Council asked to demolish Keystone Towers, Winona Hospital 5.16.11

INDIANAPOLIS STAR

Used to be, folks stopping by Keystone Pet Hospital would wonder when the city was finally going to tear down the condemned Keystone Towers that loom over the small business.
After years of inaction, that talk quieted down. But customers and workers will have something to talk about again if the City--County Council tonight approves funds to demolish the longtime eyesores.
"They've been there too long, too empty, with too much crime going on," said pet hospital technician Billie Solano.
Up for discussion is approval of $7.6 million in federal money, which would be used in part to demolish the abandoned towers and Winona Memorial Hospital on the Near-Northside. The towers could come down by August, with the hospital falling later.
The city doesn't have specific plans for either site yet -- though it's likely that affordable housing will be built on at least part of the Keystone Towers property, at 2855 E. 45th St. The Children's Museum remains interested in the nearby hospital site, at 3232 N. Meridian St.
"I think both of these facilities are blights on their neighborhoods that have potential for redevelopment," said city spokesman Marc Lotter. "The demolition of these facilities will start to usher that in."
The city plans to use $2 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to demolish Keystone Towers and $2 million to demolish Winona. The money for the hospital still needs federal approval, but city officials expect that as early as this week.
The rest of the money is allotted to develop affordable rental housing on vacant properties in several areas of the city.
The 15-story Keystone Towers have been abandoned since 2003 and boarded up since 2008. Once a posh high-rise, the complex was built in 1973 but fell into decay in the 1980s. It's now little more than a desolate eyesore for nearby businesses, homeowners and commuters passing by on Binford Boulevard/Fall Creek Parkway, Allisonville Road and nearby Keystone Avenue.
It's in an odd spot in the city, where no community groups lay claim. The Binford Redevelopment and Growth group lobbies for the area beginning about 10 blocks to the north. The Mapleton-Fall Creek Development Corp. advocates for the area to the south. The Keystone Millersville Neighborhood Association is to the southeast.
Still, representatives from all of those groups will be glad to see the towers go.
Alma Trawick has been living nearby for more than 22 years. No matter how many times she looks out from her yard in the Keystone Millersville neighborhood, she'll never get used to seeing those towers. She's tired of the crime, vandalism and rodents the empty buildings attract.
"It should have been torn down a long time ago," she said.
Jackie Nytes, a Democrat on the City-County Council who works for the Mapleton-Fall Creek group, said the towers have stood in the way of redevelopment too long.
"It's a big ugly that nobody has been able to find a way to fix for a long time," she said. "It's a large, gaping reminder of the past, and business owners around here want to see it redeveloped."
Winona has been empty nearly as long as the Keystone Towers. The 317-bed hospital opened in the 1950s but shut down after its operator, Leland Medical Centers of Texas, went bankrupt in August 2004. A local doctors group took control but couldn't keep the hospital afloat.
Michael Osborne, president of the Near North Development Corp., said it's a blight on surrounding neighborhoods, schools, churches and The Children's Museum.
"Speaking as an organization that's focused on revitalizing a community," he said, "I can't imagine we could be more supportive of the city allocating the resources to aggressively deal with this problem."
Museum officials have been eyeing the property for years. In 2008, they floated an idea to redevelop it into an interactive learning park.
Brian Statz, vice president of operations and general counsel, said the museum would consider buying or leasing the land from the city. No firm plans are in place, he said, but museum officials are thinking of broadening their scope.
He said the main issue, though, is demolishing the hospital.
"When you walk across our skywalk from the garage to the museum, you can't miss it," he said. "Winona was such a big part of the community for decades, so you don't want to be in a hurry to say 'let's get rid of this thing.'
"But in reality," he said, "that's exactly what should be done."
http://www.indystar.com/article/20110516/LOCAL/105160328/-1/7daysarchives/Council-asked-demolish-Keystone-Towers-Winona-Hospital