Fishers takes another swing at Maple Del development, this time without apartments
A new start is planned for a downtown Fishers neighborhood bulldozed five years ago for a controversial residential development that never broke ground.
Two local developers want to build 56 townhouses and 10 single-family homes at the Del Maple site on 116th and Maple streets, west of City Hall. The project would replace one scrapped by the city and a previous developer that called for 190 units — including 164 apartments — after neighbors demanded fewer rentals and less density.
Fishers is selling the land for $1.1 million to Corby Thompson and Steve Zinkan, who formed Mithra Development. The company plans a $28 million project, with the city kicking in $4.1 million for infrastructure upgrades.
All the homes will be for sale.
The site is on the western edge of the downtown Nickel Plate District, which has developed rapidly in the past 10 years, with 1,099 new housing units since 2015 and 276 under construction.
When the City Council considered the first development by J.C. Hart in 2020, some councilors were already complaining about the rapid rate of apartments being added to the Nickel Plate District and calling for more owner-occupied development.
The city sent J.C. Hart back to the drawing board for revisions, but the developer finally decided the project wouldn’t be economically viable.
Mayor Scott Fadness hosted a meeting more than a year ago with the homeowners in the neighboring Charleston Crossing subdivision and told them the city would choose a new development in concert with their wishes.
Community Development Director Megan Baumgartner said the city has since hosted several meetings with the homeowners and have outlined their priorities in the development plan, which include more green space and saving trees, if possible.
The president of the Charleston Crossing Homeowners Association did not reply to a request for comment.
The 10 single-family homes will be custom-built on the south side of the site with large backyards to provide a buffer for the Charleston Crossing residents.
A retention pond on the west side of the development will provide another layer of separation from the subdivision The 3-story townhouse will be closer to 116th Street with sidewalks winding throughout with connections to the Nickel Plate Trail.
The original land owner, Hageman Group, bought and demolished 16 homes to clear the way for the development and the lots have sat empty since.
The redevelopment commission approved the project agreement and Mithra will have 90 days to close on the sale of land from the city. The company could begin marketing the lots for the single-family homes in about eight months, Baumgartner said.
Call IndyStar reporter John Tuohy at 317-444-6418 or email him at john.tuohy@indystar.com. Follow him on Facebook and X/Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Fishers takes another swing at Maple Del project on 116th Street
