To address chronic vacancy and plan for future growth in the Downtown neighborhood of Gary, Indiana, The 1861 Group worked with the Gary Housing Authority and incoming Mayoral administration to strategize around and leverage the development of key City-owned sites in the neighborhood. Phase one created a plan taking advantage of existing assets and prior plans to reinvigorate Gary’s downtown. The final document included an implementation plan as well as a document to be used to pitch HUD, USDOT, FTA, NPS, and other federal agencies that may have interest in investing in downtown Gary.

Work began with a market study of Downtown, including development and spending trends, land use and zoning analyses, and mapping assets to identify opportunity to unlock new markets. After studying the market, our strategy focused on leveraging existing investments such as proximity to a national park, historic preservation strategies, and a minor league ballpark, among others, in a city that has been working in silos and doing “one-off” projects for generations, to create a cohesive, singular vision for Downtown Gary.

This plan was taken to HUD at the end of 2023 so the new administration could hit the ground running and establish new, functional private investment and development markets.