National discount retailer Burlington Stores Inc. plans to open a location in downtown Indianapolis on Friday, the retailer announced Tuesday.

The 23,000-square-foot store will take over space in the lower level of Claypool Court previously occupied by the Rhythm! Discovery Center.

IBJ first revealed Burlington’s downtown plans in March.

New Jersey-based Burlington operates more than 1,020 department stores in 46 states, including eight stores in central Indiana. The state will be home to 19 Burlington stores after the opening.

Ownership of Claypool Court, a retail and hotel center at 110 W. Washington St., said the new Burlington store should benefit from activity at the intersection of Washington and Illinois streets.

Thanks to downtown’s skywalk system, Claypool Court connects to attractions such as the Indianapolis Artsgarden, Circle Centre Mall and Indiana Convention Center.

The new store will be open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sundays.

Burlington’s business model is based on selling brand-name products at prices significantly lower than other retailers.

The leading corporation in the discount retailer field is TJX Companies Inc., which includes the T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods brands, and is made up of more than 4,000 stores. A T.J. Maxx store, 50 N. Illinois St., is also a tenant in Claypool Court and less than a block north of the new Burlington spot.

Other retail tenants in Claypool Court are Weber Grill Restaurant, Panera Bread and steakhouse Tony’s of Indianapolis.

Rhythm! Discovery Center, an interactive drum and percussion museum, opened in the lower level of Claypool Court in 2009 and closed in March 2023 after a burst water pipe caused damage to the museum’s exhibit space. A new location for Rhythm! Discovery Center has yet to be announced.

Before the drum and percussion museum opened, Simon Property Group maintained offices at Claypool Court’s lower level for about a decade.

In the 1980s and early ’90s, Indianapolis-based clothing store L. Strauss & Co. occupied the lower level of Claypool Court.

Burlington, which traces its roots to 1924 as a wholesaler, began retailing as Burlington Coat Factory in 1972 and rebranded simply as Burlington Stores in 2014 to reflect its broader product mix.

The chain was once known for its big-box stores, with new locations averaging more than 50,000 square feet up until 2017, when it began concentrating on smaller-format outlets. By 2022, Burlington’s new stores averaged just 28,000 square feet.

The company reported fiscal 2023 sales of $9.7 billion, up 12% from the previous year, and a full-year profit of $339.6 million, up 48%.

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A turf war is unfolding between residents of a westside condomimium neighborhood and a developer over a new apartment complex.

Cory Lotz, president of Bishops Pond Condominium Homeowners’ Association, told News 8 that the big issue for residents of the condominium complex is the traffic the apartments construction is causing.

“This has been an enormous stressor. I mean, the board has been working day and night to try and make this thing right. We spent a lot of money and a lot of time,” Lotz said.

Lotz says parking is already tight at the condominium complex near Coffman Road and 62nd Street on the northwest side of Indianapolis. He’s concerned the new apartment complex won’t have enough spots.

Construction started in the spring, with several apartment buildings going up directly next to the Bishops Pond condominiums and more being built in the middle of the neighborhood.

“We had kids that were out here, this is were people would play. My wife and I would play Frisbee here. It was a nice open green space for the neighborhood,” Lotz said.

He adds that he has been trying to work with the New York-based developer on fixing the parking problem. “We brought up this issue of parking over and over and over again, and it’s kind of gone nowhere.”

The HOA hired a security guard to chase away construction workers since they were using the community’s private road to access the site.

“Everyday just in and out, we’ve had to block our entrance for a period of time,” said Lotz.

Lotz put several calls into the Mayor’s Action Center and called the Department of Metropolitan Development (DMD).

Dr. Carlos Perkins is a Democrat on the Indianapolis City-County Council with a Doctor of Ministry degree. He represents the area. Perkins says although the plot of land is technically zoned for apartments, the developer should have at least notified the community of the project. “From what we have gotten from (the city’s Department of) Business and Neighborhood Services, that even though the property was zoned correctly for the type of building that’s on there, the final packet never got approved, and there was an ask from the DMD to get that packed approved.”

News 8 called the developer for comment did not hear back before the story aired Tuesday night.

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis Colts announced a $1 million gift to support PataSchool to transform school kitchens in Indianapolis into spaces to help provide healthy meals to students.

“For many children, school breakfasts and lunches are the only guaranteed meals of the day, with school meals accounting for half of a child’s daily calories,” said Colts Vice Chair & Owner Kalen Jackson, said in a press release.

 The PataSchool is an initiative of ThePatachou Foundation, which according to the organization works to restore working kitchens in schools, hires and trains culinary staff and provides free, scratch-made meals.

“One in five kids in Indianapolis is living with hunger, and the lack of access to quality food negatively impacts school attendance, behavior in and out of school and overall health,” Jackson added.

The Colts say the goal of the partnership is to serve 1.2 million meals to 3,500 students in Indianapolis over the next five years.

WATCH | Free culinary camp teaches kids how to cook

Free culinary camp teaches kids how to cook

“Just changing so much as your eating habits or introducing a new food they may never even heard of can do so much to just kind of expand their mind to look further than the environment they are already in,” Colts Linebacker, Zaire Franklin told WRTV.

The partnership already supports Circle City Prep Elementary School on the far east side and Purdue Polytechnic High School on the near eastside.

Tuesday’s announcement now adds Adelante Schools at Emma Donnan School #72.