Carmel

West Carmel is part of Carmel, Indiana, a celebrated suburb in Indianapolis. Known as the “Roundabout Capital of the United States,” Carmel is a growing suburb with more than 100,000 people living there. West Carmel is responsible for this expansion, with newer construction popping up everywhere. While living in West Carmel, let the roundabouts take you to the best amenities of Carmel. Students living in West Carmel attend Towne Meadow Elementary, Creekside Middle and Carmel High, with all having at least an A rating on Niche.com. Carmel High School is known for its academics and athletics. Since 1970, Carmel has won over 180 state championships. The CHS Polytechnic initiative is a recent effort to give students a hands-on look into the fields of art and design, business, communications, engineering and technology. Homes are mostly built in the early 2000s. Houses range from townhomes to larger homes with six bedrooms and five baths. Subdivisions like the Village of WestClay give residents access to playgrounds, swimming pools, walking paths and tennis courts. Neo-Tudors, Neo-Colonials and Neo-Victorian homes are predominant in this subdivision. The median listing price for West Carmel is $625,000. “The big draw of living here is the Carmel Art and Design District, with has unique restaurants, art galleries and interior design studios, the Carmel Arts & Design District attracts both Carmel residents and weekend visitors,” says Susan Forrest, Realtor with United Real Estate Indianapolis. Visit CCA Gallery to support the work of Indiana artists. For dining, there is Bub’s Burgers & Ice Cream, which can be easily accessed by the Monon Trail and is one of Indy’s classic burger joints. If you eat the “Big Ugly” One Pound, you will have your picture on the wall. As an alternative, try the “Big Ugly” Elk One Pound, which features their signature Elk burger. There is also Muldoon’s on Main, a favorite neighborhood bar that specializes in Irish classics like shepherd’s pie and fish and chips. They also specialize in local favorites like the breaded tenderloin. Residents of West Carmel enjoy access to a host of parks that showcase the beauty of this suburb. West Park features several different trails and a prairie maze, that allows residents to be within nature. The park’s playground channels the vivid imaginations of kids. There is a towering clock structure with a huge slide, musical instruments and a merry-go-round. The park’s splash pad opens during the summer. Beyond the Jill Perelman Pavilion sits the Natural Adventure Playground. Older kids are put to the test as they climb cargo nets and scale a rock-climbing wall. Explore the manicured grounds of the 125-acre Coxhall Gardens and marvel at the two 90-foot bell towers or have a picnic by the park’s lake. The Centerpiece works as a place for community events, concerts and weddings. In September, residents enjoy the Concerts in the Centerpiece event, where they can come out for an evening of jazz, pop, rock and soul. The park’s children’s garden calls for exploration. There are tunnels, small hills and gardens. The Butterfly Village includes playhouses that mimic a restaurant, grocery store and other amenities. There is also a sandbox. After rainstorms, this sand area is a great place for little ones to build sandcastles and other creations. During the 4th of July holiday, the community comes together for the CarmelFest, which combines a parade, a festival and fireworks. In December, during the holiday season, residents visit the Carmel Christkindlmarkt. Originally a tradition in Germany, residents can experience it right at home. This holiday market was named the best holiday market by USA Today editors and readers in 2022. Residents can taste authentic German food and drinks, buy gifts and enjoy the outdoor skating rink. It is a little reminder of the effort the community makes to put a smile on the faces of those who live there.

