Friday, October 16, 2026 · Crime & safety, housing, roads and infrastructure across Indianapolis / Marion County, with a closer look at Speedway and Indy's West Side
The Speedway Stroll runs on Main Street from 5 to 8 p.m. tonight, Oct. 16, with no-parking restrictions in place. Asphalt patching around town begins the week of Oct. 19. The town's Trunk or Treat is Oct. 24, and Trick-or-Treat in Speedway is Oct. 31 from 6 to 8 p.m.
The Speedway Municipal Center, 5300 W. Crawfordsville Rd., is a voting location. The deadline to request an absentee ballot is Thursday, Oct. 22. Satellite early voting begins Saturday, Oct. 24, and Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.
MSD of Wayne Township is asking voters to renew and raise its 2019 operating referendum. The rate would go to a maximum of 70 cents per $100 of assessed value, up from 35 cents, for eight years. The district expects to need about 60 cents next year. At that rate, it estimates a $200,000 home would pay about $200 more next year.
District leaders say they have already cut more than 100 positions through attrition and skipped teacher raises to save $10M. If the referendum fails, they say about $20M more would have to be cut. Options they've named include larger classes, longer walks to bus stops, closing an elementary school, and ending programs such as preschool and Ben Davis University.
The City-County Council District 16 seat, held by Jessica McCormick, is not on this year's ballot. Its next election is in 2027.
IMPD said two separate incidents this week, both involving mental health concerns, left four people dead. In one, a man is charged with murder in the Oct. 11 deaths of his parents at their north-side home; court documents say he had stopped taking his medication. In a separate case, the coroner ruled that the shooting deaths of a 42-year-old woman and a 30-year-old man in Castleton were a murder-suicide. Local advocates are calling for more crisis resources.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline), available 24/7.
An officer responding to a suspicious-person call in the 900 block of Fort Wayne Ave. on Oct. 8 was bitten on the finger and then dragged a short distance by the suspect's vehicle. The officer was treated at Methodist Hospital and released. Police arrested a 26-year-old man on Oct. 11.
A 15-year-old, a 17-year-old and a 19-year-old face charges including murder, armed robbery and firearms offenses.
One former and four current IMPD officers were charged in September with fraud and official misconduct for allegedly misusing the city's Flock license-plate-reader cameras. Council President Maggie Lewis has said an ordinance adding guardrails is being drafted and is expected after Monday's budget vote. WTHR reports a proposal is set to be introduced Monday. IMPD Chief Tanya Terry says the department has already tightened its policies.
INDOT's Clear Path 465 work is set to open a new I-69 lane north of 82nd Street by Sunday morning, Oct. 18. Until then, the 82nd St. ramp to northbound I-69 is closed. There is also no access to northbound Binford Blvd. at 75th St. from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. Friday and Saturday nights.
Paving for the I-65 Safety and Efficiency Project limits northbound I-65 to one lane between Keystone Ave. and Morris St. overnight through Saturday, Oct. 17. The ramp from northbound I-65 to westbound I-70 is also closed Friday and Saturday. Work depends on the weather.
IndyGo has paused Blue Line work on Washington St. between Ritter Ave. and Ridgeview Dr. for October. The Ritter-to-Arlington segment is scheduled for 2027.
The intersection has been closed for DPW storm-drain repairs and was expected to stay closed through October. The last public update was in July, so check the DPW newsroom before you go.
A water main broke on Sunday, Oct. 11, near 86th St. and Lafayette Rd., dropping water pressure below 20 psi for parts of northwest Marion County and Boone County. Citizens says testing confirmed the water is safe and customers no longer need to boil it.
The proposed budget gives DPW more than $335M. That includes $267M for roads, bridges and greenways, $39.2M for stormwater upgrades and $5.2M for equipment. The city would also put up $50M to match a $100M state road repair fund. That match is paid for by the vehicle tax the Council passed over Mayor Hogsett's veto.
The $32M, 150-bed low-barrier shelter and housing navigation center is under construction in the 1000 block of E. Georgia St., just north of Fountain Square. It will have private rooms for individuals, families and couples. Horizon House will run the day center and housing navigation, and Aspire Indiana Health will run the shelter. Funding is $12M from the city plus a $20M state IHCDA grant, and it is expected to open in 2027.
The Office of Public Health and Safety would get $29.5M. That includes 100 new master-leased units of permanent supportive housing and money to run the Housing Hub. The Homeowner Repair Program would fix 90 more homes, and a separate $2.2M ordinance would prepare part of the Assessment Intervention Center for year-round winter use.
Indianapolis home prices rose 2.7% year over year in the three months ending in September, to a median of about $257K (Redfin). Indiana Realtors say high mortgage rates are slowing the statewide market, though metro Indy still leads the state in sales and new listings.
Six months after its $249M plan fell through over financing, TWG Development has come back with another bid to redevelop Old Indianapolis City Hall.
The budget, up from $1.7B in 2026, needs 13 of 25 votes on Oct. 19, and there is no public hearing at that meeting. Public safety takes more than half of agency spending. IMPD would get nearly $400M, funding 1,743 officer positions (1,383 were on staff as of Aug. 31), plus $6.5M for patrol vehicles and a new North District HQ at 38th St. and Sherman Dr. IFD would get nearly $300M for 1,276 firefighters and $7.2M for apparatus. As of Oct. 15 the budget had not been amended since it was introduced.
Mayor Joe Hogsett named Margarette Webb, formerly Indy Parks' Chief Strategy Officer, to lead the Office of Equity, Belonging, and Inclusion.
| When | What |
|---|---|
| Fri, Oct 16 | Speedway Stroll on Main Street, 5–8 p.m. (no-parking restrictions) |
| Fri–Sat nights | I-65 NB one lane (Keystone–Morris); I-65 NB to I-70 WB ramp closed; no access to NB Binford at 75th St., 9 p.m.–6 a.m. |
| Sun, Oct 18 | New I-69 lane north of 82nd St. expected to open by morning |
| Mon, Oct 19 | Full City-County Council meeting: final 2027 budget vote (details) |
| Week of Oct 19 | Asphalt patching begins in Speedway |
| Thu, Oct 22 | Deadline to request an absentee ballot |
| Sat, Oct 24 | Satellite early voting begins; Speedway Trunk or Treat |
| Wed, Oct 28 | Wayne Township Trustee's Harvesting Memories event, 5–7 p.m. (details) |
| Sat, Oct 31 | Trick-or-Treat in Speedway, 6–8 p.m.; Blue Line construction pause in Irvington ends |
| Tue, Nov 3 | Election Day, including the Wayne Township schools referendum |