Orange traffic cones with the words “Bike Night” written on them in thick black letters line the street outside of Brockway Public House in Carmel, IN. It’s Thursday night, and the pub is crawling with bikers, locals and tourists. The crowd spills out onto the streets as servers in kilts pass out pints of Guinness. The weekly event brings a steady crowd, but this flourishing area doesn’t need help filling its shops and restaurants.
There are two primary shopping areas near the intersection of Meridian St. and W. Carmel Drive – The Shoppes at Providence at Old Meridian (on the northeast corner of W. Carmel Drive and Old Meridian) and Hamilton Crossing Center, at the southwest corner of W Carmel Drive and Pennsylvania St.
The Shoppes are owned by Buckingham Companies, based out of Indianapolis, and are part of residential-over-retail project that opened in 2007. Hamilton Crossing Center is owned by Kite Realty Group, also based in Indianapolis. A new apartment complex is being built on the 6.25 acres between the two shopping centers called Penn Circle, co-owned by Milhaus and Gersham Brown Crowley, both based in Indianapolis.
In addition to Penn Circle, many new businesses have chosen this area to start new endeavors or franchises.
Andrew Hasbrook, one of the leasing agents for Hamilton Crossing Center, understands why so many companies are choosing this particular area in Carmel.
“We’re seeing a lot of growth in this area, primarily because of the demographics,” Hasbrook said. “We have found that over 42,000 vehicles pass Hamilton Crossing Center daily, and the surrounding residential area is growing and very affluent.”
Among the new companies that have recently opened in the area is Yogurtz, a self-serve frozen yogurt spot that boasts healthier dessert choices. Randy Park, Yogurtz General Manager, said he chose to open in Hamilton Crossing Center primarily because of the great location and demographics.
“We were looking for an area with a lot of young, active families who would love this type of business in their area,” Park said.
Construction at Yogurtz began in August 2011 and the location was opened on Oct. 21, 2011.
While many are taking advantage of the great location to start new business ventures, others have chosen the area to expand. Among the new franchise locations is Yats, which opened May 11 in The Shoppes.
Joe Vuskovich, the owner of Yats, which has four other locations around Indianapolis, also chose this particular area in Carmel with clientele in mind.
“We wanted to expand into Carmel, and we felt this location was the perfect place to do it,” Vuskovich said. “It’s a happening area and we hope a lot of our patrons that travel to our other locations will find our Carmel location quite convenient.”
Other businesses that have opened recently in the area are Toppers, J. Razzo’s Italian Restaurant, Jason’s Deli, Mark Pi’s and the Reforming Indy Pilates Studios.