TWIN AIRE | Greatplaces2020

Just Southeast of downtown Indianapolis is a community that serves as home to a highly diverse group of 2,300 residents.

Just Southeast of downtown Indianapolis is a community that serves as home to a highly diverse group of 2,300 residents. This neighborhood has a rich history as a place of invention and craft, this neighborhood seeks to create a walkable community with an identifiable center, while offering a mix of public spaces and facilities, with quality education options and small business opportunities, all within a unique mix of market-rate housing which is affordable for working-class families and seniors.

Prior to the Great Places initiative, Twin Aire was characterized by a decreasing population, low median household incomes, and high rates of residents without a high school diploma. In 2015, Twin Aire was a majority-white neighborhood, as white residents comprised 52 percent of the population. However, in the four-year period between 2015 and 2018, new residents moved to the area. As of 2018, 39 percent of Twin Aire’s residents were white, 39 percent were Black, and 20 percent were Latinx.

As part of the city-wide Great Places initiative, Twin Aire completed a strategic planning process that identifies goals and strategies in four areas: Livability, Opportunity, Vitality and Education.

Twin Aire: Full Strategic Plan

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Twin Aire: Abbreviated Strategic Plan and Map

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Livability Goals

Increase connectivity throughout the area by expanding trails, improving pedestrian infrastructure, and creating opportunities to access a variety of transportation options
Expand access to art, nature, and recreational opportunities for all residents
Improve public health and safety
Create a community center

Opportunity Goals

Establish a dense, mixed-use center of activity that attracts local businesses and enhances economic development initiatives
Increase employment opportunities for local residents and create an economic development initiative that leverages the strengths of the neighborhood to attract local businesses and higher paying employers
Create resources for entrepreneurship and minimize barriers to entry for small businesses

Vitality Goals

Ensure that the area will remain affordable for residents of all income levels by developing programs to assist current residents to remain in their neighborhood
Improve the quality of the existing housing stock and create a diverse range of new housing options
Become a model “aging-in-place” community

Education Goals

Increase access to high-quality early learning and youth programming
Expand opportunities for post-secondary education and workforce development
Capitalize on the unique cultural context of the area and provide English language programming for non-English speakers
Work with TANC, SEND and/or Southeast Community Services (SECS) to create new cultural programming to celebrate the heritage of the people in the neighborhood

PROGRESS:

Sixty strategies were identified to achieve the LOVE goals in Twin Aire, and progress on these strategies was recorded by the neighborhood coordinator. After two years, 83 percent of the strategies to achieve LOVE goals in Twin Aire were either recorded as completed or in progress, while 15 percent had no action, and 2 percent had failed. Failure was due to the unforeseen closure of the City's electric car-sharing program.

Livability

Health and/or recreational facilities improved: 2

Projects within 1 block of projected transit corridors: 0

Greenspace improvements: 6

Connectivity improvements: 2

Cultural/creative placemaking events: 9

People impacted by food initiatives: 300

Public safety and community partnerships: 3

Opportunity:

Brownfields tested or remediated: 5

New jobs created: 72

Small businesses assisted: 19

Commercial square footage improved: 25,803

Vitality:

Housing units new or improved for rent: 11

Housing units new or improved for sale: 57

Education:

Educational programs and facilities assisted: 0

SUCCESS STORIES:

The Criminal Justice Center (CJC) is considered a catalyst for redevelopment in Twin Aire. Expected to be completed in early 2022, the project includes a four-story detention center, an 11-story courthouse and an Assessment and Intervention Center.

Near Prospect Falls along the Pleasant Run Trail, you can find a custom art sculpture in the newly re-planted pocket park, creating a

gateway to the neighborhood in advance of the Community Justice Center’s relocation to Twin Aire.

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In response to resident activism, the City preserved a 1.3-acre area of green space that borders Pleasant Run stream and Southeastern Ave. and will plant 17 new trees and 66 shrubs. Neighbors hope to preserve parcel of remaining greenery in perpetuity through a conservation easement.

Florence Fay School Senior Apartments is the renovation of an iconic school building to fill an unmet need for senior housing in an aging neighborhood. The development serves area seniors through 73 units of quality affordable housing with modern conveniences.

Invent Learning Hub was granted a charter and made Twin Aire its home in 2019. The K-8 charter school is focused on design thinking, personalized learning, and post-secondary planning.

The Twin Aire Neighborhood Coalition (TANC) was formed by

surrounding neighborhood associations, business owners, nonprofit managers, and other stakeholders of the Twin Aire area to form a collaborative initiative in seeking participation in the Great Places 2020 Initiative.

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A new fire training facility is planned just south of the CJC Center and will open in 2021. The facility will include classrooms, a computer lab, fitness room, three-story live burn structure and a fire training tower.

Twin Aire is planning numerous infrastructure improvements including road and walkability enhancements along Southeastern and in the intersection of Rural/ Southeastern/English.