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I met a neighbor I never knew I had.

Gary Connett. Funny guy.

We were at a town hall May 21 to talk about what we’d like to see as part of a big project to turn our stretch of East 10th Street into a cultural district. People came from the surrounding neighborhoods: Little Flower, Emerson Heights and Grace Tuxedo Park.

The Little Flower Neighborhood Association got a $30,000 grant from the city to create the cultural district. Some of that money will be used for a temporary traffic safety project.

The district stretches from Sherman Drive to Leland Avenue, which is just east of Emerson Avenue.

There’s a lot to figure out before projects start in July, hence the town hall.

I spent most of the evening with Gary. He’s 79 and has lived in Emerson Heights for 30 years — just a few months longer than I’ve been alive.

At one point, we were asked to fill in the blank: “This district should be known as the place where ___.”

Gary had an answer: where “people have a good time.”

Benches, murals and planters

Cultural district projects will fall into four buckets.

When does all this start?

The traffic safety project is scheduled to start July 11 and last through the end of October. The project will cover the area around 10th Street and Bosart Avenue. It will include things such as traffic barriers and short-term parking spaces.

If you live in the area, you might remember the temporary traffic project in Community Heights.

For other parts of the cultural district project (benches, bike racks, things like that), expect to see those start popping up around the same time in July.

Get involved

There will be a second town hall, but that hasn’t been scheduled yet. Here are some other chances to give your input and get involved in the projects.

Mirror Indy, a nonprofit newsroom, is funded through grants and donations from individuals, foundations and organizations.

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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East 10th Street’s future: Where ‘people have a good time’

