Welcome to the Neighborhoods!

They’re walkable. They’re wonderful. They’re five urban neighborhoods Indy residents should know about.

Indianapolis is a city of colorful neighborhoods. The impetus behind Unsung Indy is to highlight the many benefits and advantages to living in the city’s diverse mix of up-and-coming urban communities.

For its initial phase, the campaign focuses on five unique, Indianapolis neighborhoods: Irvington, Holy Cross, Ransom Place, West Indianapolis and Watson-McCord.

Unsung Indy launched on April 1. The campaign featured a variety of paid media, along with non-traditional neighborhood signage, everything designed to identify and draw attention to lesser-known urban neighborhoods located outside the city’s downtown mile square.

“The goal of Unsung Indy is to align potential urban dwellers with “unsung” neighborhoods in Indianapolis,” says Andy Fraizer, Executive Director of Indiana Association for Community Economic Development (IACED), which is leading the campaign. “Homebuilders and others do an excellent job of promoting the benefits of living in the surrounding counties. This effort is designed to highlight the distinct advantages that many Indianapolis neighborhoods have to offer.”

What makes Unsung Indy such an intriguing story? Consider just a few of the subplots:

• Real Estate Value: Generously sized and centrally located properties can be had for considerably less in any of the five Unsung Indy neighborhoods.

• Recession Busters: With the country fighting its biggest economic downturn since the Great Depression, people are revisiting how they live. For many, that means relocating closer to work. Any of the five Unsung Indy neighborhoods offers plenty of affordable choices.

• Suburban Flight: An increasing number of empty nesters are abandoning the suburbs in favor of pedestrian-friendly, near-in urban neighborhoods.

• Old Home / Healthy Living: Researchers from the University of Utah recently released a study showing that historic, pedestrian-oriented neighborhoods promote healthier lifestyles than suburban neighborhoods designed primarily to facilitate car travel.

• DIY Paradise: The price is right. The porch needs work. Urban neighborhoods are chockablock with great opportunities for do-it-yourselfers.

• People Power: You simply won’t find a more interesting or committed network of neighbors than in the five Unsung Indy communities. They bring the cohesiveness and shared commitment of a small town to the heart of the city.

Each of these five neighborhoods has an intriguing tale to tell. Look for Unsung Indy to expand in the months ahead, as the campaign seeks out other great urban neighborhoods in Indianapolis, each with a story all its own.