Fishers’ next big project will bring a new corporate headquarters, more than 250 new housing units and a youth sports facility to the city.
But the total cost to local taxpayers for the latest addition to the Fishers District through tax breaks and public financing is still unknown, even after the project was approved by the Fishers City Council. Project deals include tax breaks that will sunset after 10 years.
As part of the next phase of development at the Fishers District located near the Fishers Event Center and Ikea store, JD North America will move its corporate headquarters from the far east side of Indianapolis to an office building off USA Parkway in Fishers.
The new headquarters will be the workspace for 425 corporate employees in the 350,000-square-feet building that’s adjacent to the Fishers Event Center, which opened in 2024. John Hall, CEO and managing director of JD North America, said the company was drawn to the location by the vibrancy of the district with its blend of sports and entertainment.
But the deal was sweetened by tax breaks from the City of Fishers. JD North America is getting 10-year tax abatements on real property and personal property as part of its move to the city.
This means the company won’t have to pay local taxes on improvements it makes to the building that will house its new headquarters or much of the equipment the company moves into the building for the next 10 years.
The tax abatement will only apply to the new tax increment generated as a result of their improvements. City officials said they aren’t yet sure what this value will be. JD North America will, however, have to pay the existing base taxes valued at $260,000 per year even during the abatement period.
Megan Baumgartner, director of economic and community development for the City of Fishers, pointed out that the tax breaks were part of what brought JD North America and its tax revenues and other benefits to the city.
“But for these incentives, this new company wouldn’t come in, and this new investment wouldn’t come in,” Baumgartner told IndyStar.
Baumgartner didn’t have an estimate for how much tax dollars the city would have received from the company had it not put the abatement in place.
And an economic development agreement, approved by Fishers city councilors on June 15, ensures the company holds up its end of the deal, Baumgartner said.
In exchange for the tax breaks, JD North America will have to complete improvements to its new Fishers office building by the end of 2028 and invest at least $1 million designing and constructing improvements to the building, according to the recently approved economic development agreement. The agreement states that the company must also employ at least 400 full-time employees with an average hourly wage of about $47 per hour by the end of 2028 as well.
“It’s a huge deal for the city,” Baumgartner said. “Having a corporate headquarters come in and a company that wants to build out a campus and make this their home is affirmation of what we’ve created. There’s a broader kind of macro effect of having a corporate headquarters, especially at this caliber and size within the community.”
Tax breaks offered for apartment, townhome development
In addition to the corporate headquarters, the next phase of the Fishers District will include a new community that will be called Contrast Fishers. It will have 167 apartments and 98 townhomes.
The new community and a new road associated with it will be constructed by Buckingham Companies, which represents an $82 million investment from the company, but it’s unclear how much of that investment will be repaid by taxes generated in the district.
As part of this phase of development, Buckingham Companies will also build a $65 million sports facility, to be called Fishers Fieldhouse that will include space for Major League Volleyball’s Indy Ignite practice facilities as well as flex space for 10 basketball or 20 volleyball courts to support youth sports.
Fishers will issue bonds to support Buckingham Companies with the project and is offering tax abatements for this part of the development as well.
The city plans to issue developer-backed bonds, which will be repaid for 25 years through tax increment financing or the additional property tax revenue generated by the development. Without the TIF, that money would have flowed to the city or other local taxing agencies. The dollar amount for the bonds has not yet been determined, but 100% of the additional property tax revenue generated by the development will be used to pay the bonds during the 25-year period.
City councilors will have to approve documents establishing the exact allocation area for the bonds and the bond amounts later this year, according to the city.
Pete Peterson, a city councilor, said it wasn’t unusual for councilors to approve the project agreement with Buckingham Companies without knowing the bond amount.
“It migrates back and forth based on interest rates,” Peterson said. “And, we always have protection mechanisms in those agreements, that if it doesn’t move forward, it falls back on the back of the developer.”
As part of the project agreement, the Fishers Fieldhouse, which is being constructed by Buckingham Companies, will get 10-year tax abatements on property and business equipment.
Baumgartner said the agreement with Buckingham Companies includes protections for the city. If the company doesn’t build the Fishers Fieldhouse, then the company can’t take advantage of the tax abatements on the building, she pointed out.
“And then with the way that these developer purchase bonds work, they’re [Buckingham Companies are] the ones who are fully committed, and it is their liability on the line to pay those,” Baumgartner said. “If they don’t build the development and there’s no tax revenue coming from those properties, they’re still the ones who are the holder of debt and are on the line for it.”
Baumgartner added that the city doesn’t issue bonds until partners, like Buckingham Companies, have their separate financing and loans in order to construct the project.
JD North America is expected to begin renovations on its new headquarters in 2027. The Fishers Fieldhouse will break ground in fall 2026 and is anticipated to open in late 2027 or early 2028.
Buckingham will break ground on the Contrast Fishers community in 2026 with completion expected in late 2028.
Contact Jake Allen at jake.allen@indystar.com. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @Jake_Allen19. Click here to get Hamilton County news sent straight to your inbox and subscribe to the IndyStar North newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Fishers used tax breaks to land its next big project. The taxpayer cost is still unclear
Reporting by Jake Allen, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Jake Allen, Indianapolis Star | USA TODAY Network