by Tyler Fenwick, Mirror Indy
May 22, 2026

<h1>East 10th Street’s future: Where ‘people have a good time’</h1> <p class="byline">by Tyler Fenwick, Mirror Indy <br />May 22, 2026</p> <p>I met a neighbor I never knew I had.</p> <p>Gary Connett. Funny guy.</p> <p>We were at a town hall May 21 to talk about what we’d like to see as part of a big project to turn our stretch of East 10th Street into a cultural district. People came from the surrounding neighborhoods: Little Flower, Emerson Heights and Grace Tuxedo Park.</p> <p>The Little Flower Neighborhood Association <a href="https://mirrorindy.org/residents-community-organizations-can-apply-for-500000-city-cultural-district-grant-in-august/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">got a $30,000 grant from the city</a> to create the cultural district. Some of that money will be used for a <a href="https://mirrorindy.org/indianapolis-department-public-works-tactical-urbanism-quick-build-program/">temporary traffic safety </a><a href="https://mirrorindy.org/indianapolis-department-public-works-tactical-urbanism-quick-build-program/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">p</a><a href="https://mirrorindy.org/indianapolis-department-public-works-tactical-urbanism-quick-build-program/">roject</a>.</p> <p>The district stretches from Sherman Drive to Leland Avenue, which is just east of Emerson Avenue.</p> <div class="wp-block-group is-style-border"> <div style="min-height:450px" id="datawrapper-vis-cw8G9"><img src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/cw8G9/full.png" alt="East 10th Street Cultural District (Locator map)" /></div> </p></div> <p>There’s a lot to figure out before projects start in July, hence the town hall.</p> <p>I spent most of the evening with Gary. He’s 79 and has lived in Emerson Heights for 30 years — just a few months longer than I’ve been alive.</p> <p>At one point, we were asked to fill in the blank: “This district should be known as the place where __<strong>_</strong>.”</p> <p>Gary had an answer: where “people have a good time.”</p> <h2 id="h-benches-murals-and-planters" class="wp-block-heading">Benches, murals and planters</h2> <p>Cultural district projects will fall into four buckets.</p> <div class="wp-block-group"> <div class="wp-block-group is-style-border"> <h3 id="h-beautification-and-placemaking" class="wp-block-heading">🎨 Beautification and placemaking</h3> <p>$18,000</p> <p>Art, murals, benches, planters, bike racks, trash cans, community bulletin board.</p> </p></div> <div class="wp-block-group is-style-border"> <h3 id="h-community-events" class="wp-block-heading">🎊 Community events</h3> <p>$5,500</p> <p>A block party, storytelling/poetry sessions and other cultural activities.</p> </p></div> <div class="wp-block-group is-style-border"> <h3 id="h-corridor-identity" class="wp-block-heading">🏳️ Corridor identity</h3> <p>$4,700</p> <p>Community outreach, branding, banners.</p> </p></div> <div class="wp-block-group is-style-border"> <h3 id="h-safety-and-accessibility" class="wp-block-heading">🚶 Safety and accessibility</h3> <p>$1,000</p> <p>Traffic safety project.</p> </p></div> </p></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/DAY-10TH-STREET-CULTURAL-DISTRICT_JRW07-1024x707.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-82436" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">J. Clyde’s Pub on May 21, 2026, on East 10th Street in Indianapolis.</figcaption></figure> <h2 id="h-when-does-all-this-start" class="wp-block-heading">When does all this start?</h2> <p>The traffic safety project is scheduled to start July 11 and last through the end of October. The project will cover the area around 10th Street and Bosart Avenue. It will include things such as traffic barriers and short-term parking spaces.</p> <p>If you live in the area, <a href="https://mirrorindy.org/indianapolis-east-side-tactical-urbanism-traffic-barriers-community-heights-neighborhood-organization/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">you might remember the temporary traffic project in Community Heights</a>.</p> <p>For other parts of the cultural district project (benches, bike racks, things like that), expect to see those start popping up around the same time in July.</p> <h2 id="h-get-involved" class="wp-block-heading">Get involved</h2> <p>There will be a second town hall, but that hasn’t been scheduled yet. Here are some other chances to give your input and get involved in the projects.</p> <div class="wp-block-group"> <div class="wp-block-group has-light-gray-background-color has-background"> <h3 id="h-10th-street-clean-up-and-walk-audit" class="wp-block-heading">10th Street clean-up and ‘walk audit’</h3> <p>🗓️ 9 a.m. June 27<br />📍<a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/1YpirfEYExtmo13k8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">10th/Leland intersection</a> (starting with breakfast at Steer-In)</p> </p></div> <div class="wp-block-group has-light-gray-background-color has-background"> <h3 id="h-traffic-safety-project-installation" class="wp-block-heading">Traffic safety project installation</h3> <p>🗓️ 9 a.m. July 11<br />📍 <a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/T6gFE9BVD27wpsci7" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">10th/Bosart intersection</a></p> </p></div> <div class="wp-block-group has-light-gray-background-color has-background"> <h3 id="h-canvassing" class="wp-block-heading">Canvassing</h3> <p>🗓️ Throughout July 24-26</p> </p></div> </p></div> <p>This &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://mirrorindy.org/indianapolis-10th-street-cultural-district-town-hall-traffic-project-art/&quot;&gt;article&lt;/a&gt; first appeared on &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://mirrorindy.org&quot;&gt;Mirror Indy&lt;/a&gt; and is republished here under a &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/&quot;&gt;Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;img src=&quot;https://i0.wp.com/mirrorindy.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/cropped-Mirror-Indy-square-logo-1.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;amp;ssl=1&quot; style=&quot;width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;&quot;&gt;</p> &lt;img id=&quot;republication-tracker-tool-source&quot; src=&quot;https://mirrorindy.org/?republication-pixel=true&amp;post=82550&amp;amp;ga4=G-X0R0QW371R&quot; style=&quot;width:1px;height:1px;&quot;&gt;&lt;script&gt; PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: &quot;https://mirrorindy.org/indianapolis-10th-street-cultural-district-town-hall-traffic-project-art/&quot;, urlref: window.location.href }); } } &lt;/script&gt; &lt;script id=&quot;parsely-cfg&quot; src=&quot;//cdn.parsely.com/keys/mirrorindy.org/p.js&quot;&gt;&lt;/script&gt;

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