Greenwood Fire Station 95 will feature three buildings, including a live-fire training center, once constructed. The station is expected to open this year. Provided by the city of Greenwood
Development will continue to boom throughout Johnson County in 2026, with dozens of projects set to begin or continue.
There are projects from all over the county, from Greenwood to Franklin to Whiteland to Bargersville. Many are worth millions and could bring millions in economic development or hundreds of new residents.
Here’s a look at some of the biggest projects residents can expect to see in the new year.
Johnson County
Johnson County officials are focusing on projects that improve safety and quality of life for residents and employees.
County officials plan to look into a different collection system for the gun range at the sheriff’s office. The current one is outdated, doesn’t work properly, and costs a lot of money to maintain, said Brian Baird, county commissioner.
“That’s a biggie for me, to make sure that our officers and every other officer that uses that facility stays safe, and we don’t have any issues out there,” Baird said.
Officials are also updating buildings and fixing paving and drainage issues at the fairgrounds. Funds are available to get a lot of it done, but officials need to find time to do the work, Baird said.
New pickleball, basketball and tennis courts are being built in county parks. There will also be a new banquet facility, and officials want to redo horse stalls and upgrade their buildings at the Johnson County Park in Nineveh.
Dunn Arena at Hoosier Horse Park will be up for renovations to create a new gathering space in the next three years, he said.
“Our horse shows are growing so drastically, and our campgrounds are just being utilized like crazy out there,” Baird said. “It’s exciting, that is absolutely exciting to watch what’s going on out there and the growth and the people that are just using a facility that was scarcely used in the past, that now it’s just becoming a real pride of Johnson County.”
County officials are still working through sewer and water issues to aid in the development of the Interstate 69 and Interstate 65 corridors beyond city limits. As interest starts to grow at I-69, Baird wants the county to be in a position of “offense” instead of “defense.”
This includes assessing future infrastructure needs, so Johnson County doesn’t outgrow its infrastructure. So, another focus will be on road maintenance and highway equipment, he said.
“We have to look down the road 20 years and we have to make sure that not only do we control growth, but we maintain our infrastructure so that once we do start growing … we don’t have roads shut down like we do in a lot of areas in Johnson County right now,” Baird said.
Two subdivisions, MI Homes at Berry Chase and DR Horton at Meadows of Belleview, are actively building homes. A few custom home subdivisions have vacant lots, and those neighborhoods have been growing for about 10 years, said Michele Hansard, director of planning and zoning.
Bargersville
Bargersville is set to grow in many ways this year, and town officials want residents to give their input.
Work will keep progressing forward on The Jefferson, the first mixed-use residential and retail development in Bargersville. This $59 million investment will bring 255 luxury apartment homes and 11,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space to the northeast corner of State Road 135 and County Road 144.
Town Manager Dax Norton said residents will see the return of Pulte Homes’ Iron Horse development, a planned 873-acre community featuring a mix of residential and commercial properties along State Road 135, Old Plank Road and State Road 144.
“We need the public to be involved,” he said. “We want the council and planning commission to hear the public’s voices.”
The project site is near the already-approved Meadowbrook planned unit development and the existing Three Notch neighborhood. Meadowbrook is expected to add 412 homes and townhomes and five commercial blocks.
Funds are being gathered to finance the construction of a roundabout at State Roads 135 and 144. The estimated $7.2 million project would replace an existing stoplight at the intersection of State Road 135, State Road 144 and County Road 144/Old Plank Road.
Other smaller downtown projects and some major developments are still in discussion, Norton said, including interest along Interstate 69 all the way to the federal level.
The slow and steady expansion of parks and trails — a constant request from residents — will continue in 2026, Norton said.
“We have an idea of a couple of areas we’d like to expand into: some conservation of green space, and we have an interesting idea for a historic park,” he said.
The Parks and Recreation Department has collected input from residents on the development bike and pedestrian master plan, requesting more trails and connectivity.
“If we attract more of those 3% taxpayers, we will have the revenue to build the amenities people are asking for,” Norton said, alluding to the need for business growth.
Franklin
Franklin officials are planning multiple city projects, while private businesses will bring in more food and housing options.
One of the larger projects is a $26.7 million sewer plant expansion and a $9.4 million second phase for the Westside Regional Interceptor project. Both initiatives aim to prepare the city for future growth.
“The DPW plant expansion is something that we have kicked the can down the road for many, many years,” Barnett said, “and that’s a [nearly] $30 million project, but it’s going to put the city where we should have 25 to 30 years of growth.”
Other infrastructure improvements include $1.5 million in paving, crack seal work and street repairs, and $300,000 worth of sidewalk repairs. Graham Road will also start to be reconstructed, Barnett said.
Quality-of-life initiatives will gain traction in 2026, including the Scott Park expansion designed to enhance youth sports. City officials intend to break ground on the project in 2026 and complete it in 2027, Barnett said.
