Whitestown: Big enough for pizza delivery and much more

Robby Halford used to say he was from Zionsville — because few people outside Boone County knew anything about the location or the allure of the community he's really from: Whitestown.

But that's starting to change as fast-growing Whitestown begins to make a name for itself separate from Zionsville as an "ag-urban" community of young professionals.

The small town, 20 miles northwest of downtown Indianapolis, is the fastest-growing community in Indiana, exploding from 500 residents to about 5,500 in the past 10 years, with more growth on the way.

Whitestown leaders have a clear vision for the future. They want to be a "whole life" ag-urban community — a place where people can grow up, raise their kids and retire within 20 miles of the city and near lots of open fields.

"That's what we're trying to get to. A different kind of suburb, or ag-urb or whatever you want to call it. A different kind of place," Town Manager Dax Norton said.

Some fear that vision is endangered by recent votes in Perry Township, which borders Whitestown to the west, to become part of Zionsville, which sits to Whitestown's east and south. That move would severely limit Whitestown's potential growth to the west.

The two towns are mired in a legal battle over the reorganization, made more complex by Zionsville and Whitestown's jigsaw puzzle borders. In some places, it's nearly impossible to tell where Whitestown ends and Zionsville begins.

Norton said he thinks the issue is merely whether Zionsville has the legal authority for such a broad incorporation. Still, he said, the two towns cooperate on a daily basis because they share some services.

Zionsville Mayor Jeff Papa agreed that the two towns get along on a daily basis.

"We have a lot in common. We should be friends," he said. But he noted that Perry Township residents voted to incorporate with Zionsville. "They want to live in Zionsville."

Halford, now president of the Whitestown's redevelopment commission and a member of the planning commission, said he thinks the disagreement is based on the question of which town is better suited to handle growth and development.

"There's a strong distinction between what Zionsville is doing and what Whitestown is doing as far as growth and as far as building a progressive community," he said. He thinks Whitestown has a more comprehensive plan for increasing green energy and planning roads and transportation to future devleopments.

Whitestown already is a very different place to live than it was 10 years ago.

A couple of sit-down restaurants have moved in. A Meijer superstore has come to town. Parks and pools are plentiful.

"One of the fun things is having pizza delivered because when I grew up, there was no one here to deliver pizza," said Pam Hill-Gibson, 49, whose family has lived in Whitestown for several generations.

The town recently expanded its parks and recreation department, which is sponsoring events like the Whitestown Brewfest in September. Many of the housing developments include parks and pools where community members can gather and interact.

Such amenities are drawing young professionals in droves. The town projects a population of 12,000 by 2020.

In 2010, the median age in Whitestown was 30 years old and the median household income was $75,682, 28 percent higher than the state median. In June 2015, RealtorMag ranked Whitestown as the seventh-best suburb in America to buy a home.

"It's a young demographic because we're relatively new. ... People can come in and make a difference; they can meet new people," Norton said.

The appeal of Whitestown is that it's close to the big city of Indianapolis, but without the congestion of the area around Carmel and Fishers. Whitestown is surrounded by fields and farms, and leaders say they want to keep it that way.

"It's the best of both worlds," Hill-Gibson said. "There are still dirt roads not too far from here, but then you can still be Downtown in 20 or 25 minutes," she said.

Jennifer Milliken, director of the Indiana Branch of the Urban Land Institute, said the danger in an "ag-urban" community is creating suburban sprawl — a town that is too spread out will have problems with maintaining infrastructure.

"A good planning process can prevent that," she said. "I still think there's a place for towns like Whitestown to be developed with a more urban town center where there are things for people to do ... with some land set aside to be in keeping more with the rural heritage."

Whitestown is updating its comprehensive plan to handle the growth, focusing on how to make sure the community doesn't become a disconnected mess of suburban sprawl.

Halford, 35, a Whitestown resident for almost three years, has been very involved in developing that plan and seeking input from other citizens.

"It's been very insightful," to be part of town planning, he said. "We're being smart about the growth, being selective about the companies that come into our communities."

Specifically, Whitestown is trying to move away from big industrial parks like the Amazon and Medco Health Solutions Inc. distribution centers already lured to Allpoints at Anson.

Norton said having companies like those is good for economic diversity, but the town would like to draw smaller company headquarters that pay higher wages.

"The more we build larger buildings that pay a $12 to $14 an hour wage, those people are going to have commute in because it's going to be hard for them to live in Whitestown on that kind of wage," he said.

For start-up companies looking to move from a business incubator to a small headquarters, Norton said, Whitestown should be their new destination. It's a place businesses can grow.

"Your people can live here. They can live here in different neighborhoods that provide a different housing product. You can move up," he said. "And then you can retire in the Woodlands or at Golf Club of Indiana PUD in a house around the golf course."

Halford said he and his wife looked at moving to Carmel, but they chose Whitestown because the Anson development had the community feel they were looking for.

"Whitestown is going to be known as a very family-oriented, sustainable community," he said.

Call Star reporter Ellen Garrison at (317) 444-6179. Follow her on Twitter: @EllenGarrison.