Indianapolis, IN
Officials break ground on 13-acre expansion of White River State Park
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Indiana officials on Tuesday unveiled plans for a 13-acre expansion at the White River State Park.
They held a groundbreaking for the $65 million extension along the west bank of the river.
Park officials say the expansion will happen over two phases.
They say the expansion includes several event pavilions, a river beach, an expansion of the White River Trail, and connections to the new tech park called the OneHealth Innovation District. It will be fully complete in 18 months.
Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb said, “This is a moment that’s not just historic but will change how we are able to showcase who we are and where we are going.”
This story was created from a script aired on WISH-TV.
Officials break ground on 13-acre expansion of White River State Park
1 / 18
News releases
“Indianapolis, IN – Today, the White River State Park Development Commission hosted a groundbreaking ceremony at the former GM Stamping Plant to celebrate the largest-ever extension of White River State Park. Remarks by Governor Eric Holcomb, Mayor Joe Hogsett, Executive Director of the White River State Park Development Commission Jake Oakman, and City of Indianapolis officials were followed by a ceremonial groundbreaking.
“White River State Park is a 267-acre urban greenspace that abuts the White River in Downtown Indianapolis. The park’s new, 13-acre extension, set adjacent to the historic GM Stamping Plant atop a levee that runs the length of the western edge of the site, represents the Park’s largest expansion to date. Landscape architects Rundell Ernstberger Associates (REA), based in Indianapolis, and Philadelphia-based DAVID RUBIN Land Collective (Land Collective) collaborated on the design, which features a raked, skyline-facing grand theater floating above the levee infrastructure to safeguard the city from flooding.
“Key design elements include ‘get downs’ for direct river access, multiple pavilions and porch swings, a river beach, expansion of the White River Trail, and connections to the burgeoning Innovation District, which represents a new chapter of investment to downtown’s southwest quadrant, along with access for the Valley Neighborhood to the new riverfront. Considered “river theater,” the extension establishes a monumental overlook and front porch unified by the White River Trail for gathering, performance, and observation of river activities. It is the first site for the White River State Park to directly engage the river.
“‘This is a wonderful opportunity to describe an inclusive social overlay upon the levee which safeguards Indianapolis and the citizens of the Westside neighborhood, by offering river engagement through White River State Park’s expansion southward. This new landscape addition will offer the people of Indianapolis, the State of Indiana, and their visiting friends a new perspective of the White River, which is the extraordinary natural feature that informs so much of the State’s character. In this project, infrastructure, rejuvenated riparian ecology, and year-round experience are seamlessly integrated to inform identity,’ said David A. Rubin, Founding Principal, DAVID RUBIN Land Collective.
“‘A legacy riverfront site that served as the center of Indianapolis automobile manufacturing for over 100 years will take on new life as a destination space along the White River Greenway’s network – a riverfront gem that serves as downtown’s front door to the River’s west side, connecting the new Henry Street bridge, the Indianapolis Cultural Trail, the Innovation District campus, and the nearby Valley Neighborhood,’ said Daniel Liggett, REA Partner and project lead. ‘Our work with the White River State Park Commission will establish a welcoming and accessible urban riverfront park offering a distinctive prospect on our city’s skyline for all and a place that reflects the history and identities of the site, its neighboring communities, and the City of Indianapolis.’
“‘Working through the significant challenges of design expression atop the existing levee – the integrity of which cannot be compromised – the landscape architects have worked with the City of Indianapolis Department of Public Works, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, and other city, state, and federal agencies to ensure the levee remains accessible and functional, while providing an iconic river experience that will become a venue for seasonal programming and a new landmark for the City of Indianapolis. The new riverfront park reinforces the design intent of George Kessler’s historic plan for the city’s Park and Boulevard System to create “open spaces providing recreation and fresh air for all.’
“In 2019, Land Collective participated in the White River Master Plan to identify potential opportunities for spaces that would allow human engagement along the river corridor. As a result of that plan, the firm identified the possibility for expansion adjacent to the Westside neighborhood as one such place. This master plan identified three tenets: river infrastructure, ecological rejuvenation, and social impact. Working in collaboration with Rundell Ernstberger and the White River State Park Development Commission, Land Collective identified this expansion site, which exists at the intersection of these three tenets.”
