Crime, poor living conditions continue to plague Towne and Terrace
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Indianapolis government is the majority owner at the 102-condominium Towne and Terrace.
As I-Team 8 has shown viewers since 2018, the living conditions at the condominiums was deplorable. The condominium complex is southeast of the intersection of East 42nd Street and Post Road on the city’s northeast side.
Maintaining and policing the property is costing taxpayers millions of dollars.
“Tear it down, tear it down burn it,” Tamira Clipper told I-Team 8.
She says her two children moved into one of the few habitable units at Towne and Terrace in 2019. At that time, many of the units were boarded up and “no trespassing” signs had replaced welcome mats.
Recently, I-Team 8 found a Ford sedan with a smashed-in windshield sitting on concrete blocks and stripped of its rims and wheels more than a month ago.
Clipper says she doesn’t allow her children to play outside. She told I-Team 8 that she hears gunfire ”every day, every day … 2, 3, 4 times a day every day.”
On Sunday afternoon, police crime tape surrounded a unit less than 200 yards from Clipper’s place. Police say a man was found shot to death.
Police and other first responders are in the complex so often that their presence often goes unnoticed.
Many of the buildings are past repair. Dogs roam the complex in search of food while litter decorates the landscaping.
In the six months since the city claimed majority ownership in the complex, the city’s Department of Metropolitan Development hired two community engagement specialists to connect the remaining residents with city services.
IMPD patrols the area during every shift.
New streetlights are in place, paid for with $5.5 million from the city’s allotment from the federal American Rescue Plan Act, which was set up as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
I-Team 8 in 2019 reported on the city’s plans to redevelop the area, but not everyone at Towne and Terrace is on board with the plan. Many of the inhabited units are owner-occupied or owned by absentee owners.
Clipper pays $700 a month to an absentee landlord. She plans on moving in the next couple of months.
The city plans to redevelop the area, but exact plans have not been announced.
Following the legal battle that ended last fall, the Department of Metropolitan Development now holds a seat on Towne and Terrace’s homeowners’ association.