December 2024/January 2025

The Zionsville Cultural District (ZCD) is dedicated to enriching the town by showcasing a diverse array of art, history and cultural experiences for all to enjoy and engage with. Through a variety of annual events and programs rooted in local tradition, the ZCD fosters community involvement while attracting visitors to Zionsville, a town once celebrated for its vibrant art scene and thriving community of artists.

I spoke with ZCD Board President Steve Mundy and Treasurer Candace Ulmer about the organization’s recent rebranding initiative and plans for expanding its public art initiatives while focusing on contributing to the town’s tourism and quality of life for its residents.

Public art projects like the recent “Greetings from Zionsville” mural, along with past works such as “Lincoln” and “Dahlia City,” reflect ZCD’s dedication to enriching the community. Additional initiatives, including trailhead sculptures, the Bender Building Historical Photos, the Pop-Up Traveling Art Exhibit and the Dahlia Project, stand as key contributions that celebrate Zionsville’s history and culture while enhancing public spaces.

Arts and Culture Are Key Economic Drivers

A 2022 study by the Indiana Communities Institute at Ball State University, “Planning with Arts & Culture: How Indiana Municipalities Are Utilizing Local Arts & Culture in Their Community & Economic Development Strategies,” highlights the significant economic development potential of arts and culture, especially the importance of integrating them into community and economic planning initiatives.

An overwhelming majority of respondents in this study recognize the potential of arts and culture as key drivers of economic development and emphasize the importance of incorporating them into community and economic planning initiatives. Communities increasingly acknowledge the diverse benefits that arts and culture bring, from boosting local tourism to fostering a sense of identity and belonging.

Candace Ulmer discussed ZCD’s current programming and events, stressing how they enhance the community’s sense of history, foster engagement, promote positive mental health initiatives and drive tourism.

“In a nutshell, ZCD’s mission has always been to make the arts, culture and history of Zionsville accessible to Zionsville residents and visitors to our community,” Ulmer stated. “Through this mission, with our murals, SideWalk Poetry, Dahlias and Summer Concert Series that are free to the attendees, ZCD promotes the Town of Zionsville and provides a vital economic development component. Zionsville is becoming once again a destination via our public art projects and our Summer Concert Series with the variety of musical artistry we offer.”

Ulmer added, “The American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine says making or even just seeing art can impact the brain. Whether it’s part of a creative arts therapy exercise or something you experience in your everyday life, art can help increase serotonin levels, increase blood flow to the part of the brain associated with pleasure, foster new ways of thinking and imagine a more hopeful future.”

In the fall of 2024, ZCD obtained a grant from IAC (Indiana Arts Commission) for Operations. Steve Russo of Russo Communications, a long-time Zionsville resident, was engaged to help implement a rebranding and marketing program.

Ulmer shared, “We rebranded ourselves after 12 years with a new logo and updated website and are using this opportunity to demonstrate to the community how we are growing as an organization. We are following the study published by Ball State [University] as a guideline for our current planning.”

Steve Mundy emphasized that the community’s financial support and volunteer efforts are essential to sustaining future programs and public art installations. He highlighted how these contributions play a crucial role in bringing new projects to life and maintaining the vibrancy of Zionsville’s cultural landscape.

“Programs like our Dahlias play into the history of Zionsville,” Mundy said. “We found that these programs are a wonderful community engagement tool as well. The key for ZCD and what we are maintaining is community awareness of the arts, culture and history. The visibility of those things is represented in the murals and Sidewalk Poetry, and the audio portion of that is the Summer Concert Series. These bring the community together, and it is well documented that these programs provide some economic development to communities.”

Mundy continued, “Beyond that, it takes people to make all that happen, and it takes a community to support these things both financially and from a volunteer standpoint. This level of support is essential for ZCD to continue to expand our programming and initiatives for our growing community. We have been very successful with getting grants to do much of what we have done, but grants are very difficult to obtain, and we are always in competition with other communities. Grants are also not predictable, so if we had a more direct flow of funds that we could count on from donors, then we know we could plan and do more with that.”

After speaking with Mundy and Ulmer, it is clear that the ZCD has a wealth of exciting ideas and opportunities to both preserve Zionsville’s history and embrace the present and future cultural influences shaping our community. However, turning these ideas into reality will require the continued support of our community to bring these projects to life.

To learn more about the Zionsville Cultural District, explore its programs and make online donations, visit zvillecd.org.

 

Planning with Arts & Culture: How Indiana Municipalities Are Utilizing Local Arts & Culture in Their Community & Economic Development Strategies

March 23, 2022

Indiana Communities Institute, Ball State University

Emily J. Wornell, PhD and Brian Blackford, MPA

Arts and Culture as Economic and Community Development Opportunities

–88% of leaders and 96% of tourism/community foundations (CFs) believe arts and culture present economic development opportunities.

–71% of leaders and 92% of tourism/CFs agree that arts should be part of community-planning initiatives.

–71% of leaders agree that arts improve quality of life.

-78% believe arts attract new populations, and 73% think it will draw businesses.

-66% see arts as a way to retain current populations.

 

Photography // Courtesy of ZCD