SPEEDWAY — Speedway is a community shaped by tradition.
A lot of the action outside of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway happens on Main Street.
“I come back to Speedway several times a year just to reminisce on where I used to live, the friends we used to have, where they lived," Robert Leonard said.
Grabbing lunch at Dawson’s is a homecoming for the 1956 Speedway High School graduate.
Leonard says he’s blown away at how much Main Street has grown over the years.
“This didn’t look like this at all," he said.
The town manager tells WRTV the town put in between 30 to 40 million dollars in infrastructure improvements, which has leveraged over $100 million in private investment.
Last year, WRTV reported that the town finished developing the 1300 block on Main Street.
“There’s so many more people that come here now because of the businesses. I remember when you had Charlie Brown’s and Dawson’s and that was it," Audwynn Newman said.
Newman works with Speedway Artist Collective.
He specializes in comic book-style illustrations.
For the month of May, he creates 500-related pieces.
Newman says he’s grateful the town is putting resources towards developing Main Street.
“They wanted to invest in people coming back to Speedway, for more than just the race," he said.
Across the street is Santa’s Pitstop.
Owner Dave Wilson, also known as the local Santa Claus, opened the business last November.
“I turned 70 and had to find something to do, so I combined my two loves: the Indianapolis 500 and Santa, and boom, here we are," Wilson said.
Wilson says Speedway was the perfect spot for him to set up shop.
“A year-round Christmas store needs to be in an area where tourists are coming and going. That takes place here. There’s over 150 days of on-track activity at IMS. You have people coming into town," he said.
He’s excited to watch the area continue to grow.
“I know that once a year, the eyes of the world are focused on my backyard. That’s pride.”
