UPDATE: Aspire House has reached its fundraising goal and will turn the fire station into a hub for it work it does to help Hoosiers on the northwest side.
INDIANAPOLIS — Since 1897, Old Fire Station 9 has sat on the corner of Rader and Udell Streets.
"This firehouse is one of the last commercial spaces that's still standing in this northwest landing area, so a lot of them have been demolished and taken down. We want to put them back," Sharon Clark, co-founder of Aspire House, said.
Clark has a vision for the old building - one that she hopes can ignite a new hope for people in the neighborhood. The fire house was in danger of being demolished until she and her husband Tim worked to acquire it. Their vision is to transform it into a neighborhood community center.
"The biggest thing for me is just activating the space and people moving in and coming in and out. And our seniors having a place during the day, while kids are at school to come and do their thing and helping people find their happiness and their health and wealth," Clark said.
Sharon and Tim founded Aspire House several years ago. It's a community organization committed to improving the lives of those who live on the city's near northwest side.
"The reality is there are lots of needs in this community and there are lots of resources in the city of Indianapolis. We really truly believe that we're here to connect them," Sharon said.
If Aspire House raises $50,000 by February 1, a matching grant will kick in from the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority's Creating Places Program.
"[We want to] kind of breathe new life back into this part of the city, this near northwest neighborhood that has sadly suffered some serious dis-investment over the last four decades," Aspire House board member Deidre Pettinga said.
Aspire House hopes to offer a commercial kitchen, community meetings spaces and apartments for low-income residents.
"I'm a pretty optimistic person and I'm driven make sure this happens because these folks and everyone else — they need to know the near northwest is a great place," Sharon said.
As of Friday afternoon, more than $43,000 had been raised.Donations are being accepted through Tuesday.
