Developer buying homes in Fishers neighborhood for new project

A Carmel-based developer has reached agreements to acquire 14 homes in the Maple Dell neighborhood along busy 116^th Street in Fishers and plans to redevelop the land.

Hageman Group has 14 of the 17 homes in the subdivision under contract, Tom Peck, vice president of Investments for the company, told IBJ. The neighborhood is at Maple Drive on the south side of 116^th Street, west of the shopping plaza that houses Chatham Tap and Pure Eatery. The property is east of the Charleston Commons subdivision.

Peck said Hageman does not yet have specific plans for the neighborhood, but a mixed-use project is a good bet for the area given similar developments in the Nickel Plate District. Hageman has been involved in several mixed-used projects in the area, and was co-developer of the nearby Sparks Apartment project, which features residential, retail and office space in downtown Fishers.

So far, Hageman has not filed official project plans with the city of Fishers, but the two parties are currently reviewing a land-acquisition agreement that would transfer ownership of the properties to the city of Fishers if development plans don’t progress in the next 30 months, said Fishers spokeswoman Ashley Elrod.

For the 14 parcels Hageman has under contract, Fishers would pay $4 million, plus a 6 percent carrying cost. The city also would pay reimbursable expenses, which would be determined over time, Elrod said.

The Fishers Redevelopment Commission has approved the agreement, and it will go before the city council later this month.

Elrod said the city has a vested interest in ensuring something happens with the homes if Hageman’s plans don’t progress, and the agreement acts as an insurance policy to keep them from sitting vacant.

The subdivision is along a prominent corridor that is already seeing significant redevelopment, including Browning Investment’s $157 million mixed-use project for the south and north sides of 116^th Street.

Northwest of the neighborhood, Lennar Homes is building 116 Towns, a 31-unit townhouse development.

Homes in the Maple Dell neighborhood were mostly constructed in the 1950s and 1960s, according to property records.

Peck said Hageman will work with the city to shape the project.

“That’s a prime piece of property where we recognize that something likely is going to happen there,” he said. “It’s a unique opportunity to pull together all those landowners to try to make something happen there.”

He said the company hopes to secure purchase agreements with all 17 landowners but could move forward with a development without acquiring the other three homes.

The sales are expected to close in coming weeks, at which time, the agreement between Hageman and the city goes into effect.