The Innovation Park project planned by Franklin College is expected to break ground in the fourth quarter of 2026. It will span approximately 250 acres on the north side of Park Avenue/Greensburg Road and west of Umbarger Lane/County Road 450 East. It will feature mixed-use, office/innovation, and residential areas.
City officials are moving forward with a new comprehensive plan in 2026 that will guide future development for the city. The goal is to present a draft for approval to the city council in August, Barnett said.
Chick-fil-A in the planned Commerce Point development broke ground in 2025 and is expected to open in 2026. Commerce Pointe could also feature Valvoline, Chipotle and Dutch Bros., and a stoplight will be added to accommodate traffic, Barnett said.
Aldi is making progress with renovations to the former Big Lots and is expected to open in 2026, Barnett said.
Two multi-family housing projects will open this year. These are The Post, on U.S. 31 just north of Earlywood Drive, and Redwood, near Needham Elementary School, both of which will open this year.
For single-family housing, there are approximately 100 lots available, and 500 lots are in development in the next sections of Winterfield, Kingsbridge and the Bluffs at Young Creek, Barnett said.
The city has been averaging approximately 150 to 175 new homes per year for the last 10 years, but more opportunities are on the horizon for housing, Barnett said.
Barnett says there is a need for custom homes in Franklin, and he is hoping this year will bring opportunities for “executive housing.” The Homesteads at Hillview will likely be built out this summer, and that is the only custom single-family neighborhood currently under construction in the city, he said.
Edinburgh
Two major projects for Edinburgh in 2026 include the Indiana Department of Transportation’s State Road 252 project and adding a new power substation, said John Myers, town manager.
The State Road 252 project started last year, which involves reconstructing it from Eisenhower Drive to Interstate 65 — including sewers, waterlines, storm drains and sidewalks, he said.
The substation will be on County Road 900 North behind the fire station. It will support the industrial park and be a backup to the current substation, John Myers said.
For quality of life, Edinburgh will install new playground equipment in Irwin Park in the spring. There are also plans to add more campsites to the campground at Irwin Park, he said.
Work to establish a Main Street organization and a town plaza at 201 W. Main Cross St. will also continue in 2026.
“The building’s been torn down … So now we can move on to the next phase,” John Myers said. “There’s some design already done for the plaza and we just need to kind of finalize which direction we’re going to go.”
There will be less road work in 2026, because Edinburgh didn’t receive any funding from the Community Crossings Matching Grant program, he said.
“We’re not going to have a bunch of paving going on the local streets or anything,” John Myers said. “We might have some smaller projects on roads and stuff, but not like we did [in 2025].”
For housing, John Myers said the next phase of Timbergate will continue construction.
Greenwood
Housing and new businesses will power Greenwood’s growth in 2026.
Sagebriar, a 55-and-up Del Webb neighborhood along Five Points Road, is expected to have homes completed and its amenity center up and running this year. Mayor Mark Myers is “very excited” about this, he said.
Myers also hopes to attract more higher-end and luxury housing. For example, J. Gregg Allen is proposing a 49-home high-end luxury home project on the city’s southwest side, at Honey Creek and Smokey Row roads. This project will come before the city’s plan commission in January.
Nearby, Lennar Homes is constructing Honey Creek Farms, a 318-home project. It is expected to be a mixture of mid-range to higher-end homes, Mark Myers said.
Also nearby, Grand Communities by Fischer Homes is building a higher-end, 49-home neighborhood expected to break ground this fall.
As for business developments, Myers highlighted Wawa, which is bringing two gas stations to the city — one at U.S. 31 and Worthsville Road and one at Emerson Avenue and Wilson Drive. The U.S. 31 location will likely be completed this year, and potentially the one at Emerson Avenue could be too, he said.
P.F. Chang’s is expected to open at the Greenwood Park Mall sometime this year. The opening has been delayed due to a sewer problem, he said.
Along with businesses coming to downtown Greenwood, Myers is also awaiting the completion of The Ark sports complex at State Road 135 and Swartz Crossing Boulevard. The nearly 100,000 square foot complex will be the area’s first large-scale indoor sports facility and will also be the home of the Marlin Academy.
The master plan for Freedom Park is currently being updated, with a public meeting set for Jan. 20. The Parks and Recreation Department is planning on adding more amenities to “continue to make that park as successful as it is,” Mark Myers said.
Other park updates include final touches to the ball field diamonds at the Greenwood Sports Park, which “have proved already to be highly successful,” and rebuilding the tennis courts at Craig and West parks, as there is still a big draw for tennis, he said. Updates to Northeast Park are expected to continue, including installing new trails and a new restroom.
Fire Station 95 is under construction on the city’s southwest side near Graham Road and Interstate 65. The station, which will be open this year, will also house a training room and a fire training facility.
