INDIANAPOLIS, IN  The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and Professional Builder magazine announced that Indianapolis's Fall Creek Place received the 2004 Best in American Living Award (BALA) for Best Smart Growth Community.  BALA winners will be featured in the January issue of Professional Builder magazine, and will be profiled at the National Association of Home Builders International Builders Show in Orlando in January 2005.  Winners will also be featured on-line at www.housingzone.com for one year.

The recognition from Professional Builder and the NAHB is another indication of Fall Creek Places tremendous success, and shows how this development has become a national model for successfully revitalizing neighborhoods in the center city, says Indianapolis Deputy Mayor Carolyn Coleman.

The BALA program is publicized as the nations foremost residential design award competition and is open to architects, homebuilders, land planners, and developers.

Fall Creek Place involves the transformation of a blighted inner-city neighborhood into a healthy, mixed-income and diverse community. It includes more than 26 city blocks over 160 acres, and upon completion will provide nearly 400 new homeownership opportunities through both new construction and rehabilitation of vacant homes, with 51 percent of homes targeted to households earning at or below 80 percent of the median income for the City.  Future components of Fall Creek Place will include a neighborhood retail center and construction of nine live/work loft-style condominiums  a flexible residential alternative with a commercial storefront on the ground floor, and a residential unit above.  Since construction began in 2001, 286 households have moved into Fall Creek Place. 

Earlier this year, Fall Creek Place was named one of 19 worldwide finalists from the Urban Land Institute for its Awards for Excellence program.  In 2003, Fall Creek Place received national recognition from the American Planning Association for Excellence in Implementing Smart Growth, and also received the Homeownership Zone award from the Department of Housing and Urban Development for its use of leveraging private dollars with public monies.  Since the project commenced in 2001, Fall Creek Place has been featured in seven national publications. 

Mansur Real Estate Services Inc. is the master developer of Fall Creek Place.  King Park Area Development Corporation and Historic Landmarks Foundation, two not-for-profit corporations, are also partners in Fall Creek Place and have been actively involved with the rehabilitation of homes in the neighborhood.  Five local homebuilders and six lending institutions have also contributed to the development. 

Fall Creek Place demonstrates that Indianapolis is making great communities through innovative partnerships between the public and private sectors, notes Chris Palladino, Director of Neighborhood Development and Finance for Mansur Real Estate Services Inc., and the Fall Creek Place Project Manager.  Mansur, the City of Indianapolis, and all of the team members who have contributed to the success of Fall Creek Place are pleased to be recognized as a BALA winner.