Zionsville, Indiana

Zionsville is a town located in the extreme southeast area of Boone County, Indiana, in Eagle Township. The population was 14,760 at the 2010 census. Nearby communities include Lebanon, Carmel, Whitestown, Westfield and Indianapolis.

Zionsville promotes itself as a tourist attraction around its village-styled downtown area. This area primarily consists of Main Street, paved entirely in brick, which is lined with small stores and restaurants.

History
The current town of Zionsville began as a promotion by railway speculator William Zion, who partnered with Boone County landowner Elijah Cross to build a railway station on Cross's land in Eagle Township. The town was chartered in 1852, and the first resident was John Miller, who built and lived in a boarding house. By the 1860 census, the population was counted at 364. In this period, local businesses and houses of worship, specifically the local Methodist and Church of Christ congregations, relocated from nearby Eagle Village, which had also been platted on land originally owned by Cross. According to the local Chamber of Commerce Abraham Lincoln made a whistle-stop speech in Zionsville in 1861 when traveling to his inauguration.

For much of the rest of its history, Zionsville has led a quiet existence, relying primarily upon its existence as a stop on passenger rail lines and later as a shopping destination or bedroom community. While white flight and other demographic changes in nearby Indianapolis greatly enlarged the city of Carmel and the town of Fishers in Hamilton County, especially since the imposition of Unigov in 1970, Zionsville had remained a much smaller locale until growth began to pick up into the mid to late 1990s.

Consolidation
As of January 2, 2010, Zionsville grew to around 50 sqmi when its government consolidated with Eagle Township and Union Township of Boone County. Voters in the three areas passed a referendum Nov. 4, 2008 to institute the Plan of Government Reorganization. The town shares the Zionsville Community Schools district with the townships.

In May 2007, the legislative bodies of the three areas authorized a nine-member committee to craft a government plan in accordance with the Government Modernization Act (Ind. Code 36-1.5), which was enacted by the Indiana General Assembly in 2006. The entities sought a new government in southeastern Boone County for two reasons: 1) to lock in a border around Zionsville and the townships to prevent annexation from outside communities; 2) to gain control over land development planning and zoning from the Boone County Plan Commission and Board of Zoning Appeals.

The plan will affect the structure of the Zionsville Plan Commission, Zionsville Board of Zoning Appeals and the Zionsville Town Council. The town council, specifically, will increase from five members to seven members. Although the entire 50 sqmi area will become incorporated Zionsville, residents will fall under two distinct taxation/service districts — urban and rural. The urban district (the current Town of Zionsville) will maintain its Zionsville Police Department protection, as well as other municipal services like road maintenance. The rural district (the current Eagle and Union township residents in unincorporated Zionsville) will continue to receive police protection from the Boone County Sheriff's Department, and will maintain all current services. Every two years, a panel will determine whether a property in the rural district shall be absorbed into the urban district.

The Eagle Township Advisory Board and Union Township Advisory Board will dissolve when the plan or reorganization goes into effect, and the Zionsville Town Council will take over the services they provide — like cemetery upkeep and resident assistance.

Geography
Zionsville is located at °N, °W (39.953092, -86.269462). It is about 17 minutes northwest of downtown Indianapolis.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 5.9 square miles (15.2 km²), of which, 5.8 square miles (15.0 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (1.19%) is water.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 8,775 people, 3,063 households, and 2,407 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,512.9 people per square mile (584.1/km²). There were 3,169 housing units at an average density of 546.4 per square mile (211.0/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.78% White, 0.33% African American, 0.11% Native American, 1.07% Asian, 0.32% from other races, and 0.39% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.97% of the population.

There were 3,063 households out of which 45.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 70.5% were married couples living together, 6.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.4% were non-families. 19.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.23.

