17 INDIANAPOLIS REGIONAL CENTER PLAN 2020 PLANNING DOWNTOWN�fS FUTURE TODAY LIVING DOWNTOWN LIVING DOWNTOWN INTRODUCTION The Living Downtown Committee met six times.  Members included housing developers, neighborhood representatives, officials from human service agencies and concerned citizens from the larger community.  Issues discussed included those that impact Downtown and near- Downtown areas as communities and places to live. Downtown has seen substantial neighborhood and housing reinvestment since the Plan was last updated.  In addition, areas surrounding Downtown such as the historic neighborhoods, traditional neighborhoods and the highly successful Fall Creek Place, have demonstrated the continued demand to live near Downtown. An increase in housing (people) is of primary importance to the Downtown's continued growth and revitalization.  The population of the Regional Center is proposed to increase from approximately 20,000 people in the year 2000 to 40,000 by the year 2020. Downtown housing helps to extend activity in the area past the end of the workday.  Existing businesses can become more viable; additional businesses will invest in the area because of an increased residential base.  People who live Downtown identify strongly with the area and act as additional stakeholders for it, helping sell the importance of the area and increasing the attention paid to its needs and potentials.  A call for increased City commitment and action on Downtown housing is a high priority for many. Another important aspect of the population Downtown is the increased sense of community that is being developed by Downtown residents and their commitment to patronizing Downtown businesses and institutions.  This also extends to neighborhoods adjacent to the Regional Center. While seeing connectivity to Downtown, a number of the neighborhoods also are concerned with some of the matters that inner city areas have traditionally faced, such as an older and deteriorating housing stock, business disinvestment, loss of jobs and deteriorating infrastructure.  Committee members representing these neighborhoods are concerned that their areas will not be able to take advantage of their proximity to Downtown and its continuing growth and will be left further behind economically.   At the same time, there is the concern that this proximity will and has made parts of their neighborhoods vulnerable to redevelopment for other uses to the detriment of existing residents. Although the Regional Center Plan's land use plan component will be restricted geographically, a number of recommended projects and programs also can apply to the peripheral neighborhoods.  Conversely, many project and programs proposed or underway in adjacent areas (such as Fountain Square, East 10th Street, Tinker (16th) Street and at Meridian and Morris streets) are also important to portions of the Regional Center and can help revitalize and provide for stronger interaction among those areas and the Regional Center. Ensuring a diversity of residents representing a mix of incomes was another priority concern.   The needs for additional affordable housing for area residents, both owners and renters, and additional assistance to existing home owners were stated by many. At the same time, there is great potential to be gained in continuing to attract residents representing a full range of incomes, including people of higher income and/or business and institutional decision-makers.  Housing appealing to such individuals could include high-rise condominiums, newly constructed townhomes and infill housing and/or historic homes.  These new residents can act as additional community leaders for their immediate areas.  They can also benefit Downtown in general as promoters for wide variety of interest areas including business attraction and retention and arts and culture.   The discussion that follows includes the need to identify the types of governmental assistance that should be made available to developers and investors providing housing across all income ranges. Finally, an overall premise to discussing Downtown and near-Downtown living was the importance many on the Committee placed on the areas' uniqueness and the need to preserve and build upon that.  This includes issues of overall physical form and appearance, such as beautifying streets and pedestrian ways, appropriate uses along them and the historic character of some areas.  These matters are discussed in greater detail in the Moving Around Downtown and Placemaking Downtown sections of this report. TOPICS The Living Downtown section covers the following topics: 6. Housing 7. Neighborhoods and Neighborhood Services 8. Human Services and Health and Wellness Firehouse Square