Plan 2020 Fellows Weigh In

Plan 2020 is Indy’s comprehensive planning blueprint, set to be finished by the city’s Bicentennial and organized around big issues like land-use planning, recreation, transportation and social capital.

Its leaders also recruited 10 ‘fellows’ to tackle a need or goal identified by the plan. On Wednesday, they presented their ideas.

Lauren Day, who works with the Cultural Trail, is using maps to identify and focus on existing and potential gathering places to foster neighborhood development.

"When you feel investment in your community that's when you stay there and you make it better and you build and foster that social capital that’s so important," says Day. 

Ron Taylor, who works for a local design group, proposes to make local greenways more usable by implementing a "social programming" method.  He points to a successful program in Atlanta.

"They have a program called Walk with a Doc that's targeted toward the elderly," explains Taylor, "where a health care practioner comes out and does an organized walk and talks about fitness tips for the elderly and other types of things."  

The proposals are all posted online at plan2020.com where people are encouraged to provide their own feedback. 

The Lilly Endowment and Community Development Block Grants funded the fellowship program.