A proposed low-income apartment complex in Stringtown got approval from the city’s development commission May 20.
Current zoning rules in the westside neighborhood don’t allow for a building as big as Fishers-based developer Annex Group wants to build.
But the Metropolitan Development Commission will let the company move forward with plans for a 242-unit complex on the 3.4-acre site. The building would be 50 feet tall. Current zoning allows a maximum height of 35 feet.
Neighborhood residents opposed to the project say the zoning exceptions go too far because the project wouldn’t match the character of the neighborhood. Some residents are also concerned about the removal of trees.
“Our neighborhood is not a blank slate for someone else’s dreams,” Jessy Baum, part of the Stringtown Now neighborhood organization, told the development commission.
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Supporters of the $70 million development, which will be called Union at Astor, say the apartments would help with a housing affordability crisis in Indianapolis.
The apartments would be reserved for people making between 50% and 70% of the area median income. For a family of three, 50% of the area median income is about $50,000.
Annex Group has applied for funding through the state’s low-income housing tax credit program, which subsidizes affordable housing construction.
The developer also plans to apply for a property tax break from the city.
“We know that change is difficult,” Misha Rabinowitch, an attorney representing Annex Group, told the commission. “But we’re really working to bring a good project to the neighborhood.”
The developer reached an agreement with the Stringtown Neighborhood Association, a rival of Stringtown Now. The agreement includes providing space for the neighborhood association to store items, like lawn care equipment, and letting police officers use a fitness room in the building for free.
The police presence is part of Annex Group’s response to safety concerns at one of its other nearby properties.
The project would require demolishing 10 homes on the property, most of which are vacant.
Some neighbors say the land’s current owner has neglected the homes and that the houses could be rehabilitated. The owner, Sam Brougher, declined to comment.
Annex Group’s project still needs approval from a regional center hearing examiner, who will look more closely at the building’s design.
Annex Group plans to begin construction in spring 2027.
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Mirror Indy reporter Tyler Fenwick covers housing and labor. Contact him at 317-766-1406 or tyler.fenwick@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on X @ty_fenwick and Bluesky @tyfenwick.bsky.social.
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