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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowMore than 360 new single-family homes could be built on 155 acres between Thompson Road and Edgewood Avenue by a local builder looking to create two subdivisions on the far-southeast side of Indianapolis.
Indianapolis-based Westport Homes Inc. plans to ask the city’s Metropolitan Development Commission for approval Wednesday to rezone two tracts of land for two separate projects near Wanamaker. Together, the developments would create about 364 single-family lots.
According to public documents, one development would be along the southwest corner of Hickory and East Thompson Roads’ intersections with Southeastern Avenue. That subdivision, called Fields at New Bethel, would have around 179 homes on 75.5 acres, though original plans called for about 204 homes.
The Fields at New Bethel is expected to have an average lot size of 9,410 square feet, or nearly 0.22 acres. The minimum lot size would be around 7,200 square feet, or 0.17 acres. The neighborhood would include sidewalks along all streets, nearly a half-a-mile of walking paths and five acres of ponds.
The other project, Edgewood Farms, would be north of East Edgewood Avenue—directly southwest of the Fields subdivision—and would have 185 homes on nearly 80 acres. Earlier plans called for about 196 homes.
Edgewood Farms would feature an average lot size similar to that of Fields, at 9,221 square feet, or 0.21 acres. Similarly, its minimum lot size would be about 7,200 square feet. Edgewood would feature extensive common areas and park space—about 25.6 acres. It would also have about 6.3 acres of ponds and a walking path of more than three-quarters of a mile.
Both projects are expected to connect into another Westport-built subdivision along East Thompson and South Franklin roads called the Village at New Bethel. The projects will include shared roads with existing or planned roads extending into the new developments.
Homes in the Village at New Bethel range from about 1,564 square feet to 3,395 square feet, with prices starting around $208,000.
The under-construction subdivision will feature about 275 parcels in its first phase, but another 133 homes are planned for 34 acres of undeveloped agricultural land to the south, according to separate plat-related documents filed with the city. Those plans have been approved by the city’s Plat Committee, but have not yet gone before the hearing examiner.
Locally-based Shoopman Homes also has a 100-unit development called The Village of (not at) New Bethel directly north of Westport’s subdivision that has three lots remaining. The unaffiliated developments are connected to one another by the north-south New Bethel Boulevard.
Both projects up for approval this week are currently zoned D-A, or dwelling agricultural, but approval from the MDC would change that designation to D-4, for single-family residential neighborhoods.
City staff is recommending the MDC approve the developments, subject to certain conditions.
Each would require a traffic study be submitted within 60 days of the commission’s approval. The city’s Department of Public Works would have to approve the studies’ findings before road construction could begin.
For the Edgewood project, the city also asked for a 60-foot right-of-way designation along East Edgewood Avenue and a new pedestrian path within any easements.
The rezones will require final approval from City-County Council, if approved by the MDC.
A representative for Westport referred all questions about the three projects to the builder’s parent company, Texas-based D.R. Horton. A representative for D.R. Horton did not respond to an email requesting comment.
The firm—which bills itself as America’s largest homebuilder—is listed on both rezoning applications, under the name D.R. Horton – Indiana LLC.
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No more vinyl villages on the southeast side!!!!! We’re tired of being the cash cow for Marion County – taxes increasing but no enhancements to the community. Where are the businesses? Where are the stores? Where are the restaurants? They keep building subdivision after subdivision without any infrastructure enhancement, no additional schools, no additional roads, no additional businesses. People moved to the southeast corner of Marion Co. so they could get out of suburbia and have a somewhat rural feel. The areas that they are building these two subdivisions will create unbelievable traffic issues on roads that are not good to begin with. Additionally, that area of the township currently has a real drainage issue, yards and fields flooding, etc., because the subdivisions cut in to the field tile and completely ruin any type of drainage system that was in place.
If one notices the problems with rent and house affordability all help to put more homeless people on the downtown streets of Indianapolis. There have to be homes built in all price ranges. This is the problem in places such as California. Its true that not enough higher end housing is being constructed on the southeast side but that is a biased pattern that has existed in Marion County since the 19th century. Yes, that would be the 1800s. The southside gets the short-schrif it seems no matter what.
Developers, though are not philanthropists and are in business to make money. They build where there is a chance for growth and to make a profit. The developers that specialize in stores and restaurants usually follow the houses and people. Traffic issues need to be addressed at the city/county level. Anyone critical of this, needs to get involved. The advent and use of roundabouts has helped immensely when it comes to preventing choke points. However, at some point, the roads do end in an intersection with a light and with that, a back-up. Major new road construction, other than interstates, has not been seen in Marion County for some time other than on the west side of town. Actually this is in Hendricks county with the construction of the Ronald Reagan Expressway. This kind of roadway construction is costly, time consuming and means displacement of many residences and businesses if placed in developed areas. The east side of Marion County, from Lawrence all the way down into Warren and Franklin Townships, is pretty packed in most places. Major east/west roads south of Raymond Street are pretty limited and would have to be expanded extensively to handle additional traffic. This type of thing happened on the north side where Hamilton and Marion Counties meet on 96th and 116th streets back in the late nineties and early 2000s. This has yet to happen on the south side though.
Growing up in central Indiana most of my life, I know just how much people around here love mass transit; which is not much. However Indianapolis is going through what eastern cities experienced over 100 years ago and that is an increase in population density. Without some sort of mass transit, the roads reach a point where they will no longer support the amount of traffic generated by the population living there, if they all intend to drive cars. It sounds harsh but it is true. Believe me, I am not a big supporter of mass transit. It is expensive, not only to build but to maintain. They rarely ever pay for themselves but they do allow more people to live on less acreage without constant gridlock. Central Indiana has always had the ability to constantly move ever outward taking up more and more space, sort of like the “Megalopolis” described in the 1960s and 70s. The building of “vinyl villages” as so described is simply filling in the spaces not already taken up with development.
As for the issue of drainage and flooding, Marion County really does demand and gets compliance with necessary drainage. It just so happens that the highest groundwater levels exist on the south side of Marion County. Or should I say the greatest unresolved ground water issues exist there. People seem to forget that Indianapolis and most of Marion County, was, before being settled and developed, one large swamp. It is where a number of smaller streams and tributaries intersected the White River before flowing south. The City itself was drained and large storm piping was established again in the 19th century. It is just now being renovated and upgraded after languishing for over 60 years in an inadequate condition. The southside has not had the same scale of drainage issues solved.
The builders of these new developments cannot just go and build without presenting a drainage plan to the City/County government. These plans are rigorously examined and they are not allowed to “ruin” any drainage that was already in place. One thing these housing developments do accomplish is the construction of detention and retention ponds which go a long way toward containing and slowing down the flow of water during large rainfall instances. Speed is one of the important issues when it comes to flooding. The slower the water moves, the more capable the piping, streams and other conveyances can handle it.
To find out issues and get the answers and results that people expect means they need to get involved in community government and not simply complain. Its not easy, nor effortless or painless.
How many new classrooms will be needed?
The schools (elementary, middle school and high school) are maxed out. They keep putting in neighborhoods but don’t increase schools.
GREAT! (read sarcastically). More trees mowed down. The lots will be tiny & very little space between houses. All builders are the same. Flatten the land, small lots and lots of money.