Noblesville mayor: ‘We are now a player’
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowNoblesville Mayor Chris Jensen says the planned 120,000-square-foot Noblesville Event Center brings his city into the fold as central Indiana grows its reputation as a sports leader in the Midwest.
Officials broke ground last week on the 3,400-seat arena, which will serve as the home of the Indiana Pacers’ G-League team, as well as entertainment, meetings and other sporting events.
“We are now a player in regional sports attraction in central Indiana,” Jensen said. “So we’re glad to be a part of it. We’re glad of not only what the Pacers bring but what other opportunities that arena can bring as well.”
Jensen talked about the venue and its importance to the city in an interview on Inside INdiana Business with Gerry Dick.
“This is going to bring tens of millions of dollars of annual economic impact to Noblesville, which is thus going to continue to buoy Hamilton County’s growth and central Indiana’s growth,” he said. “So we’re certainly going to have some stake in the game, and basketball, in my opinion, in the Hoosier State is a great place to start.”
The arena is part of a much bigger picture in Noblesville. It will serve as a signature anchor for Innovation Mile, a 600-acre live-work-play development along Interstate 69 that is expected to leverage more than $500 million in private investment as it is developed over the next five to 10 years, according to our partners at the IBJ.
“Innovation Mile’s going to be be home of the jobs of the future, the amenities of the future, the quality of life investments for the future, but it’s no doubt that having the Pacers name out there is a game changer for us,” Jensen said. “It’s going to jump start incredible opportunity for the east side of Noblesville.”
The mayor said the city is growing in a way that preserves and protects its historic core, but it has been a balancing act to do so.
“Our downtown square with the White River running through it is the bread and butter of our community. Out on the east side where the Pacers are gonna be calling home is really an opportunity for innovation for growth for entertainment. I believe we can have both of those in Noblesville, while maintaining our historic core which is what everyone loves about our community.”
Noblesville’s next chapter, Jensen said, is about competing for investment and talent, and he knows his city is not alone.
“There are other communities that are in this space with us. We have all sat down and thought about that strategically,” he said. “Our arena is a different size than maybe our neighbors’ arena as they attract different amenities there. So Indianapolis and central Indiana has to start thinking like a region. This isn’t Noblesville versus Fishers versus Westfield, and so on; this is central Indiana competing around the Midwest and around the country and globally.”
The G-League team, formerly based out of Fort Wayne, has changed its name to the Indiana Mad Ants and is playing the 2023-2024 season out of Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
The team is expected to move to the new venue in Noblesville next season.