jail I, respectively.
“The City is excited to be moving forward with the demolition of Jail 1, clearing the way for new development on this important, catalytic property in the heart of downtown on a site that is included in the PSDA for the future MLS stadium,” Megan Vukusich, director of the city’s Department of Metropolitan Development said in a statement via a city spokesperson.
The proposal for the PSDA has already secured local legislative approvals and is set to be submitted to the Indiana Finance Authority, State Budget Committee and State Budget Agency in the coming weeks for approval from those bodies. Funding a stadium would rely in part on collecting certain state taxes.
A stadium would only be built if Indianapolis secured an MLS expansion club. City officials have said they hope a would-be investor group can submit an application to MLS by the end of the year.
The 309,400-square-foot Jail I was built in 1965, with multiple renovations that followed, as well as an eastern expansion that opened in 1983. Inmate cells are located in the basement, as well as on floors two through five.
According to city documents, the demolition would take about nine months to complete. The work would clear the entire above-grade portion of the jail, as well as the removal of standard basement walls, floor slabs and underlying foundations. However, certain reinforced concrete walls along the perimeter of the building may be kept in place due to site constraints.
The sidewalks along Alabama Street, Maryland Street and Delaware Street that surround the jail will also be removed as part of the project, with vehicular lane restrictions put into place along each roadway to establish a perimeter for the project.
The excavated basement is expected to be at least partially filled in, and a security fence will remain in place until a redevelopment plan has been selected.
A city official said a request for proposals from developers for the site will go out in 2025. A plan for redevelopment is expected to be in place within 90 days of the demolition’s completion. As part of redevelopment, the sidewalks around the property would also be reconstructed.
The 180,000-square-foot Jail II complex at 730 E. Washington St. and the 100,000-square-foot Arrestee Processing Center at 752 E. Market St. are slated for redevelopment by 1820 Ventures LLC as market-rate and below-market-rate housing, as well as an entertainment complex.
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No mention of the tunnel from the jail to CC building, assuming it’s still there?
Tear that albatross jail down as soon as possible!
Thank goodness. Get rid of that eye sore.
I’m not a big fan of the City’s RFP process. They should just put it on the market at a reasonable price and sell it.
Agreed, and then someone can build housing… not a stadium!
It’s a government asset/public good and by ordinance/law it has to go out to bid if they are selling it or removing ownership. Can’t just put a for sale sign on it. That is why surplus items (furniture computers etc) have to go out on public surplus auction sites.
The RFP process ensures that land isn’t banked, which is a serious problem around this town.
Could use it for the “low barrier” homeless shelter. It’s ready now. Safe and secure. [It’s not too late to avoid millions of dollars in needless demolition and needless construction.]
It’s a disgusting, cramped, and soulless place; it’s not fit for housing people who need actual care and help.
This place isn’t even fit for prisoners anymore, let alone people haven’t gotten in legal trouble but need help.