INDIANAPOLIS — The city of Indianapolis began demolishing the Towne and Terrace condominium complex Friday.
The city destroyed the first building it owns at the property near 42nd Street and Post Road. The plan is to demolish the entire complex in the next couple of years. But first, the city has to help current residents find somewhere else to live.
Mayor Joe Hogsett and other city officials watched as an excavator took the first bite out of the roof of a dilapidated building on Essex Court. Town and Terrace, built over 60 years ago and perhaps the first condominium community in Indianapolis, is now long past its prime.
"I've been here so long,” said Towne and Terrace Homeowners Association President Liz Durden as she watched the demolition. “I've seen it in such great condition, and to see it like this now is just like, 'Wow! Wow!' It's unreal."
Durden has lived at Towne and Terrace since 1989. She said most residents here are not the problem. She blames outsiders and absent owners for the drug dealing, shootings and killings Towne and Terrace is known for now.
"What once was thriving many decades ago has now turned into a public safety and health hazard nightmare for many,” said La Keisha Jackson, city-county councilor for the district the where the complex is located. “Today, the residents of Towne and Terrace are closer to a brighter and better future."
The city is offering financial assistance to owners and renters to help them make up the difference in the cost to move and live somewhere safer. The city has two community engagement specialists dedicated to connecting Towne and Terrace residents with community-based services and resources aimed at supporting their transition to a new home. Additional information about the process is available here.
"All of these packages will be individually tailored to the individual circumstances of those households,” said Aryn Schounce, Indianapolis Department of Metropolitan Development chief policy officer. “So things are based on household size and needs, and things are going to be made based on the market comps and availability within the market."
"I didn't want to move, but it's come to it,” said Durden. “And this is the best deal we're going to get, so we might as well take the deal. I'm taking the deal."
Many of the buildings in Towne and Terrace have units boarded up and uninhabited. But there are still more than 100 units that are occupied. The city owns more than 100 vacant units.
Buildings will be demolished as they are vacated. The city hopes Towne and Terrace will be completely vacated by the end of 2024. Demolition could continue into 2025.
There are no immediate plans for re-development of the site.