Rundell Ernstberger Associates and DAVID RUBIN Land Collective
“INDIANAPOLIS – Governor Eric Holcomb joined members of the White River State Park Development Commission and other community leaders for a ceremonial groundbreaking on a 15-acre extension of the park. Located on the west bank of the White River on a site once occupied by a General Motors manufacturing facility, the extension is the largest addition to the park since its founding in the early 1980s. The project will preserve and repurpose what remains of the Indianapolis GM Stamping Plant and include other amenities that leverage the site’s proximity to the White River and Valley Neighborhood and take advantage of panoramic views of the Indianapolis skyline. This project is being supported by a $30 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc.
“‘White River State Park is a crown jewel for our state, and it’s going to get even better with this latest strategic investment,’ said Gov. Holcomb. ‘We are kicking off a new era for the park while simultaneously preserving an important icon of our state’s industrial and manufacturing heritage. Lilly Endowment’s support is once again making a project that has been years in the making into a modern day reality and we are profusely grateful for their support. When completed, this addition to the White River State Park will serve as a glorious gateway to a vibrant innovation district complemented by this important community asset for nearby residents and visitors alike to enjoy.’
“The park extension will be immediately east of the OneHealth Innovation District, which is also being developed on the grounds of the former GM site. Anchored by Elanco Animal Health’s new global headquarters and Purdue University, the district is seeking to become a globally recognized research and innovation campus dedicated to optimizing the health of people, animals, plants, and the planet.
“‘White River State Park is an extraordinary place that attracts Indiana residents and visitors to downtown Indianapolis to enjoy greenspaces, trails, the Indianapolis Zoo, the Downtown Canal, museums, baseball games, concerts and festivals,’ said Ronni Kloth, Lilly Endowment’s vice president for community development. ‘This exciting expansion of the park will provide visitors with desirable amenities, including opportunities to enjoy and engage with the White River, and add to the vibrancy of the new innovation district.’
“Most of Lilly Endowment’s grant will support repurposing the remnant of the GM Stamping Plant into an event and community center. The centerpiece of the park extension, the multipurpose facility will be developed for year-round activations. Designed by legendary industrial architect Albert Kahn, the stamping plant was a landmark in industrial design and housed GM from 1930 through 2011.The factory played an important role during World War II and at its peak employed nearly 5,000 workers. Preserving this piece of Indianapolis history was an important consideration for the commission and other stakeholders in developing plans for the park expansion.
“‘We are excited about the opportunities this park extension will bring to preserve part of our history, physically and visually engage with the White River, connect with the nearby Valley neighborhood, and draw visitors to our downtown,’ said Jake Oakman, executive director of White River State Park. ‘More than 40 years ago, Lilly Endowment helped write the first chapter of White River State Park’s history when it supported the initial master planning of the park, and it has supported several other developments in the park over the years. We are thrilled that this new grant is helping us write this next chapter in the park’s history.’
“Reclaiming abandoned industrial space and repurposing a former manufacturing facility fits White River State Park’s mission and history. The development commission was originally chartered in the early 1980s with a goal of reclaiming abandoned industrial land and facilities on the west side of downtown Indianapolis. By the end of the decade, Washington Street was rerouted to make room for the Indianapolis Zoo, the first attraction to call the park home. This development began a revolutionary transformation of the west side of the state’s capital city, turning an industrial wasteland into the vibrant cultural campus there today.
“In addition to the Kahn Pavilion, the park extension will have other amenities that include an extended promenade trail, bench swings, a water feature, and a river theater designed for both small events and day-to-day use by visitors. The new Henry Street Bridge will bring the Indianapolis Cultural Trail into the park extension and will allow for connectivity to the east bank of the river. These features will be accompanied by new greenspaces that are designed to highlight views over the White River towards the Indianapolis skyline.
“The extension is located just east of the site of Elanco Animal Health’s new global headquarters, north of the Valley Neighborhood, and south of the Indianapolis Zoo. As a part of the project, White River Parkway will be realigned to enable travel between Elanco’s headquarters and the park extension.”
White River State Park
(A version of this story first appeared in 2020.)
When the Marott Hotel opened at Meridian Street and North Fall Creek Boulevard in 1926, it was a culmination of 30 years planning for George J. Marott.
