Since its days as a trading post in 1802, Noblesville has remained a center of economic and social activity for Central Indiana. Noblesville takes pride in its historic character and friendly small town atmosphere. Even as the population has expanded significantly throughout Hamilton County, Noblesville embraces and utilizes its Midwest small town character to its advantage. As a result, Downtown Noblesville is a hub for festivals, social gatherings and government and professional services. The courthouse square continues to be a regional destination for dining, shopping, socializing and conducting business.

At the center of the community is the historic core which includes the courthouse square, a number of late 1800s commercial buildings, and the iconic Hamilton County Courthouse. The core is flanked by established neighborhoods that possess a range of classic styles from grand architectural works to modest working class homes. Noblesville's rich cultural heritage is exemplified though its architecture in the historic downtown core and surrounding neighborhoods.

The community is committed to maintaining its architectural character and heritage as it grows and adapts to the changes and demands of cities in a new century. This is no more exemplified than in the recent expansion of the historic City Hall and the creation of the Noblesville Corporate Campus which includes a mix of office, industrial, commercial, and residential uses, intertwined into the existing character and heritage of Noblesville. However, Noblesville's heart is the town square where residents still gather, work, play, socialize and linger. As the County Seat, the Noblesville town square is the symbol of Hamilton County; it's the center of city and county government.
 
Historically, Noblesville's role was predominantly serving a largely agricultural region. However, a shifting regional economy, growing population and changing demographics have transformed the role of the community. As growth from Indianapolis continues to move north and the population continues to grow, Noblesville must identify how to better serve its residents by understanding what they demand from their community including public amenities, cultural venues, job and housing choices, recreation, shopping and the general needs for an improved quality of life.

While the business community in the historic core is fairing well, it lacks common management and a concerted marketing effort. Although not in direct competition, the historic core, and downtown in general, loses some of its market share to retail activity in other more prominent locations in Hamilton County and even nearby Highway 37. In addition, issues related to parking and general accessibility impact the core's image as a viable and convenient destination for employees, residents and visitors.

Like other established communities, Noblesville has struggled with balancing growth and maintaining its valuable historic character. This struggle directly affects development patterns, investment trends and economic growth within the community. The growing Hamilton County population has put stress on existing infrastructure, created new pockets of investment on the outskirts and created development pressure in areas typified by historic neighborhood qualities. These evolutionary changes challenge the community to better manage its resources, heritage and proactive spirit to redefine the role of Downtown and engage the growing population.
 
Balancing Noblesville's nostalgic flare with its needs for physical and economic growth is crucial. The Downtown Noblesville Strategic Development Plan is a conduit for making smart incremental change that respects the community's history and enhances its assets. Because change within the community is inevitable, citizens and community leaders decided not to leave the future of Downtown Noblesville to chance or the whims of an evolving market. Noblesville took a proactive stance to prepare a plan to help direct change, set higher standards, influence private sector activities, better manage resources, protect and leverage community assets, and secure Noblesville's future through a populace vision.

The Downtown Noblesville Strategic Development Plan identifies the pieces of the redevelopment puzzle and outlines a process for organizing the community to achieve its vision of long-term vitality. The Plan is a rallying point for citizens and leaders to achieve a better community and a method for communicating their wishes and desires for Downtown. The planning process has resulted in a shared community vision for Downtown Noblesville's greatest assets - its riverfront and historic core - and their relationship to surrounding diverse neighborhoods. The purpose of the Plan is to provide a guide for the community to use in its effort to restore the downtown core to a vibrant place to live, work, shop and play. The overarching strategy is to capture regional growth and investment in Downtown and making use of vacant and underutilized land in and around the historic core. The plan includes recommendations for a Downtown point person responsible for implementing the strategic plan, coordinating development and the various interest groups. As such, the Noblesville Strategic Development Plan is a task-oriented and results driven plan for organizing and utilizing public and private capacity.

Please click on the following links for additional information related to the Downtown Noblesville Strategic Development Plan.

Associated Documents