Hamilton County and Indy area is a great place to call home

One of the things I enjoy about being a Realtor is that we don’t just show houses – we show off our communities. When a buyer is relocating from outside of the Indianpaolis area, they may know which side of town they want to live on, but they often don’t know if they want to be in Indianapolis, Fishers, Carmel and Westfield, etc.

As a former journalist, I also like to keep up with the news on what’s going on, so I love telling people what makes each of our communities unique. I also enjoyed hearing what city representatives have to say about what’s happening in our area at the annual Metropolitan Indianapolis Board of Realtors event Sell Our Cities.

And I walked away feeling pretty darn good about my community.

There is an incredible amount happening across Central Indiana—from major corporate investments and new medical facilities to parks, trails, sports facilities, downtown redevelopment and new housing (side note: I’m not thrilled about all the apartments, but that’s another story.)

Fishers, for example, has only about 3% of its land remaining for development, so its future growth will increasingly involve infill—redeveloping larger homesites and parcels within the existing community, according to Megan Baumgartner, the city’s director of economic and community development. The city is also continuing to invest heavily in youth sports while building its presence in life sciences and attracting international companies.

Westfield continues its remarkable growth story. Westfield Economic Development Director Chuck Haberman said its population has increased 39% in just five years. The community now has more than 100 miles of trails, and Grand Park continues to help put Westfield on the national map. At the same time, the city is planning for its next chapter, including a long-term strategy for downtown and additional residential, retail and entertainment development.

Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett was the only mayor to attend the event. He highlighted billions of dollars in investment underway or planned throughout the city, including the new IU Health’s mammoth new facility downtown, City Market redevelopment and major investments by companies such as Rolls-Royce and Roche. He also pointed to the continued importance of sports and tourism to the region’s economy.

Lawrence’s assistant to the mayor Nikia Simmons shared that her city is taking a somewhat different approach, focusing on creating a stronger sense of place with its designation of eight distinct neighborhood districts and building connections among residents, businesses, nonprofits and community organizations. (FYI: I’m not ignoring Carmel; no one from the city participated this year.)

Of course, growth also brings challenges—and housing is one of them.

I continue to believe we need a better mix of housing, particularly for empty nesters who would happily sell a larger home but can’t find the right place to go. Many don’t want an apartment, condo or duplex. They simply want a quality designed and built smaller, single-level home that won’t cost them $500,000 or more. We simply don’t have enough housing diversity.

Still, my biggest takeaway from Sell Our Cities was optimism.

The Indianapolis Metro area isn’t standing still. Our communities are growing, investing and thinking about what comes next. We may not agree with every decision along the way—I certainly don’t—but there is a lot happening here that we should be excited about.

If you want to know more, I do love sharing information and stories.