16 Tech Community Corporation, alongside city leaders and community stakeholders, celebrated the opening of the signature 16 Tech Bridge. Spanning 342 feet over Fall Creek, the bridge serves as a vital link between the 16 Tech Innovation District and Indianapolis’ research and medical corridor. To highlight the bridge’s multimodal and community-led design features, 16 Tech welcomed an Indy 500 Pace Car driven by Indy NXT driver Miles Rowe, the Riverside Riders local cycling group, and students and faculty from Indiana University Indianapolis and Purdue University in Indianapolis led by Sampson Levingston of Through2Eyes as the first to officially cross the bridge.
“The 16 Tech bridge was designed by the community, for the community — a physical and symbolic connection that brings neighbors, entrepreneurs, researchers, and students closer to the resources and opportunities that drive innovation,” said Emily Krueger, 16 Tech President & CEO. “The opening of the bridge marks not just the completion of a project, but the beginning of a new chapter for 16 Tech and Indianapolis – one where ideas move faster and communities grow stronger.”
By linking the 16 Tech Innovation District directly with the hospitals on 10th Street along with the IU School of Medicine and the campuses of IU Indianapolis and Purdue in Indianapolis, the 16 Tech bridge strengthens opportunities for collaboration, entrepreneurship and community.
“The 16 Tech Bridge’s seamless integration of vehicular, pedestrian, and cyclist infrastructure will completely reimagine the way our neighbors experience Indianapolis,” said Mayor Joe Hogsett. “In joining the 16 Tech Innovation District to our city’s downtown, this new bridge will also create more opportunities for both economic growth and community connection.”
Led by bridge designers and engineers schlaich bergermann partner (sbp) and architects Practice for Architecture and Urbanism (PAU), the design team included Moniteurs Communication Design, Martha Schwartz Partners (MSP), Shrewsberry & Associates, CTL Engineering, Circle Design Group, and People for Urban Progress (PUP). The team was tasked with designing a signature work of public infrastructure that would serve as an example of innovation and collaboration. The result is a first-of-its-kind bridge in the United States that reinterprets the principles of a classic suspension bridge to create an entirely new form.
As part of the design process, the team spent six months engaging local residents, with a special focus on the Near West and Near Northwest neighborhoods of Indianapolis. The team collected input through mailers, online surveys, virtual meetings, a hotline in English and Spanish, site walks, neighborhood canvassing and a partnership with a local STEM-based school.
In response to community feedback, the new structure prioritizes pedestrians and cyclists, keeping them separated from vehicular traffic with protected pathways that connect to the city’s wider trail and greenway network, including direct connections to the Indianapolis Cultural Trail: A Legacy of Gene & Marilyn Glick, the Urban Wilderness Trail and White River Trail. With more than half the square footage devoted to non-vehicular use, the bridge’s design encourages pedestrians to pause and enjoy the views along the span of the bridge and includes gathering space, creating opportunities for public programming and events.
“The 16 Tech Bridge stands as both a striking piece of architecture and a powerful symbol of what’s possible when a city designs with, not just for, its people,” said Vop Osili, President of the Indianapolis City-County Council, in whose district 16 Tech is located. “The voices of residents from the neighborhoods around 16 Tech were integral to the process, and the bridge is a permanent representation of the collaborative spirit that has defined the 16 Tech project since its inception.”
Seating is made from trees harvested from the site and designed by 16 Tech’s Machyne Makerspace. The bridge also incorporates a dynamic lighting strategy, allowing for color-changing displays that can respond to cultural and community events, reinforcing its identity as a civic landmark for Indianapolis.
Construction of the bridge began in March 2023. The project, totaling approximately $30M, included design and construction of Confluence Way, as well as improvements to the Urban Wilderness Trail. Design and construction of the 16 Tech Bridge were supported through funding from the City of Indianapolis and from Lilly Endowment Inc. In addition, Indiana University donated land.
“Lilly Endowment was inspired by the vision to make the 16 Tech Bridge not just a functional piece of infrastructure, but a thoughtfully designed piece of architecture for our city,” said N. Clay Robbins, Chairman and CEO, Lilly Endowment Inc. “The result is a distinctive work inspired by and responsive to the collective input of the community it serves.”
Just four years after the District’s opening the 16 Tech bridge marks the completion of approximately $90M of public infrastructure projects in 16 Tech that has supported more than $300M in vertical development to date. 16 Tech is home today to three innovation facilities with more than 235 member companies and 1,000 people; three additional projects are in active development and eight parcels remain. A third and final phase of infrastructure has yet to commence and includes remaining roads and utilities in the District, as well as a three-acre park with public art.
