ZIONSVILLE, Ind. (WISH) — NTT IndyCar Series driver Graham Rahal traded in his racing helmet for a hard hat on Wednesday.

The Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing driver took part in a groundbreaking ceremony for his new GR Brands headquarters in Zionsville.

“It’s crazy to think about how far this has come in such a short period of time,” Rahal said.

The new facility will be a state-of-the-art workplace for Rahal’s current employees. It will also allow his companies to add more staff. In fact, the project is expected to bring 100 jobs to the town of Zionsville.

GR Brands currently has 74 employees.

“All (74 employees) are spread out over nine different buildings in greater Indianapolis between Brownsburg and Carmel,” Rahal said. “And so, to just put everybody in one roof will be amazing.”

Zionsville Town Council President Jason Plunkett is looking forward to welcoming the new facility to the town as well.

“I think it’s enormous,” Plunkett said.

Plunkett feels the new buildings will definitely have a positive economic impact on the town.

“You got folks that are going to come in here,” said Plunkett. “They’re going to work here. His clients are going to come here to visit. The employees are going to look for homes around here. Their kids are going to come to school here. It could be just a tremendous economic benefit for us.”

Overall, the complex, which will sit right across the street from Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, will feature two buildings:

The first building will feature the showroom and service for Graham Rahal Performance and Rahal Ducati
Indianapolis, and Rahal Paint Protection and Rahal Precision Tint will operate within the facility. Offices for staff across all GR Brands companies will also be housed within Building 1 along with a stunning new Rivet Coffee shop operated by Allie Commons and her staff.

Rahal Piaggio Indianapolis will operate out of Building 2 as well as a car storage facility. Rahal is in talks with a restauranter to open a restaurant on the west side of the building and a members-only social club will be housed upstairs.

The two buildings will total almost 140,000 square feet by the time they are completed. Building one will be approximately 105,000 square feet, while building two will be around 33,000 square feet.

“Living in Zionsville, all my business in Zionsville, my racing in Zionsville, to be able to literally have everything right here, it’s a dream come true,” Rahal said.

GR Brands is a portfolio of companies led by Rahal.

“The greatest gift that I got from my dad (Bobby Rahal), a lot of people think is racing related or whatever, that wasn’t it,” Rahal said. “The greatest lesson I ever had from him was understanding the afterlife – What is life going to be like after racing for me? And those days are getting nearer, not there yet, but nearer. And to be prepared for what’s to come there. And that’s why all this began in 2017.”

The project is expected to be take 16 to 18 months to complete, meaning it should be finished in early 2025.