FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) — A plan addressing the future needs of 18 neighborhoods that comprise what’s known as the Packard Area of Fort Wayne has been adopted.
The Packard 2030 Neighborhood Plan is the result of efforts by Fort Wayne’s Neighborhood Planning and Activation Workgroup and the Packard Area Planning Alliance.
The Packard area is comprised of the following neighborhoods:
- Broad River
- Foster Park
- Sherwood to Pettit
- Courts of Woodhurst
- Harrison Hill
- South Wayne
- Creighton Home
- Hoagland Maseterson
- Southwood Park
- Fairfield
- Illsley Place
- West Rudisill
- Fairfield Terrace Belmont
- Oakdale
- Williams Woodland Park
- Fairmont
- Poplar
- Woodhurst
“We worked with 1,500 folks throughout the entire process, getting input and information to incorporate into the plan,” said Dan Baisden, administrator of neighborhood planning and activation for the City of Fort Wayne. “I think the biggest highlight is that it was designed by the residents and the businesses and the stakeholders.”
Initial projects for 2023 include pedestrian safety improvements at several locations, sidewalk repair and new street lighting to improve neighborhood safety, wayfinding signage on specific corridors, and streetscape improvements at the intersection of Fairfield Avenue and Taylor Street, also known as Irishtown.
Information for the plan was gathered through a combination of Neighborhood walks, meetings, public open houses, resident surveys and stakeholder interviews.
Throughout the process an abundance of information was gathered, like crime heatmaps, daily traffic numbers for intersections, land use and more.
Baisden told Wane 15 that Packard 2030 will bring huge quality-of-life improvements to the area over the course of the plan, and he says it will have an impact “right at the neighborhood level.”
“What we do is we take the plan and break down the goals, the action steps, the strategies and then we start working on a list of accomplishments that we can get done each year,” Baisden said. “Then we set metrics and goals and try to meet them.”
Right now Packard 2030 has assessed these goals for neighborhood revitalization, one section of the plan…
- All neighborhoods within the Packard area should provide safe, stable, fair, diverse, and quality housing choices
- Support neighborhood-oriented businesses and entrepreneurship programs
- Enhance neighborhood commercial corridors to improve neighborhood identity and support neighborhood business
- Enhance, improve and protect neighborhood character and property values through the application of appropriate zoning tools and improved enforcement of zoning ordinance provisions
- Provide a sense of improved health, safety and security for both residents and businesses
While those goals may seem manifold, they are only the recommendations for one section of the plan, with the other sections being neighborhood character and neighborhood public realm.
You can view the whole plan here, or see more information on the city’s website.
