Ivy Tech will be encouraging proposals and ideas from developers and neighborhood members in regards to the best use of the former St. Vincent Hospital property to further the mission of the College while at the same time enhancing and protecting the neighborhood.  The property is located just one block west of Ivy Tech’s main campus between Illinois St. and Capitol Ave.

“We are dedicated to providing the best possible atmosphere for our students,” said President Thomas J. Snyder.  “We acquired the old hospital building and have since secured that building and made it a safer location for the residents surrounding our campus.  We look forward to hearing more from local developers and neighborhoods on what the best use for the site will be in the future.”

The college acquired the property in 2006 from then Mayor Bart Peterson in a sale transaction of one dollar.  The property, which is currently vacant, encompasses a total of five acres.

In 2007, the college demolished two exterior buildings on the property, including a former nurse headquarters and a building that housed mechanicals, as well as two building additions that were not original to the main structure.  The main hospital structure and chapel still remain.

Ivy Tech plans to spend the next 30-60 days receiving various proposals and ideas for the site and will then create a Blue Ribbon advisory committee to help evaluate the ideas and proposals to develop criteria to examine the feasibility of each idea.  .

The college is in need of additional classroom and lab space, as well as parking, at its downtown campus.  Enrollment at Ivy Tech’s Indianapolis campus has more than doubled in the past 10 years.  The Indianapolis campus was also named the fastest growing community college in the nation in a 2005 report released by Community College Week. 

Ivy Tech Community College is the nation’s largest singly-accredited statewide community college system and the state’s second largest public post-secondary institution with more than 110,000 students enrolled annually.  Ivy Tech has campuses throughout Indiana.  It serves as the state's engine of workforce development, offering affordable degree programs and training that are aligned with the needs of its community along with courses and programs that transfer to other colleges and universities in Indiana.  It is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.