The Transformation of Franklin, Indiana
The improvements in Franklin, Indiana over the past decade or so have been very impressive but often have flown under the radar regionally. Franklin was long an established county seat that was more of a freestanding small town than a suburb of Indianapolis, which perhaps helps explain why some overlooked it. But today it has the best of both worlds, with the historic fabric of an Indiana small town with a liberal arts college (Franklin College) but one that’s economically and socially better connected with the metropolitan region as a whole.
Franklin always had a great, largely physically intact downtown built around one of Indiana’s best county courthouses. But like most downtowns, it fell on hard times during the age of suburbanization. The city created a downtown revitalization plan in 2005, but before things really got moving, a major flood in 2008 severely damaged the city. The silver lining of this tragedy was that the people of Franklin rallied together around their town, and also used the required rebuilding to advance their civic agenda.
I was invited by Indiana Humanities to speak at an event in Franklin in 2011 on the case for quality of space investments. As I typically do, I drove and walked around the community a bit to see where things stood. I noted that the town already looked good, and there had been a number of quality “Main Street program” type improvements, such as nicely designed street benches featuring Franklin’s city seal.
Over the years, a steady stream of further improvements has the town looking great. There have been quite a few commercial and residential rehabs and upgrades in the historic center. Downtown Franklin has multiple coffee shops, restaurants, pubs, etc., as well as the regional draw of the historic Artcraft Theater. The city acquired flood-prone land to turn into additional park space. It built a super-nice accessible playground in Blue Herron Park. My brother- and sister-in-law live in Franklin, so I visit fairly regularly. It’s a stellar Indiana town, and if you haven’t visited it, you should.
One particularly impressive part of Franklin’s transformation deserving of special recognition has been the rebuilding of the former SR 44 (King/Jefferson St.) through the town. Like most Indiana towns near expressways, I-65 bypasses Franklin, which was connected to it via a state highway. Indiana has a lot of fantastic small towns, but alas too often the drive into their downtown from the interstate is marred by a poorly designed gateway road full of cheap highway style development.
But Franklin was able to cut a deal with the state to take over nearly four miles of SR 44 from the interstate to just west of US 31, which it then completely rebuilt. This included not just the section through downtown, but also the section linking the town to the interstate. This was all done with a very high quality design with new sidewalks and paths, old style street lighting, new sewers and pavement, and a formal gateway into the city. It’s now the nicest gateway road I know of in the state and a drive worthy of Franklin’s great downtown. The state should partner with other Indiana towns and do this in lots of places. It makes a huge difference.
Franklin is another example — I’ve already highlighted Westfield and Fishers — of regional communities that have really elevated their game and enhanced the entire metro area. Efforts like these make the whole region more attractive and more competitive.
