This is a rendering of the Hickory Junction Fieldhouse facade. Submitted artist’s rendering
Lebanon Mayor Matthew Gentry and developer Andy Card of Card & Associates broke ground Tuesday for Hickory Junction Fieldhouse.
But their groundbreaking with shiny new shovels and hard hats was purely ceremonial, as it occurred with a backdrop of excavators and earth movers reshaping the landscape just outside an event tent.
About 130 city officials, developers, and other community stakeholders gathered under the tent on the former Holiday Inn property at the southwest corner of Interstate 65 and Ind. 39 to witness the culmination of a vision Gentry and Card dreamed up four years ago.
The $115 million fieldhouse will serve as a 270,000 square-foot anchor for a 95-acre development that will also include restaurant, retail, medical, and residential opportunities, the developer announced. The first building and a hotel are expected to open in early 2024.
“We both, I believe, want this to be the gateway to Lebanon,” Card said. “This project, when completed over the next coming years, will be worth $400 million in investment by myself, the city, and our partners like Bel Canto,” a company that will build a luxury residential community on more than 30 acres. “There will be restaurants, hotels, etcetera, etcetera,” he said. “So this is a big deal for Lebanon, and I hope the community is excited about what’s forthcoming.” “It’s huge for us,” Gentry said. “It’s been so long to get here, but you see the equipment working out here and it’s not just theoretical. It’s happening, and I think it’s the beginning of Lebanon’s next chapter.”
The city owned the property and held it until the right developer showed up, Gentry said. There were offers for truck stops, car dealerships, and an ATV dealership.
“We just felt like there could be a higher and better use for the land,” Gentry said. “And I think we’ve really found that with this sports facility and the hotels and restaurants that will come as a part of that, because it will become a tourism destination again.”
Tuesday was breezy and the chairs under the tent were quickly coated in dust the excavators kicked up.
“The contractor is out here moving dirt,” Card said. “They apologize for the dust, but we have to get going because winter is close, as you can tell by the breeze.
“So without further ado,” Card said. “Let’s dig some dirt, Mayor.”
Card & Associates and the mayor’s office provided these fast facts about the project:
• Hickory Junction represents nearly $115 million in development. Future development is divided into four additional components featuring a medical office building, restaurant, retail and residential uses.
• Card & Associates secured a commitment from Bel Canto Asset Growth Fund to develop more than 30 acres for a residential community containing luxury apartments with first class amenities including, but not limited to, a state-of-the-art fitness center, resort-style pool and sundeck, and indoor/outdoor social gathering spaces.
• Card & Associates’ portfolio includes the Pacers Athletic Center in Westfield, Finch Creek Fieldhouse in Noblesville and Community Sports and Wellness Center in Pendleton. Each site is maximized with complementary tenants, major partners and solid tournament and league relationships. With each of these locations, additional economic development occurred rapidly adding to the overall positive impact for the city, its residents and nearby businesses.
• Card & Associates will secure restaurant, retail, hotel and other destinations and will work with OnPoint Real Estate Solutions to recruit hotel, restaurant and retail tenants.
• Lebanon will support the project with tax increment financing, TIF, bonds for the construction of critical infrastructure improvements and the sports facility and donation of 11 city-owned acres where the Holiday Inn once sat, in total valued at more than $11 million.
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