Born in Daventry, Northamptonshire, England, Marott emigrated to the United States in 1875 at the age of 16 with his parents. He opened a shoe store in 1884 in Indianapolis, using money he earned from his $10 a week salary as a shoe clerk in a store his father operated, according to an obituary in the Indianapolis Star on February 16, 1946.
Eventually one shoe store became several. A consummate businessman, Marott also purchased electric and heating utilities in Kokomo and interurban lines between Kokomo and Marion and Kokomo and Frankfort, though he eventually sold those.
Marott continued to diversify, building the hotel that bears his name. He worked 12 to 15 hours a day all his life, juggling management of the hotel and his shoe business, his obituary said.
The hotel was his pride and joy; it wasn’t just a hotel, it was also a place where Indianapolis’ high society resided just as New York society did at the Waldorf-Astoria and the Plaza Hotel. Booth Tarkington, Meredith Nicholson and widows of Indianapolis’ long-dead tycoons all took up residence.
“I saw in this property,” Marott said, “the opportunity some to erect some kind of a monumental edifice to the city which I have loved so well and as the time draws near for the realization of a dream, I am convinced anew that my dreams to hold this property for the purpose to which it now is dedicated have been fulfilled.”
Limousines lined the property’s semi-circular drive as visitors in tails and minks arrived to be entertained in the Marott’s Marble Ballroom, Reef Room and Crystal Dining Room.
The hotel guest list over the years was as impressive as the structure itself: Clark Gable, Paul Newman, Marilyn Monroe, John F. Kennedy, Bob Hope, Babe Ruth, Herbert Hoover, Helen Hayes and Lauren Bacall.
In 1932, Winston Churchill, then a member of British Parliament, arrived in Indianapolis by train with his daughter, Diana. They were given a hearty welcome by Indianapolis dignitaries, including Mayor Reginald Sullivan, then spirited away to the Marott Hotel where they stayed.
That evening Churchill spoke before a crowd of 1,200 at the Murat Theater on the “destiny of English-speaking peoples.” Churchill was still nursing wounds suffered in a car accident on New York’s Fifth Avenue just months before and did little Indianapolis sightseeing or socializing, but he was entertained by his fellow countryman, George Marott.
Churchill was so impressed with the hotel that he carried back to England a complete plan of the hotel. Marott and Churchill developed a friendship that lasted until Marott’s death in 1946.
A 1940 Indianapolis Star article noted Marott’s career attracted the attention of numerous authors who wanted to write a book about his life, which he found distasteful. Churchill was the most eminent author he refused. When Churchill returned to England, he sent Marott one of his books — an autobiography as proof of his writing ability. Marott cherished the autographed book, even though the text misspelled his name as “Marrot.”
Marott was also known for his generosity. Over the course of his life, he gave away more than $500,000, according to his obituary. Shortly before his death, he donated his shoe store empire to Butler University and his veteran employees, an Indianapolis Star story on January 27 of that year reported. About 20 years later, the employees bought out Butler.
At the age of 87, Marott died in his apartment in the hotel that bore his name. After flourishing for several decades, the Marott Shoe Company closed its downtown store at 18 East Washington Street in June 1978. A few years later, its remaining suburban stores closed as well.
By the 1970s, the Marott had gone through several owners and become low-income apartments. The Marott got a shot in the arm with extensive renovations, and today the Marott apartments are owned by Van Rooy Companies. The hotel was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
INDIANAPOLIS — One person is in critical condition following a shooting on Indy’s near east side.
According to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, around 8:10 p.m., officers were called to the 2000 block of East Washington Street on reports of a person shot.
Upon arrival, police located a 50-year-old man with injuries consistent with a gunshot wound.
He is currently reported to be in extremely critical condition.
No additional information has been made available at the time of this article’s publication.
This is a developing story; check back for updates.
The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission on June 17 gave AES the nod to raise electricity rates enough to earn an additional $71 million each year, a decision that drew reproof from Indiana lawmakers who called it another blow to cost-burdened consumers.
The approved rate represents less than half of the $192 million increase that AES initially requested. It’s also less than the $91 million increase proposed in an October settlement agreement between AES, the city of Indianapolis and major electricity consumers like Kroger and Walmart.
But the new rate is still significantly more than what the Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor, the state agency representing ratepayers in the case, recommended in September. The OUCC’s proposal would have capped AES’s annual operating revenue at $21 million less than the current level.
