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The city of Indianapolis plans to move about 550 workers from satellite locations around the city into the City-County Building by the end of 2024, Mayor Joe Hogsett’s office announced Monday.
IBJ first reported this month that the city had scrapped a redevelopment plan for the 28-story structure in favor of consolidating workers in the building. The tower was left nearly half-empty last year when the courts moved to the new Community Justice Campus.
The three-phased move is intended to create a dense grouping of professionals in the core of downtown and save taxpayer dollars, the city said Monday. The city estimated it would save $450,000 on office leases annually beginning in 2024.
The first phase includes the Engineering Division of the Department of Public Works, the Planning Division of Indy Parks, and the entirety of the Department of Business and Neighborhood Services, all of which currently reside at privately-leased space at 1200 Madison Ave. About 300 workers will move during Phase 1, which will be complete by the end of 2023, the city said.
The city leases the Madison Avenue space for $1.3 million per year. The city estimates the first move will cost about $2 million, including moving expenses, space buildout and furniture.
The second phase of the consolidation plan will see Marion County Community Corrections and about 150 employees move roughly a block, from nearly 29,000 square feet at the former Jail I—slated for demolition next year—to space on the sixth floor of the City-County Building, alongside the Marion County Clerk.
The cost for that move has not been projected. It will be completed by the end of 2024, the city estimated.
In a third phase, 96 workers from IMPD Downtown District will move to the east wing of the City-County Building by the end of 2024. IMPD Downtown District is currently in historic Union Station at 93 W. Jackson Place. The city’s Department of Metropolitan Development will explore “creative redevelopment opportunities” for the Union Station space.
The five-floor west wing of the City-County Building is vacant. The city is said it is conducting a comprehensive analysis of the space.
By the end of 2024, the City-County Building is expected to be more than 90% occupied.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include the 96 employees from the IMPD Downtown District.
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If the city is vacating the 1200 S Madison Ave space which is leased for $1.3MM, why is the total savings only $450k?
There are costs associated with having space in the city county building, in addition to moving costs. Click on the “Scrapped the Developments Plan” link for those details.
I wondered if they figured in the 600k +/- for yearly parking downtown.
Every agency in the CCB pays rent to the Building Authority, which is the quasi-governmental entity which runs the building. The rent is used to pay bonded indebtedness, utilities, insurance, janitorial, upkeep, etc.
The geniuses in local government are apparently working overtime! What an idea! Actually, move government departments into a government owned building that has major vacancy. Who would have thunk???
I’ve got to appreciate the fact that they first looked at the alternatives. There are also may have been some resistance to moving back down to the City-County building and these department heads needed some convincing that it was actually going to be cheaper.
Sorry Dan…the City org chart isn’t a roundtable. No convincing required. There’s one elected guy to whom the appointed department heads report, and if he says “move”, they move (or look for new jobs).
Great for the vendors who have been hanging-on at City Market and those at the Farmers’ Market on Wednesdays.
Isn’t the market closing for much of 2024? Granted it’s across the street, but that forms a large window to establish alternative habits. I’m any event, hopefully a reprogrammed market will be more lively once it does reopen.
Steven
+1
Thinking the same thing. This will be good for the City Market and other
local establishments in close proximity.
Good news
Fantastic news for downtown Indy and the City Market area in particular.
Reading the tea leaves on this a bit. The City-County Building is probably too much set up like an (old) office building which would make it really hard to re-develop. For better or for worse, its probably best to continue using it as office space and get rid of some of these other leases.
If there was a feasible way to get the CCB sold off and re-developed, I wouldn’t be surprised of the city embraced remote work or had a series of satellite offices rather than one central.
The main problem with the CCB is that it is covered in asbestos from top to bottom. Including asbestos tiles covering every square in in the tower.
Many of the government functions in (and returning to) the CCB are citizen/customer facing functions that don’t lend themselves to remote work. The best place to do those things is…an office building in the center of downtown.
Wonder how the city employees who currently have free parking at the off site locations will afford the sky high parking fees for being back downtown? I doubt there are 500 vacant parking spaces in the underground parking garage of the CCB and no where does this article address parking subsidies for the employees as part of the overall costs to move them back. There’s hard costs and then there’s the soft costs. Definitely will be a plus for the Market to have captive customers again, as well as other downtown businesses. Bringing BNS downtown is a plus as well.
I estimate parking could be as high as 600k/year
Almost all CCB employees (that don’t park underground) park at the NE corner of New Jersey and Market. It’s about 20-30 dollars cheaper per month than the other garages that are near the CCB.
At least a few employees will actually take the bus, bike, or walk to work.
The city should use the savings to offer incentives to employees who will actually go back to work full-time (40 hours a week) at the CCB. That would be one way to get people back downtown and help revitalize the core of our city.