Public Space
The SEND area is an old neighborhood that must constantly struggle
to bring its aging infrastructure up to the standards of a vital
community. SEND serves as a convener of many partnerships aimed
at expanding and improving our public spaces and infrastructure.
We work closely with neighborhood associations to advocate the
improved maintenance of our streets, sidewalks, sewers, and other
public facilities. Some of our larger projects have included:
Fountain Square Gateway
In November 2005, a new sculpture, “Wishful
Thinking,” designed
by Fountain Square resident Dick Lutin, was officially unveiled
and lit for the first time. Also in the works is Fountain Square
Gateway Park, designed by Green 3 and Ninebark. The park around
the sculpture, located on Virginia Avenue at the I-65 overpass,
includes simple concrete curbs, sidewalks, and monolithic address
markers representing the footprints of commercial buildings that
stood on the site before construction of Interstate 65. The sculpture
and gateway park are collaborations of SEND and Fountain Square
Main Street; the Indianapolis Cultural Districts Initiative and
the Indianapolis Cultural Development Commission; the Fountain
Square Merchants Association; and Southeast Umbrella Organization
Weed & Seed. The project was funded through a grant from
the Indianapolis Cultural Development Commission.
Fountain Square Streetscape
Improving Fountain Square’s fountain and streetscape has
long been a goal of SEND. In 2003, SEND secured $500,000 in federal
funding to begin a phased improvement project for the Fountain
Square commercial corridor. Through generous funding from our
corporate neighbors – Lilly, WellPoint (Anthem), and Indiana
Farm Bureau Insurance, SEND commissioned Green 3 and Ninebark
to study the corridor and develop concepts for modification to
the fountain and streetscape. The result: a 10–15 year
phased plan to construct a new fountain and public plaza, and
to upgrade the sidewalks, street lights, and landscaping. The
project will also focus on pedestrian safety, making street corners
easier to navigate.
Hendricks Park
SEND is the owner of a strip of
land which it has developed into a community park through a collaboration
with the Bates-Hendricks Neighborhood Association, Keep Indianapolis
Beautiful, Baker & Daniels,
and Eli Lilly and Company. This project was begun in late 2000,
and was completed in the spring of 2002. We constructed a pavilion
building, installed a metal sculpture by a neighborhood artist,
and completed landscaping. After its completion, SEND transferred
title to IndyParks.
Stacy Park
In 1997, SEND created a pocket playground in Fountain Square
that replaced a former weed lot and a substandard garage turned
drug house through a large group of volunteers and donors. The
park was named after a neighborhood girl killed playing in the
street at that corner. Upon completion, the park was turned over
to IndyParks, but is still maintained by neighborhood youth.
School 39 Playground
In 1998, SEND worked with Indianapolis Public Schools and
the SECO neighborhood association to transform a surplus property
into a playground for landlocked School 39.
Pleasant Run Play Park
In 1996, SEND
utilized a neglected portion of Pleasant Run Parkway to create
a small playground.
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