CAP:IC, located downtown at 26 W. Washington St., gives Ball State's nationally recognized architecture, landscape architecture and urban planning programs a home in the heart of the nation's 12th largest city.

Working with local partners, the center is educating students about urban design and planning while assisting with community projects around Indianapolis.

The center plans to offer interdisciplinary courses and degree programs for students, continuing education options for professionals, an incubator for new design and planning firms, and a research center and library on urban issues.

Opening a design center in Indianapolis has been a longtime goal for Ball State's College of Architecture and Planning, which has worked on studio projects in the city since 1969.

"For many reasons it has become critical to us to have our students engage the city as a living laboratory for their design and planning work," said Joseph Bilello, dean of the college.

"With more than two-thirds of Americans living in metropolitan areas today, knowing how to deal with urbanism is essential to the education of every designer and planner," he said. "Indianapolis has emerged as a dynamic, thriving example of urban life in the United States."

The city also is home to the state's largest concentration of design and planning professionals and their work.

Ball State's new center shares a storefront studio used for the Indianapolis Regional Center Plan 2020, which will guide future development downtown. CAP:IC has helped the city conduct public workshops and conceive ideas for the plan.

With input from residents and community leaders, Ball State students and faculty members have designed proposals ranging from neighborhood improvements to new development at the former Market Square Arena site.

The Regional Center Plan designs are on exhibit in the center and can be viewed online at web.bsu.edu/cbp/rc2020.

"This mutually beneficial relationship between the city and Ball State University is and will continue to be a vital component in sustaining the success of downtown Indianapolis," said Maury Plambeck, director of Indianapolis' Department of Metropolitan Development.

"The students gain valuable work experience while bringing boundless energy and a fresh perspective to the planning process," Plambeck said.

The Ball State center also has been working with the Local Initiative Support Corp. on opportunities to assist neighborhoods and organizations with design and planning needs.

Building relationships is a top priority for CAP:IC, said Thomas Gallagher, the center's interim director.

"We're trying to find out who our partners are, how we can mesh with the community and what our place is," Gallagher said. "We have been trying to make as many contacts with people as possible. There are many opportunities on the horizon."

CAP:IC offers classes with IUPUI's School of Public and Environmental Affairs, and the center's advisory board combines Ball State faculty members and local professionals.

Eventually plans call for providing a community forum for debate on design and planning issues through publications and community meetings. CAP:IC also might house a bookstore and cafe.

(NOTE TO EDITORS: For more information on this story, contact Joseph Bilello at (765) 285-5860 or jbilello@bsu.edu, or Thomas Gallagher at (317) 822-6172 or tmgallagher@bsu.edu.)