In the town the population was spread out with 31.7% under the age of 18, 4.2% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 10.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 93.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.8 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $81,770, and the median income for a family was $95,359. Males had a median income of $42,334 versus $35,823 for females. The per capita income for the town was $35,049. About 4.0% of families and 4.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.4% of those under age 18 and 9.4% of those age 65 or over.

Schools
Zionsville Community School Corporation enjoys a very strong reputation. For the past half decade Zionsville schools have been in the top 5 best schools in the state according to Indianapolis Monthly. Zionsville schools have rivalries with neighboring Carmel schools, Lebanon schools, and Pike Township schools in Indianapolis. The superintendent of schools is Scott Robison. The following Zionsville Schools are covered under the Zionsville Community Schools (ZCS) district, which covers a large area that extends beyond Zionsville proper.

High school
1000 Mulberry Street, Zionsville, IN 46077
 * Zionsville Community High School

Principal: Tim East

Middle schools
900 N. Ford Road, Zionsville, IN 46077
 * Zionsville Middle School

Principal: Sean Conner 5565 South 700 East, Whitestown, IN 46075
 * Zionsville West Middle School

Principal: Deveraux

Elementary schools
350 N. Sixth Street Zionsville, IN 46077
 * Eagle Elementary School

Principal: Deb P'Pool 4700 S. 975 E., Zionsville, IN 46077
 * Pleasant View Elementary School

Principal: Chad Smith 7312 West Stonegate Drive, Zionsville, IN 46077
 * Stonegate Elementary School

Principal: Kristin Landis 11750 E. 300 S., Zionsville, IN 46077
 * Union Elementary School

Principal: Jenny Bivans

Shops
Several blocks of Main Street in Zionsville have been intentionally groomed to give off a "village" air, specifically to attract shopping from nearby larger communities. In addition, Main Street has been paved entirely in brick and the street lamps and other features (such as a lower speed limit) are maintained to encourage visitors and residents to spend a good deal of time shopping on foot along the length of the street.

Festivals
One of Zionsville's seasonal attractions, the July Fourth fireworks show hosted by the local Lion's Club, brings in people from across Indiana. Unlike many of the Independence Day celebrations in major cities, the Zionsville fireworks show has no music integrated into the performance, although there are concerts before the display. There is also the Fall Festival which has a parade featuring sports teams, organizations from Zionsville and surrounding communities, and the Middle and High School marching bands. There is also a festival at the Lion's Park with attractions like rides, games, and food. It lasts for one weekend in September.

Camps
Zionsville contains the Goldman Union Camp Institute (or GUCI), a Jewish camp that is part of the URJ (Union for Reform Judaism).



Notable residents and former residents

 * Albert Barnes Anderson, Federal judge
 * Ron Artest, NBA player, former Indiana Pacer
 * Antoine Bethea, Indianapolis Colts safety
 * Gary Brackett, Indianapolis Colts linebacker
 * Dallas Clark, Indianapolis Colts tight end
 * Tom Carnegie, former announcer of the Indianapolis 500
 * Austin Collie, Indianapolis Colts wide receiver
 * Austin Croshere, Former NBA player
 * Dan Dakich, Former Bowling Green State University basketball coach
 * Arthur G. Hansen, Former president Purdue University
 * John-Michael Liles, Toronto Maple Leafs NHL defenseman
 * Tom Mastny, Cleveland Indians pitcher
 * Derrick McKey, Former NBA player
 * Cory Miller, Professional soccer player
 * Rob Morris, NFL linebacker
 * Kendall Phillips, Country music singer
 * Jerraud Powers, Indianapolis Colts defensive back
 * Jeff Saturday, Indianapolis Colts center
 * David Shumate, Poet
 * Hunter Smith, NFL punter
 * Rik Smits, Indiana Pacers center
 * John Stehr, WTHR anchorman
 * Brad Stevens, Butler basketball coach
 * Jack Trudeau, Former NFL quarterback
 * Todd Witsken, Professional tennis player
 * Ryan Diem, Indianapolis Colts offensive tackle