38th Street corridor to receive multi-million dollar revitalization

INDIANAPOLIS — The east 38th Street corridor is about to go through a multi-million dollar revitalization.

The plan is part of the city's "Lift Indy" initiative.

Community leaders say residents in the east 38th Street corridor have long been neglected. They're hoping this $3.5 million investment will help revitalize the community.

"This community needs everything that all the other communities have," Jeanette Barnett said.

"There is no food stores or anything in this area," Lilly Woodard said.

Barnett and Woodard have called the east side home for decades.

They've seen the challenges and changes firsthand.

"We have been here for many many years and we feel like we have been neglected the east side has been neglected so we fee like it's time for the community to be upgraded," Woodard said.

Topping the needs are grocery stores and affordable housing.

The support for this is real.

"When we think about the corridor right now we cover about 57k residents in which there is only one grocery store, there is means of access barriers and also our overall economic outcomes," CEO for United Northeast Community Development Corporation, Ashley Gurvitz said.

That is why it was so important for her along with local and city leaders to partner and give back to residents here by making it the city's 8th Lift Indy neighborhood.

"What the investment will do is provide that component of home ownership, provide 5 single family homes at an affordable rate which right now we know the struggles of acquiring home ownership, bring more than 300 affordable units here. Secondly, there will be access to micro-loans for small businesses and other components for food," said Gurvitz.

She says the area will have more than 300 new and affordable rental homes by 2025.

Pre-development is set to start in January.

Until then, residents noticing the major upgrades are hopeful the east side will soon thrive.

"I am glad we are restoring some of the basic necessities to this zip code to help residents live a quality life," Michael McFarland, co-owner of Indy Fresh Market said.

The city says the Lift Indy project will provide more affordable housing, homeownership opportunities, fund economic development and park improvements in the east 38th Street corridor.