NOBLESVILLE — If you're driving through Noblesville, traffic may flow a little better. That's because the first steps of a major project to reimagine the central part of the city is finally done.
On Thursday the city held a party to celebrate the milestone.
Hundreds came out for the “Party on Pleasant,” which had food, games, and more to support the project that’s been more than forty years in the making.
"We've talked about getting traffic flowing east to west in Hamilton County and through our community for decades. This project is going to help with that. It's going to help reduce traffic in downtown by about 30%,” said Mayor Chris Jensen.
The first phase of the project was completed with a bridge over White River aiming to make it easier to get into downtown.
“It’s a $125 million new corridor through our community, it’s not just roadway, it’s a trail way it has artwork, it has landscaping,” added Mayor Jensen.
The major project broke ground in 2022 but hasn’t come without some growing pains.
“We’ve had construction down here for almost three years and traffic,” said Paula Gilliam who lives close to the new bridge. “It’s gotten kind of rough getting in and out.”
The long-time resident joined some local business owners impacted by all of the construction.
“It was very difficult as a business owner,” said Kelly Cook, the owner of The Velvet Plum.
Her new antique shop sits on the corner of Conner Street downtown.
“We knew that traffic was going to slow down because people were reluctant to come downtown to shop or park or eat.”
Now that the first phase is complete, she’s among many hopeful for the city’s future.
“It’s going to make things so much easier…which in turn will be great for us as downtown retailers and restaurant owners.”
The next phases of the projects are already underway.
The second phase will improve the existing Pleasant Street from 10th Street to SR 37.
The third phase will connect Pleasant Street from River Road to SR 32 at the Hague Road intersection.
The entire project is set to be completed in 2025.
