The Mass Ave Cultural Arts District, colloquially known as Mass Ave, is one of seven designated cultural districts in

Indianapolis Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

, United States. The district centers on of its namesake Massachusetts Avenue, from its southern terminus at New York and Delaware streets to its northern terminus at Bellefontaine Street. The avenue is one of the four original diagonal streets included in Alexander Ralston's plan of 1821. Mass Ave also contains the Massachusetts Avenue Commercial District, a

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...

included on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

since 1982. Today it lies at the heart of the city's arts district. It offers some of the city's most visible theaters and art galleries as well as a number of shops and eateries.

Gentrification Gentrification is the process whereby the character of a neighborhood changes through the influx of more Wealth, affluent residents (the "gentry") and investment. There is no agreed-upon definition of gentrification. In public discourse, it has ...

in the 1990s propelled the area from squalor to one of the city's more fashionable addresses. Currently, redevelopment of Mass Ave focuses on fostering locally owned shops, theaters, and restaurants.

Massachusetts Avenue Commercial District

Landmarks

Athenæum (Das Deutsche Haus) The Athenæum, originally named ''Das Deutsche Haus'' (German language, German: "The German House"), is the most ornate and best-preserved building affiliated with the German American community of Indianapolis. Once used as a German American '' ...

: building houses Young Actors Theatre and the Rathskeller Restaurant, the city's oldest restaurant still in operation. * Hammond Block (Budnick's Trading Mart) is a building on the

. * Old National Centre: is the headquarters of the Indianapolis

Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine Shriners International, formally known as the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine (AAONMS), is an American Masonic society. Founded in 1872 in New York City, it is headquartered in Tampa, Florida, and has over 200 chapters ...

References

External links

Mass Ave Merchants Association
Neighborhoods in Indianapolis Culture of Indianapolis Streets in Indianapolis 1821 establishments in Indiana Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Indiana National Register of Historic Places in Indianapolis {{Indianapolis-stub