HAND’s Story

In 2000, a group of Hamilton County residents concerned about housing needs in the county began a housing task force that aimed to improve the quality of life in Hamilton County by promoting housing preservation and neighborhood revitalization. It commissioned a Hamilton County Needs Assessment that identified a number of key strategies, including creating a local nonprofit housing development corporation to lead the charge. Hamilton County Area Neighborhood Development, Inc. (HAND) was established as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization in 2003.

HAND began to serve the Hamilton County community by providing an owner-occupied home rehabilitation program. It also developed three single-family homes that were sold to moderate-income buyers, providing down payment and closing cost assistance to these families.

In 2008, an updated Hamilton County Needs Assessment found that while significant steps had been made to provide affordable housing in the county, there was still a growing need.

So in 2009, HAND developed two affordable apartment communities for adults 55 and older: six units at Plum Tree Gardens in Noblesville, and 25 units at Spicewood Garden Apartments in Sheridan. Two later phases of construction at Spicewood increased the total there to 60 units.

During 2010, HAND provided down payment and closing cost assistance to 15 families purchasing foreclosed homes in Hamilton County. The following year also was a busy one for HAND, as it tackled the renovation of Roper Lofts, two historic buildings at 304 and 347 South 8th Street in Noblesville. Roper Lofts now offers eight affordable one-bedroom apartments and is also the “home” of HAND offices.

In 2012, HAND began construction of another affordable senior independent living community in Noblesville, known as Pebble Brook Gardens. It offers nine two-bedroom, patio-style apartments for older adults. The next year, HAND entered a new community in Hamilton County, starting construction on five two-bedroom patio apartments at Lakeside Gardens just north of downtown Cicero.

The momentum continued in 2014 when HAND secured funding to rehabilitate another historic building on South 8th Street in Noblesville. Now known as Roper Capstone, it provides six affordable one-bedroom apartment.

In 2015, HAND hosted its first Suburban Housing Conference, an annual event that aims to educate the community about the need for a full range of housing options.

HAND planted its flag in two more communities in 2018, building its 10-unit Home Place Gardens development for seniors and families in Carmel, and acquiring a 33-unit duplex community in the Boone County city of Lebanon. Renovations at that property, now known as Hickory Commons, were completed in 2021.

When the COVID-19 pandemic erupted in 2020, HAND was one of a handful of organizations that came together to form the Hamilton County Housing Collaborative, which is working to ensure the county has a full range of housing options for all of its residents throughout their lives.

In 2022, HAND added another new community when it opened Southwood Villas, five rental units for seniors in Tipton.

The following year, work began on two projects that will provide a total of 15 units: Cumberland Cottages in Fishers, 11 two- and three-bedroom new-construction rentals for families, and four two-bedroom units at Plum Prairie on Historic Pleasant Street in Noblesville. Three of those units are in historic homes that were renovated; one was rebuilt. Construction on both developments was completed in the summer of 2024.