Subscriber Benefit
As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe Now
The National Bank of Indianapolis and New Direction Church have formed a partnership aimed at spurring economic activity and improving access to financial services on the northeast side of Indianapolis.
The partnership, announced Wednesday, is part of what the church calls the 38th Street Renaissance—an ongoing initiative to revitalize the surrounding neighborhood and spur new businesses, restaurants, cultural and entertainment offerings.
New Direction’s main campus, at 5330 E. 38th St., is just east of Emerson Avenue in the Devington neighborhood, in a census tract where the median household income in 2022 was $44,107—significantly below the Marion County median household income of $59,504.
“For the bank to come alongside of us and come up with creative ways where we can partner together and kind of help lift our community is something that we embrace and we’re grateful for,” New Direction Pastor Kenneth Sullivan Jr. told IBJ.
In a press conference at the church Wednesday, Sullivan drew a parallel with a passage in the Bible’s book of Isaiah, in which God gives the Israelites a message of hope, promising to make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
“It is a reinvestment in helping people to build a better life and a better future,” Sullivan said of the bank partnership.
Other banks have supported New Direction in the past, Sullivan told IBJ, but The National Bank of Indianapolis’ involvement, which includes both financial support and other resources, is the most extensive bank partnership in the church’s 40-year history.
As part of its support, The National Bank of Indianapolis is committing $200,000 to establish a down payment assistance program for first-time homebuyers. The fund will reside with the Nehemiah CDC, a community development corporation associated with New Direction.
The bank will also install a drive-up ATM machine in the church’s parking lot, support the church’s five annual community events with financial sponsorships and volunteers, and offer financial and home ownership education either at the church or at a bank branch.
Doug Talley, chief banking officer and chief lending officer at The National Bank of Indianapolis, told the crowd at the press conference that the bank intends to have regular meetings with church leaders to get feedback on the partnership and adjust course as needed.
“We don’t want to just write a check and leave,” Talley said. “We want to listen and learn what you need.”
Some members of the audience reacted with applause and calls of “Yes!” in response to these remarks.
Talley said the bank hopes to have the ATM machine installed in the first quarter of next year, if weather conditions cooperate and the permitting process goes smoothly. The first-time homebuyers fund should also be ready to make its first awards early next year, he said.
The relationship between the bank and the church started when bank board member John Thompson mentioned the work that Sullivan and New Direction were doing to better the community, Talley said. After an initial lunch in August, followed by several meetings to discuss what they might do together, the bank and the church decided to form an official partnership.
“We work together really well,” Talley told IB J. “We understand each other.”
Both parties say they hope the partnership will help improve access to financial services in the surrounding neighborhood—and mend what has traditionally been an uneasy relationship between banks and minority communities.
New Direction is along the border of the 46218 and 46226 ZIP codes. According to data from Indiana University Indianapolis’ Polis Center, only five bank branches are located within the boundaries of those two ZIP codes. One of those bank branches opened as part of a settlement agreement in which the U.S. Department of Justice had accused the bank of engaging in discriminatory lending practices.
“With this partnership, we’re looking to rebuild the trust in the financial institutions,” Sullivan told IBJ. “It shows that the bank is wanting to invest back into communities that have been historically underserved.”
The National Bank of Indianapolis does not currently do much business in the neighborhood around the church, Talley said, and he acknowledged that minority communities often regard financial institutions with mistrust based on bad experiences.
“Our idea in changing that is to be genuine and to be there,” Talley told IBJ.
Please enable JavaScript to view this content.