Lennar seeks to build 168 homes at former Balmoral Golf Club in Fishers

Plans for Balmoral Village call for 66 single-family houses and 102 town houses. (Image courtesy city of Fishers)

The central Indiana office of Florida-based Lennar Homes is working on a plan to build an $80 million housing development with 168 residential lots at the former Balmoral Golf Club in Fishers.

Lennar’s plans call for 66 new single-family houses and 102 new townhouses at Balmoral Village on 44.4 acres north of East 96th Street between Allisonville Road and Indianapolis Metropolitan Airport.

The Fishers City Council on Monday heard an introduction of plans to rezone the property from R2-Residential to the Balmoral Village Planned Unit Development. A planned unit development, or PUD, is a zoning tool that defines and regulates proposed development and guides developers on permitted uses and design standards.

Taylor Navarre, a land entitlement manager with Lennar, told council members that single-family houses at Balmoral Village would be a mix of one- and two-story homes ranging from 2,000 to 3,000 square feet that would cost between $500,000 and $700,000. The three-story town houses would range from 1,700 to 2,300 square feet and cost between $400,000 and $500,000. All homes in the development would be built with rear-load garages and served by alleyways.

“There’s a lot of good momentum here along the Allisonville corridor, and we’re here for a reason,” Navarre said. “We think that the market is ready for these types of homes and will do very well to serve the needs the market demands.”

Two entrances to the neighborhood are planned for Willow View Road, while another entrance off Allisonville Road onto Hamilton Hills Lane would lead into the neighborhood.

Rick Lawrence, an attorney with the Carmel-based law firm Nelson & Frankenberger representing Lennar, said Balmoral Village will have several pocket parks within the development, which is within walking distance of the Nickel Plate Trail, Cheeney Creek Natural Area and the future Fishers White River Park near East 96th Street and Allisonville Road.

Balmoral Village would be built on an estate owned by Rick and Diane Eaton, who operate Balmoral House, a wedding and events venue on the property. The site has been in Rick Eaton’s family since the early 1940s, when his grandfather purchased the land. Balmoral Golf Club, an exclusive nine-hole golf course, operated from 1998 to 2019 on the land where the housing development is planned.

Corby Thompson, owner of Fishers-based Boomerang Development LLC, also gave a presentation and said the Eatons decided to sell the property because it became difficult for them to maintain.

Balmoral Village would be located along the Allisonville Road corridor, which city leaders are looking to revitalize between East 96th and East 126th streets. The city recently opened a new roundabout at East 96th Street and Allisonville Road, which replaced an unpopular Michigan left turn at the intersection.

Carmel-based CRG Residential’s River Place at 96th and Allisonville will feature a 380-unit apartment complex with seven buildings, 66 town houses and three commercial buildings with 32,500 square feet of space and 170 parking spaces.

“This area has been fairly stagnant in terms of new for-sale housing options over the last decade,” Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness said in written remarks. “As we invest in refreshing this important corridor along the southwestern portion of our community with amenities like Fishers White River Park and the upcoming Nickel Plate Trail connection to Indianapolis, it’s important that we also invest in the residential options in this area.”

Lennar Homes is the busiest home builder in the Indianapolis area, with 2,120 single-family building permits filed in 2023.

A neighborhood meeting to discuss plans for Balmoral Village is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Dec. 11 at Balmoral House. The Fishers Plan Commission is scheduled hold a public hearing at its meeting on Jan. 8. The rezoning request is expected to return to the Fishers City Council on Jan. 21 for a final vote.