By Desiree Williams
Zionsville Mayor Tim Haak focused on infrastructure and economic development projects during his State of the Town address, presented at the Zionsville Chamber of Commerce’s Businsess Breakfast Series Feb. 21 event.
Haak said the long-awaited traffic signal at Oak Street and Kissel Road is under construction now and should be complete within a few weeks. The design for the roundabout at the intersection of Mulberry Street and Ford Road is in the works and construction will begin this summer.
The town received a $1 million grant last year through the Community Crossings Matching Grant Program and a special distribution of funds from the state to allow for a budget of $2.5 million just for resurfacing roads this year.
“We have seen a tremendous increase in our ability to fund road projects,” Haak said. “Our fiscal budget is in a lot better shape.”
After road construction, the town’s second priority is Creekside Corporate Park. Its first tenant, DK Pierce, will move into an office in the back of the park. This spurred AT&T to lay fiber optic lines throughout the entire park already.
Haak also addressed the recently-approved plan for MetroNet to install fiber optic lines throughout the town to increase internet speed, saying that “it’s good competition” for providers that have had a monopoly on the town for years.
N.K. Hurst Co., a dry bean packaging company, is building its second facility on Bennett Parkway. The downtown Indianapolis facility remain stay open while the Zionsville site will house corporate offices as well as production and distribution services.
“We’re kind of changing the way we do business now,” Haak said. “It used to be Zionsville was thought of as a closed shop and we didn’t want to have any businesses, but that’s far from the truth. We do. We just want to have the right businesses and the right product.”