The rate increase authorizes AES to earn a total of nearly $2 billion each year, or an estimated $384 million in profit.
The higher base rate comes as a double whammy for Indianapolis-area households, who are already paying more for electricity this summer after AES temporarily raised rates to account for higher-than-anticipated fuel costs during last winter’s storms. The increase also arrives against the backdrop of inflation, which rose to a three-year high last month, and surging gas prices due to the war in Iran.
Gov. Mike Braun wrote in a Wednesday post to X that he was “deeply disappointed” by the IURC’s approval of the rate increase.
“Hoosiers have spent years tightening their belts and making tough financial decisions,” Braun wrote. “It’s time for utility companies to do the same.”
The IURC’s decision also drew fire from the other side of the aisle. In a June 17 news release, five Democrats representing Indianapolis in the state Senate – J.D. Ford, Andrea Hunley, La Keisha Jackson, Fady Qaddoura, and Greg Taylor – chastised Indiana’s Republican supermajority for failing to rein in rising utility costs.
“Hoosiers pay more. Monopoly utilities collect more. And the leaders in the super-majority who promise affordability over and over again show those are just empty words,” the news release said. “Instead, they continue to defend a system that takes more and more out of our paychecks.”
The consumer advocacy group Citizens Action Coalition also slammed the rate increase. Ben Inskeep, CAC’s program director, said the decision left him “less optimistic that this commission is willing to do things differently and to actually hold utilities accountable.”
He said the IURC should have penalized AES for issues that plagued customers after the utility updated its billing system in 2023, including duplicated withdrawals for the same monthly bill.
The rate increase will take effect in two phases, with rates going up in July 2026 and January 2027. AES officials anticipate the hikes “will be less than $5 per month per phase” for a household that uses 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per month, according to a Wednesday news release from the utility.
“The IURC’s decision reflects a thorough, transparent process and balances the need for continued investment in the electric system with a focus on customer affordability,” the news release stated.
Under a state law that Braun signed in February, AES cannot ask for another increase to its base rate until January 2030 — though electricity bills could still go up for other reasons, like the fuel adjustment charge hitting consumers this month.
Three members of the five-member IURC signed off on the rate increase: Andy Zay, David Veleta, and David Ziegner. Commissioner Bob Deig dissented. Commissioner Anthony Swinger recused himself from the decision because he worked on the AES rate case for the OUCC before he was appointed to the IURC by Braun in January.
“None of this was taken lightly,” Zay, the IURC’s chair, said at the Wednesday hearing, adding that the commission and its staff had carefully weighed concerns about affordability. The commissioners did not go into further detail at the hearing.
But the commission’s order shows some of the debates that played out during the rate case. One point of contention was AES’s authorized return on equity — that is, how much the utility can earn each year in profits. Other disputes hinged on how AES forecasts its operating expenses.
The OUCC accused AES of including more than 100 “phantom hires,” vacant positions it did not necessarily intend to fill in its calculations. Last year, AES said that the rising costs of vegetation management, or trimming trees around power lines, also drove the need to raise rates. The OUCC recommended keeping vegetation management costs flat.
One factor that’s not driving higher prices? Data centers.
AES does not currently provide service to any data centers and did not include them in its calculations, AES president Brandi Davis-Handy said in testimony before the IURC.
Tilly Robinson is a Pulliam fellow for the Indianapolis Star. She can be reached at tilly.robinson@indystar.com.
-
Nebraska6 minutes agoUnderground Railroad site reopens after 7-year closure in Nebraska City
-
Nevada13 minutes agoCaltech readies to build world’s most sensitive radio telescope in Nevada
-
New Hampshire16 minutes agoTransgender former New Hampshire state representative sentenced to 33 years for child sex abuse: report
-
New Jersey21 minutes agoYellowcard Brings Ocean Avenue to New Jersey’s Own Ocean Avenue
-
New Mexico28 minutes agoEdgewood and Santa Fe County finalize agreement to keep emergency services going
-
North Carolina31 minutes ago‘Infuriating, heartbreaking’: Raccoon recovering after getting caught in leg trap at Mecklenburg County park
-
North Dakota36 minutes agoOne year later, tornado survivors rebuild and remember
-
Ohio43 minutes ago
Lorain woman killed, three children injured in Ohio Turnpike crash in Elyria (UPDATED)
