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Watch traffic pass on I-70, I-65 from The Idle, a proposed gathering space near Fountain Square

Posted at 12:57 PM, May 08, 2017
and last updated 2017-05-09 05:47:18-04

INDIANAPOLIS -- The owner of an trendy Fletcher Place restaurant is planning a new gathering spot just off the Indianapolis Cultural Trail for people to watch traffic and help "get in touch with nature."

The Idle is being planned for the green space south of Virginia Avenue, between I-65 and I-70. There would be a path leading up to stadium seating, that would look at the South Split to the southwest.

Tom Battista, the owner of Bluebeard, is campaigning for $41,000 for the project. The Idle is currently being crowdfunded on Patronicity.com

"A lot of people thought it was crazy, and I may be," Battista said on a promotional video. "But it seemed to me that if we could just put a viewing stand there, people would actually go and sit and watch the interstate and talk."

If the project gets the $41,000 by June 16, it will collect the funds and get a grant from the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority for another $41,000. As of May 9, the project has raised $15,291 from 69 people. The number was higher, but a donation was accidentally entered twice.

The idea was recently featured on NPR's "Wait Wait Don't Tell Me."

According to the Patronicity page, The combined $82,000 will pay for:

  • Repurposed Ash trees for log benches
  • Meandering accessible compacted aggregate path
  • Repurposed stadium seating with mesh shade screen
  • Site perimeter fence
  • Beautiful native landscaping
  • Interpretive signage explaining the neighborhood history and concept behind The Idle

MORE | Check out the project on Patronicity.com

The Idle - Patronicity.com/IdleIndy from The Idle View on Vimeo.