‘Making Moves’ to inform public with Noblesville NOW communication plan

As construction begins on more Noblesville NOW projects, the City of Noblesville has created “Making Moves,” a robust communications plan to share progress reports and updates. The initiative is an ongoing effort that will better inform the public about these transformative projects.

Ditslear

“Since launching Noblesville Now in 2018, we’ve laid the groundwork for several high-priority improvements that are important to our community’s future,” said Noblesville Mayor John Ditslear. “We’re excited to kick off ‘Making Moves’ as a collaborative effort to help residents, businesses and visitors stay up-to-date on our progress with these improvements.”

To ensure its success, “Making Moves” will share timely information so the public knows what is happening, when, where and why through the following outlets:

• New website – NoblesvilleNOW.com will have continual updates about each project. Guests may sign up for email alerts or view the newly created downtown parking map. Additional information about each project will be added to the site in the months ahead.
• Social media – Specific platform accounts with the username NoblesvilleNOW will provide timely, relevant updates via Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
• Mobile alerts – Mobile device alerts will be available by texting NOBNOW to 72345.
• Partner engagement – By partnering with Noblesville Chamber of Commerce, Noblesville Main Street, Nickel Plate Arts and Hamilton County, the city is collaborating on communications and outreach with other stakeholders.

Levinson construction to begin in May

One of the top objectives of Noblesville NOW was to strengthen the downtown by attracting more residents and more parking. Work on the $24.3 million mixed-use Levinson project in a public-private partnership with Rebar Development will start in May. The project will be built on the site of City Parking Lot No. 3, which is bordered by Eighth and Ninth streets, Maple Avenue and the alley south of Conner Street.

“By using these new communication resources, people can stay informed about the upcoming construction of our first downtown apartments in more than a century and our first parking garage,” said Ditslear. “We’re excited about the benefits this project will provide to strengthen downtown, but we’re also aware of the concerns people have.”

City officials and Rebar representatives have been working with downtown stakeholders and business owners ahead of “Making Moves,” to gather feedback and work on solutions that address these concerns. That engagement will continue.

“With any project of this size in an urban environment, there are bound to be some disruptions,” said Deputy Mayor Steve Cooke. “Our goal is to minimize any inconvenience to ensure our downtown district continues to thrive throughout the Levinson’s construction and beyond.”

Meanwhile, updates about the Levinson and other downtown projects will be included in the new Downtown Stakeholder e-newsletter recently launched by the Noblesville Chamber. To sign up, visit noblesvillechamber.com.

Downtown parking map and signs

One of the biggest concerns about the Levinson construction is the impact it will have on downtown parking. City Parking Lot No. 3 is expected to remain open until early May. Permit holders have been notified of where their temporary parking spaces will be located for the duration of construction.

To better promote available parking for the public, the city has created a new parking map, which is available on the Noblesville NOW website. Printed versions also will be available to downtown businesses. The map will be updated as additional public parking is added to current capacity. In addition, the city is creating new downtown parking signs that will identify each lot by color for greater visibility.

“All of these new resources through the ‘Making Moves’ campaign will highlight the parking we have available, but that perhaps the public wasn’t aware of before,” Cooke said. “Once the Levinson opens in 2020, I think the public will agree this effort was well worth it.”