“That’s not only going to affect us, but that’s county-wide and even outside of Johnson County,” Mark Myers said. “Just going to reach out to fire departments within a 50-mile radius to have a place to come and train that’ll have state-of-the-art equipment.”
Mark Myers has also been named the chairman for the National League of Cities’ Public Safety and Crime Task Force, and co-chairman of the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ National Water Council, he said.
“I’ll be heavily involved with those, along with still being on the state law enforcement academy board and the state 911 board,” Mark Myers said.
“All those things we get involved in so that we can bring more knowledge and information back to Greenwood and share a lot of the great things my people are doing around the entire U.S.,” Myers continued.
Myers also plans to join other mayors at the Indiana Statehouse to speak with lawmakers about Senate Enrolled Act 1 of 2025, which cut local governments’ property tax revenues among other items. Local governments need clarification and some changes to the law’s language that, left unchanged, will make it “very difficult” for them to continue to maintain current service levels, he said.
New Whiteland
There isn’t “a lot on the drawing board right now,” for New Whiteland in comparison to other communities, but the town is growing nonetheless, said John Perrin, town council president.
Like other communities, state legislation has required New Whiteland to tighten its 2026 budget. Perrin said he is “cautiously optimistic.”
“We have to make do with less, they have to make do with less, and we have to still provide the same services, and we will,” Perrin said. “We will still provide the same services that our residents have become used to. We’ll just figure out a way to do it.”
Dirt has started moving in front of Vita of New Whiteland for a retail development with four businesses. Two are expected to be restaurants, and the development will likely be done in 2026, Perrin said.
Workers have also broken ground on Pleasant Creek, a housing development with over 400 homes near the wastewater plant.
“The infrastructure is in. They’re doing roads now,” Perrin said. “They’re doing all of the underground plumbing and things that are being put in, sewer lines, water lines.”
A road project on Tracy Road was supposed to be done in September, but the contractor will continue working on it into the new year.
“With that being a main entryway into town, we’re trying to make it nicer,” Perrin said.
As for other housing, Perrin said New Whiteland is landlocked at this point, and town officials will wait until a developer comes to New Whiteland with a project to consider.
Trafalgar
Trafalgar residents can look forward to additional housing and amenities in 2026.
The town received a $100,000 Festival Country grant to build an outdoor music venue. Glue-Lam Erectors is building the amphitheater next to the community building, 335 Pleasant St. The town is expecting to host its first concerts at the amphitheater this summer.
To address the need for senior housing, a development of affordable senior apartments was approved by the town council in September. The apartments are planned on a 5.63-acre property behind Taco Bell. The complex will also have a walking trail, garden area and a community room.
The development will likely start construction in April or May, said Bryan Gregg, town manager.
“I’m trying to lay a really solid foundation, because I don’t want to see Trafalgar develop — as we are guaranteed to do — on a shaky foundation,” Gregg said.
While growth has been slow this past year, Gregg said the quality of life in Trafalgar is on the rise, with space to grow.
“As far as fast or big, that’s not the primary focus of mine or the council right now,” he said. “Just setting that steady foundation, improving quality of life, amenities and making Trafalgar a good place that you would want to call home.”
Whiteland
Whiteland is focusing on the future in 2026.
One of the biggest projects is the construction of the Bob Glidden Boulevard and Whiteland Road roundabout. The construction will be a full closure for 90 days, said Carmen Young, town manager.
“That is going to be painful as we go through the construction of it, but the optimist in me is to say once it’s done, it’ll alleviate some of the traffic congestion we have out at the interstate,” she said.
A new utility project will also be presented to the town council this month to remove a lift station and replace it with a force main.
The “biggest pain point” for the town in 2026 is out-of-date town equipment, and officials want to create a plan to be more efficient about replacing equipment in the future. Some equipment is 20 or more years old, and beyond its typical service life, Young said.
As for developments, dirt may get moving at the corner of Graham and Whiteland roads for a commercial development at the corner parcel, likely a gas station, Young said. The Culver’s on U.S. 31 is also expected to open in May, and Sugar Foods will also open its facility this year, she said.
With quality of life, Young said town officials are expecting to hear feedback from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources on the draft park master plan in February. The goal is to have the plan adopted by DNR, the park board and town council in September. The plan was created both to plan for future growth and to be eligible for funding, she said.
While residential numbers in Whiteland have somewhat plateaued, Young still thinks there will be some residential growth.
There were 74 new single-family homes permitted in 2025. Redwood Apartments on U.S. 31 started construction on 155 units and was given a certificate of occupancy for the first building in the complex. Allure Apartments in the Gateway at Whiteland opened their first buildings for occupancy in early December, Young said.
Daily Journal reporters Elissa Maudlin and Erika Malone and news editor Noah Crenshaw contributed to this report.
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