Initially a bedroom community of Indianapolis, Carmel now features a thriving downtown of its own with plentiful parks and one of the top school districts in Indiana. East Carmel is a primarily residential area that provides easy access to the many amenities in this burgeoning edge city of more than 100,000 residents. “Decades ago, up through the mid-’90s, if you wanted to go out to eat, if you wanted to go to a show, you’d have to travel to Indianapolis -- in many cases to downtown Indianapolis,” says Adam Aasen, city councilor for Carmel’s Southeast District. That’s no longer the case, making East Carmel a highly desirable location. Thanks to its proximity to Interstate 465 and Indianapolis, East Carmel is where Carmel experienced its original growth spurt. Most of the homes built in the area were part of Carmel’s 900% growth in population between 1960-2000. Subdivisions of ranches and bi-levels built in the ‘60s and ‘70s have winding streets and cul-de-sacs. There are also custom builds from the 1990s and 2000s, as well as a pair of private lake communities and a golf course community. Estate homes in these communities range from $700,000-1.4 million. Houses elsewhere in East Carmel are between $283,000-690,000. Carmel Clay Schools have an A-plus rating on Niche, making it the No. 2 school district in the entire state. There are five elementary schools in East Carmel: Mohawk Trails, Woodbrook, Forest Dale, Cherry Tree and Prairie Trace. All five elementary schools feed into Clay Middle School. Students move on to Carmel High School, which is regularly rated among the state’s best. Even as the town has grown, care has been taken in expanding the Carmel High campus rather than splitting into two high schools, giving every student access to unique features like an auto shop and a planetarium. The Carmel Clay park system is a two-time national Gold Medal winner, with many of its more than 500 acres of park space in East Carmel. Accessibility is a major emphasis, as is variety. River Heritage Park has a wheelchair-compatible playground and pathway overlooking White River. Founders Park features native prairie, wetlands and a fishing pond near a playground designed to reflect its natural surroundings. Inlow Park is known for its splash pad and disc golf course. East Carmel is also a golfer’s haven. Flowing Well Park is home to Old Faithful, an artesian well first discovered in the 1800s. Residents still fill jugs of water here. City-owned Brookshire Golf Course opened in 1970 and is known for its affordable rates. It also features a pool available to city residents with a membership pass. Prairie View Golf Club is the only Robert Trent Jones Jr. design in Indiana and is the rare public course with caddies for those who prefer to walk the course. Plum Creek is a private golf community with a course designed by Pete Dye. Grocery choices are plentiful here. In addition to the ubiquitous Central Indiana Kroger, East Carmel features Needler’s Fresh Market, Fresh Thyme Market, and The Fresh Market. Breakfast cafes are particularly popular in East Carmel. Rose and Lois Coffee Shop, Cafe Patachou and the veteran-owned Rad’s all feed the area’s breakfast and brunch needs. Roots Burger Bar is a top neighborhood lunch and dinner spot. In 1924, Carmel was one of the first American cities with a traffic light. These days, it’s aiming to be one of the first to get rid of its traffic lights in favor of roundabouts. “There could be a day where we only have one traffic light, and that’s because it’s kind of historic,” Aasen says. The city’s preponderance of roundabouts is unusual for Indiana, but Aasen says it’s no coincidence that Carmel's traffic fatalities rate is among the state’s lowest per capita. “By design, they create less head-on collisions,” he says. Though not quite as bike-friendly as Carmel’s downtown or west side, East Carmel has enough bike lanes to earn a 55/100 bike score. There is no public transit in Carmel. Residents can travel to multiple events in downtown Carmel. The 151,000-square foot Palladium at the Center for Performing Arts has hosted top-line performers like Sting, John Legend and the late Tony Bennett. From Thanksgiving until Christmas, the Carmel Christkindlmarket sets up its German-inspired outdoor shops and skating rink next to The Palladium. And Carmel puts great pride into Carmel Fest, a two-day event culminating with the city’s Fourth of July parade and fireworks show. “The parade is one of the most popular in the state,” Aasen says. “People make fun of us because you see people put out chairs to reserve spots on the parade route two weeks in advance.” Aasen notes that the ability to put a chair along the July 4th parade route two weeks in advance underscores one of the best parts of living in Carmel -- no one is worried their chair will be stolen. Carmel is statistically among the safest places in the country, with East Carmel crime rating 1 out of 10 in the CAP Index.