Jacobsville has become a center for revitalization near Downtown Evansville, with the latest project being another housing development.
On May 21, Mayor Stephanie Terry and other city officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Baker Flats. Brought to life by Indianapolis-based real estate developers House Investments and Partnership for Affordable Housing, Inc., the new 52-unit apartment complex seeks to provide affordable housing for seniors 55 and older.
In addition to housing, representatives at Baker Flats announced the complex will offer utility assistance, financial literacy courses, employment and transportation services, Meals on Wheels, and a foster grandparent program.
“We could not be more proud of this project,” House Investments Principal Matt Gadus says. “We think it’s up there with one of the nicest, if not the nicest, 55-and-better communities serving the affordable population here in the state of Indiana.”
Gadus says the project would not have been possible without support from the city of Evansville, which, according to Gadus, provided $1.85 million in HOME-ARP funding and a 5-year, 100 percent property tax abatement. Gadus also notes that 28 of the building’s apartments already have been leased.
“We are investing in the safety and stability of this entire Jacobsville neighborhood, and building upon our neighborhoods is how we continue to build a stronger, more vibrant Evansville,” Terry says.
The Baker Flats Affordable Housing complex is only one of several improvement projects recently completed in the neighborhood, including the gateway arch across North Main Street near Division Street, a Dollar General neighborhood grocery on the ground floor of the two-year-old Forge on Main apartment campus, a new streetscape along North Main, and the Deaconess Aquatic Center, which opened next to Garvin Park in October 2021.
“This is the look and feel that we need to see all over this city,” Terry says. “I’m hopeful that our team will be able to reimagine some of these spaces to ensure that they’re more walkable, that we’ve got adequate housing, and that we continue to uplift neighborhoods so that we have a stronger community overall.”
