The Mass Ave Cultural Arts District in downtown Indianapolis will have its first land-use workshop Thursday to preserve the area’s history while planning for its future.

Residents, business owners and workers are invited to share ideas for the district. Organizers say nearly 20% of the land is vacant, including parking lots and empty buildings.

The workshop begins at 3:30 p.m. Thursday at The Athenaeum, 401 N. Michigan St.

Jeffrey Tompkins, Proformus founder and urban planner, said the event is the first chance for the public to review concepts intended to make the district more valuable and productive. He said organizers are seeking community input on future solutions for the area.

Thursday will be the first of three Mass Ave Next Vision Plan workshops scheduled for this year.

A final planning report is expected to be released in December.

This article was written by WISH-TV reporter Gregg Montgomery.