Roundup: Fishers borrowing $16.4M for Yard, plus Tex-Mex to open in Carmel, Denny’s in Whitestown

The Fishers City Council this week gave final approval to issue up to $16.4 million in bonds to help finance The Yard at Fishers District project.

Progress on the 17-acre development by Thompson Thrift Retail Group is just beginning as funding for the project and more details about its tenants fall into place. Last month, the council approved plans to establish a drive-thru for Lafayette-based Copper Moon Coffee, which plans to open a coffee shop there.

The $110 million culinary-focused development, which now includes plans to build a 252-unit luxury apartment complex, already has several tenants lined up, including Sun King Brewing Co., RAWkin Juice, Havana Lounge, and two concepts from St. Elmo Steak House operator Craig Huse, Burger Study and 1933 Lounge. The first two eateries in The Yard could open as early as next spring.

The city is issuing a bond up to $9.2 million for the retail portion of the project. Additionally, up to $7.2 million is being borrowed for a parking garage to be part of the residential portion of the project.

The money is expected to be repaid through property tax revenue generated by the tax increment financing district established for the project.

In other retail and development news North of 96^th:

—Chuy’s Tex-Mex plans to open a new, roughly 5,500 square-foot restaurant at the site of a former Applebee’s in Carmel, 10325 N. Michigan Road. The restaurant, which serves made-from-scratch Tex-Mex dishes, filed plans with the city of Carmel in March for a building remodel and patio addition at the site. Those plans have since been approved. The only other Indiana location is at Hamilton Town Center in Noblesville, where the Texas-based company opened a store in 2014. Construction is expected to start before the end of the year. 

—Harley-Davidson Indianapolis has opened its new dealership in Fishers at 12400 Reynolds Drive. In late 2016, the business announced it planned to relocate from its existing store in Carmel to the new location on State Road 37 near 126^th Street. The new store, with about 40,000 square feet, is planning a two-day grand opening party for June 9-10.

—The Stacked Pickle restaurant in Fishers has closed. A sign taped on the restaurant’s door tells guests the restaurant closed April 23 and invites them to visit the chain’s nine other Indianapolis-area locations, including two stores in Carmel and one in Westfield. The restaurant opened at 13204 Market Square Drive in Fishers Marketplace in the spring of 2016 after relocating from a space near 116^th Street and Allisonville Road.

—Pearl Street Pizzeria and Pub has opened a second location at 10462 Olio Road in Fishers, just north of East 104^th Street. Pearl's original eatery opened in 2010 at 65 E. Pearl St. in downtown Indianapolis. The Fishers location features 20 beers on tap and has two outdoor patio seating areas. The space offers about twice the space and seating as the downtown location, the owners told IBJ.

—A former Marsh Supermarkets store at 10679 N. Michigan Road, Zionsville, has reopened as a Kroger. The North Michigan Road store was one of the 11 that Cincinnati-based Kroger purchased from now-defunct Marsh Supermarkets. Marsh declared bankruptcy in May 2017 and went out of business two months later.

—Denny’s has leased 4,500 square feet of retail space at The Shoppes at Whitestown near Interstate 65 and Whitestown Parkway in Whitestown. The Shoppes at Whitestown is a 300,000-square-foot shopping center by RealtyLink LLC expected to open in spring 2019. The retail space is now 90 percent leased, Jeffrey Poole, RealtyLink’s Indianapolis-based vice president, told IBJ. Denny’s joins TJ Maxx, Burlington Coat Factory and Hobby Lobby, among others.

—Vive Exterior Design LLC is relocating its Fishers business to a larger site within the city. The company currently operates at the southeast corner of East 126^th Street and Cumberland Road and focuses on landscaping and outdoor living projects. The Fishers City Council this week annexed two lots totaling 4 acres at the southeast corner of 126^th Street and Promise Road and approved a rezone of the property from residential to commercial. Existing structures currently on the property, except for a barn, will be demolished. The company anticipates moving into the new facility next spring, according to documents filed with the city.

—Zionsville Community Schools has requested the town rezone 2.4 acres of land at 700 Mulberry Street, immediately east of Zionsville Community High School, from the urban residential zoning district to the special use zoning district to allow for an employee wellness center to be built on the property. The building would be about 5,500 square feet, documents show. The plan commission this week passed the rezone onto the town council with a favorable recommendation.

—The city of Westfield recently opened a free fitness court at Asa Bales Park on Hoover Street. The court, the first of its kind in Indiana, is an outdoor bodyweight circuit training system for adults of all ages and fitness levels. The installment, which is free to the public to use, features 30 individual pieces of equipment and shock-resistant sports flooring. Westfield-based ThriveFit Gym will be offering fitness courses at the park throughout the summer. For a schedule, click here.

—The OutHouse, a 3,000-square-foot co-working space at 540 Westfield Road in Noblesville, is hosting a ribbon cutting with Noblesville Mayor John Ditslear on Tuesday to celebrate its grand opening. So far, 18 people have signed up for memberships, said Taylor Jennings, CEO of OutHouse Coworking LLC. The facility has four meeting rooms, a game room, TVs, gaming monitors and a kitchen area. The membership fee is $149 a month.