Residential village to set center stage for new urbanist community living in Discovery Park District

Major housing development to create a ‘sense of place’ in a walkable, traditional yet modern community adjacent to Purdue University campus 

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – A walkable, new urbanist neighborhood development called “Provenance” will set center stage for people who seek a quality of life that is close to the energy of a university campus and become the fifth major project announced in the past two years for Discovery Park District.

The district is a $1 billion, long-term project to transform the west side of the Purdue University campus as a preeminent environment for intellectual discourse and high-tech commercial enterprise.

The intergenerational design for Provenance will feature single-family detached homes, townhomes, cottages, condominiums and market rate apartments. It also includes plans for features such as a community center, fitness center, restaurants and retail, day care facility and preschool, a centralized greenspace and community gardens. The day care facility is designed to be 17,000 square feet and will support 156 children; it is slated to open in June 2020.

This map indicates the areas planned for development in the Discovery Park District, a $1 billion investment to transform the west side of the Purdue University campus into a mixed-use gateway for intellectual discourse where residents and visitors can live, work, learn and play. (Image provided by Browning) Download image

Old Town Design Group of Carmel, Indiana, which has developed a number of award-winning community-style neighborhoods throughout central Indiana, is the lead developer for the project.

“Our goal for Provenance and for all our neighborhood developments is to create a ‘sense of place’ for the people living in an Old Town community,” said Justin Moffett, a partner of Old Town. “As soon as we heard about the Purdue residential village, we felt strongly that it was something that we wanted to create. Each Provenance home will be unique, authentic and lasting in design in a traditional walkable neighborhood.

“It’s an outstanding location and with the development of Discovery Park District. The whole area is going through a transformation that will advance the area for generations. We want to be part of that change.”

Jeff Langston, one of Old Town’s partners, is a Purdue alumnus, Moffett added.

In a nod that hearkens back to early 1900s homes, the majority of the home lots will be alley-loaded, eliminating front driveways and increasing density to enhance the walkability of the neighborhood. For information about homes in Provenance, visit here.

“The variety and uniqueness in the Provenance home designs is an important attribute for our long-term plan to create a new urbanist community for residents as we develop all aspects of Discovery Park District,” said Rich Michal, vice president and chief facilities officer for the Purdue Research Foundation. “People of all demographics living, working and visiting in the community can interact with each other on a regular basis. With the anticipated grocery and sundry markets, restaurants, parks and arts programs at Purdue, residents could walk anywhere they would want to go for recreation or shopping. We predict that Provenance will become the place to live.”

The Provenance development follows the $120 million State Street Redevelopment Project, which improved a major corridor through the Purdue University campus. 

“The development that we are now seeing in Discovery Park District is exactly what we envisioned when West Lafayette and Purdue University joined together to create a major thoroughfare from the university campus to U.S. 231 on the west side of West Lafayette,” said Mayor John Dennis. “It is an exciting time of growth and development for the residents of our city and our surrounding Greater Lafayette area.”

Provenance is the fifth major development in Discovery Park District since 2017.

Aspire at Discovery Park is a private $86 million, 835-bed apartment complex slated to open in mid-August. Balfour Beatty Campus Solutions, a leading developer and operator of infrastructure project for the college and university market, is developing the project.

 Convergence, a 145,000-square-foot, five-story mixed-use building, is slated to open in early 2020. The facility will connect Purdue University research, industry, investors, and innovative ideas with commercial impact through collaborative research, licensing and startup creation to private enterprise.

SEL Purdue, a 100,000-square-foot facility developed by Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories for electric power research, will support 300-plus new high-tech jobs and engage research collaborations with Purdue University. Edmund O. Schweitzer III, founder, president and chief technology officer of Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering from Purdue in 1968 and 1971.

Luxury apartments and commercial real estate, Browning Investments LLC and J.C. Hart Co. Inc., are developing about 250 luxury apartments and 15,000 square feet of street-level commercial space along State Street in the core of Discovery Park District.

About Old Town Design Group

Old Town Design Group — the leading custom homebuilder in the northern Indianapolis suburbs of Carmel, Westfield, and Zionsville — specializes in creating timeless custom home designs that truly fit its clients. 

About Purdue Research Foundation

The Purdue Research Foundation is a private, nonprofit foundation created to advance the mission of Purdue University. Established in 1930, the foundation accepts gifts; administers trusts; funds scholarships and grants; acquires property; protects Purdue's intellectual property; and promotes entrepreneurial activities on behalf of Purdue. The foundation manages the Purdue Foundry, Purdue Office of Technology Commercialization, Purdue Research Park and Purdue Technology Centers. The foundation received the 2016 Innovation and Economic Prosperity Universities Award for Innovation from the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. For more information visit Purdue Research Foundation. 

Writer: Cynthia Sequin, 765-588-3340, casequin@prf.org  

Sources: 

Justin Moffett, justin@oldtowndesigngroup.com

Rich Michal, 765-588-3576, rjmichal@prf.org

John Dennis, jdennis@westlafayette.in.gov