Extreme makeover: Completion of Project Open Market is celebrated

Pat Dubach didn’t live on the Near Eastside 30-some years ago when the interstate building boom resulted in a wall

Looking east along Market Street toward College Avenue – today.

between that neighborhood and Downtown Indy. But that doesn’t mean he isn’t amazed by the spirit and determination of his Holy Cross neighbors.

“They could have given up when the ‘ski ramp’ went up – but they didn’t,” Dubach said, referring to the cumbersome on-ramp originally built as an exit route for fans coming from Market Square Arena. On a late-October day when the removal of that ramp and the reopening of East Market Street was celebrated, Dubach once again marveled at “the sense of community and history that is very strong” among his neighbors.

Dubach, president of the Holy Cross Neighborhood Association, spoke at the late-October ribbon-cutting which included a smiling Mayor Greg Ballard. They gathered along with other city officials and neighborhood enthusiasts to mark the completion of Project Open

Looking east along Market Street toward College Avenue before Project Open Market.

Market, a $22 million project which relocated the on-ramp to Interstate 65 south and created a clear path to Holy Cross and other Eastside neighborhoods.

“Gone are the days when the concrete interstate ramps divided the Near-Eastside from the downtown area,” Ballard said. “Not only are we creating more residential and commercial opportunities by opening up this area, we’re also creating a safer, more pedestrian-friendly neighborhood.”

Said Dubach, “The interstate ramps cut off our neighborhoods before. Now, we’re actually a part of the Downtown landscape and we can show others how attractive this area can be to work and live.”

Mark Easley was one of the bystanders wearing broad smiles on the sunny morning. The owner of Easley Winery, which sits a block north of Market Street along College Avenue, is a long-time activist in the Cole-Noble commercial district which is celebrated by gateway sculptures at the corner of Market Street and College Avenue.

“Wonderful,” was Easley’s initial assessment. “The nice thing about it is they’ve done it so classy,” he added,

Public artwork created by Rundell Ersntberger Associates not only decorates the CSX Railroad overpass over Market Street, but illuminates the passage for better nighttime security. (Image by Rundell Ersntberger Associates.)

commenting uspecifically on the sculpture which sits in the Washington Street median immediately east of Interstate 65-70. That sculpture reminds passers-by that Washington Street was once the route of U.S. 40 – the original National Road. Easley said the sculpture “brings back history. There are people who don’t know this was the National Road. It was a major deal to have a road go cross-country.” He said the new artwork honors that heritage well.

Two planters informing passersby they are in the Cole-Noble District frame the streetscape at Market Street and College Avenue, serving as a gateway to Monument Circle.

Easley also sees the project, which includes relocation of the interstate on- and off-ramps to Washington Street, as a positive factor for the Cole-Noble district. “Things are bound to improve,” he said. “This is bound to bring new interest and new business activity. I welcome it – it makes the place look good.”

Bruce Buchanan, a principal with Flanner and Buchanan Funeral Centers, said Project Open Market was a key reason his family’s 128-year-old company returned to Downtown. He said the Cole-Noble area was fairly desolate when the company renovated a light industrial building at the corner of Market Street and College Avenue four years ago, “but we knew with the ramp coming down that it was going to be a great place to be in the future.”

In 2007, the company made a larger commitment to Cole-Noble by renovating an Ohio Street building into the corporate headquarters of the Buchanan Group. As for the funeral center on Market Street, Buchanan said the next improvement will be the addition of a mural “which will feature Cole-Noble – its past, its current and its future.” Buchanan said the project, preceded by a general cleanup and tuckpointing of the Market Street frontage, may be completed before winter arrives, “but in the spring at the latest.”

The sculpture on Washington Street just east of Interstate 65/70 honors the historic National Road, U.S. 40, and the cities it connected across the nation.

Tamara Zahn, president of Indianapolis Downtown, Inc., believes the optimism shown by Cole-Noble stakeholders is well-justified. “We are excited to better connect with the nearby businesses and neighbors and look forward to continued economic development in the area,” she said. “Significant recent additions such as Flanner and Buchanan, Harrison Business College and several new residential properties, plus more than $50 million in new projects, will further enhance the area.”

- Bill Brooks

A multi-faceted project

Project Open Market was a city initiative to spur investment and create economic opportunity on the Near Eastside by removing the old on- and off-ramps to southbound Interstate 65 and eastbound I-70, replacing them with a new interchange at Washington Street.

The price tag for Project Open Market is approximately $22 million, financed mostly through federal grant dollars. At the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Mayor Greg Ballard said the project, which has been years in the making, would not have been possible without the work of the congressional delegation of Senators Evan Bayh and Richard Lugar and the late Rep. Julia Carson, along with former Mayor Bart Peterson.

Work began on Project Open Market in the spring of 2008. Highlights of the work include:

The construction of a new interstate exchange along Washington Street, involving

– A new southbound entrance ramp to I-65/70.

– A new northbound exit ramp from I-65/70.

The removal of the old I-65/70 ramps:

– The Market Street entrance ramp (also known locally as the “Ski Ramp”) to southbound I-65/70.

– The Market Street exit ramp from northbound I-65/70.

– The Ohio Street entrance ramp to southbound I-65/70.

The reopening of Davidson Street north of Washington Street, aligned with the on-ramps to allow for traffic flow to the interstate.

The reopening of Pine Street north of Washington Street, aligned with the off-ramps to allow for traffic flow off of the interstate.
The widening of Washington Street.
The realignment of Southeastern Avenue at Washington Street.
The improved appearance of the CSX railroad overpass/underpass on Market Street with painting, lighting and a decorative screening
The separation of the sanitary and storm water sewers under Southeastern Avenue, and Shelby, Washington and Market streets.
The improvement of or installation of new landscaping, sidewalks, crosswalks, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) curb ramps and street lighting on Market and Washington streets.

David Sherman, director of the city’s Department of Public Works, put the project in perspective. “It’s rare that we get the opportunity to do a project of this magnitude in terms of size, scope and cost,” he said. “We’re proud that our work on this project, particularly the removal of the interstate ramps, has been the key step in helping this area reach its economic potential.”

Sherman noted that Project Open Market impacted the busiest segment of interstate in downtown Indianapolis, one of the busiest east/west traffic arteries in Indianapolis and was constructed over and under the busiest railroad segment in Indianapolis.