Two of three Pyramids buildings to open following main break

A water-main break at The Pyramids office complex on the city’s northwest side could keep one of the three buildings closed through Friday.

All three buildings were closed Thursday after the break left water standing in the basement. Water also seeped into the elevators.

Two of the buildings were scheduled to reopen at noon Friday. It was unclear whether the other building would open before the end of the day, said Cheri Shepherd of Cassidy Turley, which manages and leases the complex.

Estimates to repair the damage were unavailable, Shepherd said.

"At this time, we’re just focused on getting things back up and running,” she said.

The Pyramids are owned by New York-based Sterling American Property Inc. At 361,261 square feet, it’s the 25th-largest office complex in the city, according to IBJ statistics.

Water issues have caused numerous problems for businesses around the city in the wake of this week's winter storm.

The Indianapolis Fire Department said 32 commercial buildings in the city have experienced frozen or failed sprinkler systems. In addition, four school buildings in the Indianapolis Public Schools system suffered sprinkler-system failures, IFD said.

IPS is just one of dozens of school systems in the metropolitan area that canceled classes for the entire week due to a combination of heavy snowfall and below-zero temperatures.

State law requires building owners to notify IFD if their sprinkler systems fail and they intend to keep their buildings occupied.

Citizens Energy Group said it has repaired 50 water-main breaks this week and is working on five more. In addition, since Sunday, Citizens has fielded 20 calls about potential leaks and is investigating those calls.

Despite the recent frigid temperatures, a Citizens spokeswoman said the number of water breaks is only slightly above average for this time of year.

The water-main break at the Pyramids was on private property and not one that Citizens had to repair.