Noblesville is creative.
- IAC
- Programs and Services
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- Cultural Districts
- Current: Noblesville
The Noblesville Cultural Arts District includes the city’s newest cultural amenity and public park, Federal Hill Commons, which will anchor the west side of the downtown and the Cultural Arts District with an amphitheater nestled against the White River. The district also stretches into the residential area considered “Old Town” to capture Noblesville Preservation Alliance's Preservation Hall, local artist residences and in-home studios and Seminary Park. The district encompasses approximately 50 square blocks in downtown Noblesville.
Impact Points
4,872
Creative jobs in the zip codes surrounding the Noblesville Cultural Arts District in 2019. (Source)
$159.1M
Creative industry earnings in the zip codes surrounding the Noblesville Cultural Arts District in 2019. (Source)
$16.2M
Cultural nonprofit revenues in the zip codes surrounding the Noblesville Cultural Arts District in 2019. (Source)
Impact Stories
2019 was a record year for Noblesville's Facade Grant program. This program has been funded by a TIF in a section of downtown Noblesville and has grown each year. Receiving our Cultural District designation emphasized that downtown Noblesville was a vital and vibrant place for commerce, which has, in turn, fueled new investment. As the impact of this investment has become more visible, more building owners and developers have rediscovered an interest in investing in downtown, including in their building facades.
In 2018, investment in eligible Noblesville facades totaled $197,985.12. In 2019, that investment increased to $252,151.40. The success of the program has led the new city administration to expand the program to include all of downtown Noblesville, so in 2020, many more buildings are eligible than ever before and we have already seen immense interest in participating in this year's program.
By opening NobleMade, our Noblesville-themed gift shop in the Visitor's Center on the Noblesville square, we have more direct access to stories from visitors. We met a set of sisters who live on opposite ends of the state who chose Noblesville as their regular rendezvous spot because of our charming downtown with its many unique dining and shopping options. We have met many new artists who took a day-trip to Noblesville in order to find out more about the opportunities they might have here, and we have met families who had heard that downtown Noblesville had many options that suited their entire family. We hope to capture more of these stories in 2020.
Interestingly, Hamilton County Tourism has been collecting and using data from Uber Media. They sample 2 ~ 6% of all visitors. Based on that %, HCT can estimate the total visitors to our District, which is what we used to calculate our economic impact. HCT had to make a big approximation for this data, but they estimate the following visitation to the Noblesville Square (heart of our Cultural District):
Noblesville Square:
- Daytrippers – 51,000 - 154,000
- Overnighters – 74,000 - 222,000
12 Stars media recently moved to Noblesville from Fishers because they wanted to be part of a more authentic setting and participate in the organic development of culture in our city. Owner Rocky Walls has made it a priority to attend and contribute to Noblesville Arts Council meetings where we discuss the goals of the arts district, and he even brought his entire family on our visit to Nashville. He has offered to help us share the stories of local artists and the District as a whole as part of his contribution for 2020.
