INDIANAPOLIS — Fountain Square is one of the Indianapolis neighborhoods chosen for the Cultural Districts Fund this year.
The Indianapolis Department of Metropolitan Development (DMD) announced the awardees of the one-time $500,000 fund last Wednesday.
The DMD awarded Fountain Square $80,000, which will be split between the Fountain Square Neighborhood Association (FSNA) and the Fountain Fletcher District Association (FFDA).
“We’re eager, we’re ready. We’re excited to do this work," FSNA President Dakota Pawlicki said. “One of the things we’re focusing on is creating living spaces in our community. We know that social isolation is a big problem right now.“
The money will go towards:
- Adding a pocket park along Leonard Street
- Enhancing the Fountain Square Community Garden
- Reactivating the Plaza, located at the intersection of Virginia Avenue and Prospect and Shelby Streets
- Improving 11 crosswalks that feed into the business district
Vince Reece is the visionary behind what’s in store for the community garden and pocket park off Leonard Street.
“There was the Leonard Street encampment, homeless encampment here before, that a lot of neighbors were very concerned about, positively, negatively. I think this is a really good opportunity to use this space for something that is still welcoming to people of all parts of the neighborhood, whether housed and unhoused," Reece said.
There are three parts to his plan.
First, revitalize the beds to ensure they’re equipped to grow year-round.
“I think a section of it will be dedicated to edible plants, fruits and vegetables. A section of it will be for cut flowers, so people can come pick their own flower arrangements, and then the next section will be native plants for pollinators," Reece said.
Second, add space for rest and relaxation.
“My vision with this is people can come here, have their morning coffee, read a book," he said.
Third, incorporate public artwork from local artists.
“Fountain Square had always been a big artistic area. We wanna get some local artists involved, some art sculptures and pieces here that people can enjoy.”
There is currently no concrete timeline for when these improvements will get off the ground.
FSNA is hopeful to begin work next spring.
