After 11 years + several failed ideas — like a jail, a music venue, an HQ for Amazon or Infosys, and warehouses — the historic General Motors Stamping Plant on the near west side is getting a rebirth.

Yesterday, Elanco Animal Health Inc. broke ground and announced its $100+ million global headquarters planned for the site.

“In truth, our whole city has been waiting and it’s finally happened. From cracked pavement to a more than $100 million headquarters. And much more is on the way,” Mayor Joe Hogsett said at Tuesday’s announcement.

Some say the new 220,000 sqft headquarters that will sit on the 40 acres will make Indianapolis “an epicenter of animal health innovation.” The project plan also calls for a focus on being environmentally sustainable with an employee-focused design.

Photo via RATIO | CSO LLC

Not only will the new facility bring 1,000 jobs to Indianapolis, but developers say the project will also:

Provide connection to the Henry St. Bridge — Indy's first bridge to prioritize multi-modal + pedestrian traffic — expected to be under construction from July 2023-November 2024
Increase pedestrian connectivity to the Museum District, Canal, and IndyGo’s Blue Line
Contribute to expansion of the White River State Park area

Elanco said construction will begin in the coming months and is expected to take 2-3 years to complete. In conjunction with this project, the city will build all the internal roads on the campus, with a year-long construction schedule that is planned to begin in November of this year.