Milhaus is partnering with Kite Realty Group Trust, DKGR, and others to elevate and enhance Glendale Town Center with the construction of AYR – a $40 million, 267-unit residential apartment complex located between Broad Ripple Village at Kessler Avenue and East 62nd Street.

“The Midtown area continues to be a bustling and growing neighborhood, with housing demands to match,” said Brad Vogelsmeier, Vice President of Development for Milhaus. “AYR will transform empty space into an accessible, modern living community at a competitive price point. Residents and nearby neighbors will be footsteps away from retail, dining, and entertainment.”

The name “AYR” pays tribute to Glendale Town Center’s original anchor tenant L.S. Ayres, who was largely responsible for the area’s economic development. When Glendale Town Center opened in the mid-1900’s, Ayres owned a retail store called “Ayr-way” – which occupied the building that now hosts Target – as well as many other stores in the area.

Most existing structures in Glendale Town Center share a similar mid-century modern design theme based on the time period of the mall’s construction, so AYR’s exterior mimics certain elements shared by the surrounding buildings.

“The Glendale neighborhood was largely developed in the 1950's and 60's and the original Glendale Mall, built in 1959, was a major catalyst to that,” said John Albrecht, Principal at DKGR. “The mall has obviously been reinvisioned over the years, but we felt this new development and adaptation of the Macy's box was a great opportunity to harken back to the early days, even if it's in an abstract and more modern way.” 

Brick patterning in DKGR’s design pays homage to some of the classic mid-century masonry techniques seen throughout the neighborhood, but Albrecht said this patterning more directly relates to some of the simpler brick patterns seen on the mall building and at high-traffic entry sequences in Glendale.

“On a more micro-level, the series of vertical fins that show up on various facades on AYR is a unique detail that has been painstakingly analyzed and documented for effectiveness at different times of day and in different levels of light to create ever-changing shadowing effects,” Albrecht said. “We feel this detail, albeit small, is a critically important one to the overall success of the building facades while also serving as a refined version of some vertical details found in the pre-cast walls around the mall.”

Vogelsmeier said much of AYR’s furniture will also match the area’s mid-century modern aesthetic.

The nearby Broad Ripple neighborhood has evolved in recent decades into an eclectic mix of retail, commercial, and residential destinations. And as the district has grown, so too have its surrounding neighborhoods and businesses. Vogelsmeier said AYR’s Glendale location will offer residents unique benefits because of the complex’s close proximity to premier shopping and entertainment destinations.

“It’s an attractive spot for a residential community because of its proximity to Broad Ripple, but also because you’re at a midway point between two strong employment nodes in Keystone and Downtown Indianapolis,” Vogelsmeier said.

Vogelsmeier said Glendale offers a different residential setting than Broad Ripple because of the well-established neighborhoods directly adjacent to Glendale. And, while living in Glendale Town Center might be a little quieter than living in the heart of downtown Broad Ripple, AYR tenants will live only a mile from Broad Ripple and just up the road from the Fashion Mall at Keystone.

AYR buildings will be constructed at least 75 feet from the site’s back property line, giving 150 feet of space between the apartment buildings and the homes behind the property. The project team worked closely with neighborhood residents to understand the local community’s goals for this development.

“I think the most dynamic part of the development is the way it's massing and building arrangement engage the street and start to redefine the ‘neighborhood edge’ to the east of a parcel previously void of all character,” Albrecht said.

Homeowners living directly behind the site consulted with the project team about implementing additional tree canopy coverage between AYR and the neighborhood so as not to dramatically affect neighborhood views. Through their conversations with the community, Vogelsmeier said the project team also recognized the urgent need for improvements to Rural Street.

“We learned over the course of the project how dangerous that intersection at Kessler and Rural was,” Vogelsmeier said. “We wouldn’t build a project without bike lanes and sidewalks, but connecting them into the existing network and making AYR more than just an isolated project and one that ties into Glendale Town Center and the neighborhood was pretty important for us.”

Rural Street will undergo a complete resurfacing with new bike lanes and sidewalks added all the way up and down the block. The project’s traffic engineer recommended the addition of a left turn lane at the intersection of Rural Street and Kessler Boulevard, which will impose a minor blip in additional traffic, but make a major impact on traffic safety.

Live-work units on the ground floor of AYR make up one of 10 distinct unit types within the complex. Following the dramatic upsurge in professionals working from home in the last year, Vogelsmeier said the appetite for flexible units like these are stronger than ever before.

“These units provide flexibility to someone who owns a business and wants to run their business out of the front of a space with a living space behind it,” Vogelsmeier said. “If somebody wanted it just as an office space, it would function the same way: you would have a restroom, a kitchenette, and instead of your bed or a couch and TV, you would turn that space into another office area.”

Additional amenities featured in the design include an onsite fitness center, indoor bike storage, indoor dog wash for pet owners, a pool and pool deck, multiple outdoor grill stations, a sunken outdoor firepit, and an indoor/outdoor resident lounge space with an entertainment kitchen.

Leasing management staff will also be onsite, as will private conference rooms, private 10-foot by 10-foot office suites for residents, rentable co-work spaces, and a coffee bar.

AYR will begin offering leasing options to prospective residents in May and will welcome residents in June. All construction is scheduled to complete by Q1 of 2022.