Indianapolis Motor Speedway
The 1909 track and its Hall of Fame Museum at 4790 W. 16th Street.
Speedway (adjacent) · Indianapolis, IN
A separate town with its own zoning ordinance and permit office
Speedway is not part of Indianapolis. It is a separately incorporated town surrounded by the city, with its own municipal code, zoning ordinance, and construction permit office — so a project here follows a different process from one three blocks away in Marion County.
History & architecture
How Speedway (adjacent) was built
Speedway was platted in 1912 as a planned town for the auto industry, built around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway that opened in 1909.
It grew as an industrial suburb tied to Allison and later Rolls-Royce aviation engine production through both world wars.
It remains an independent incorporated town — not part of Indianapolis–Marion County Unigov — with its own government, schools, police and fire, and zoning authority.
The Speedway Historic District, covering the early Main Street commercial core and surrounding development, is listed on the National Register, with periods of significance running from 1900 through 1974.
- Typical era
- 1910s–1950s
- Lot sizes
- Compact town lots on the original grid
- Common types
- Bungalow, Foursquare, and post-war minimal traditional
- Design review
- Town of Speedway only — no IHPC jurisdiction
Landmarks & shared spaces
Places that anchor Speedway (adjacent)
Main Street historic core
The Old Speedway commercial corridor, listed on the National Register.
Dallara IndyCar Factory
Factory and visitor experience near the track on Main Street.
Speedway civic campus
Town hall, schools, and civic buildings clustered along Main Street.
Main Street public art
Installations from the town's recent placemaking program along the redeveloped corridor.
Businesses & districts
Where Speedway (adjacent) gathers
Main Street
The core redevelopment corridor — restaurants, bars, and retail rebuilt into a walkable district.
16th Street
Hospitality and event-driven businesses adjacent to the Speedway.
Crawfordsville Road
Commercial and service corridor on the town's south side.
Georgetown Road
Retail and commercial edge along the track's western boundary.
Zoning & overlays
Common zoning codes in Speedway (adjacent)
These are the base districts and overlays we see most often on Speedway (adjacent) lots. Always confirm your parcel's district and overlays on the Metro zoning map before design decisions get expensive.
Ch. 742Town of Speedway district classifications
Speedway's residential and commercial districts are established in Chapter 742 of the town's own municipal code, recodified in 2015 and effective April 1, 2016 — not the Indianapolis–Marion County ordinance.
Ch. 744Town of Speedway development standards
Minimum lot area and width, setbacks, height, and lot coverage for each district are set in Chapter 744. Confirm the parcel's district and its exact standards with the town before design starts.
Ch. 536Buildings and construction
The town's building and construction chapter governs permits and inspections for residential work.
Overlays that apply here
NRHP
Speedway Historic District
National Register listing covering the historic core. Federal listing alone carries no restriction on private exterior work; any local requirement comes from the town, not the Indianapolis Historic Preservation Commission.
MS
Main Street redevelopment area
The multi-year Main Street streetscape and redevelopment program has brought design expectations to the corridor's commercial frontage.
Permitting path
- 1Speedway is an incorporated town, so zoning and permits come from the town, not the Indianapolis Department of Business and Neighborhood Services. Filing with the wrong office is the most common early mistake here.
- 2Confirm the parcel's district in Chapter 742 of the Speedway municipal code and pull the dimensional standards from Chapter 744 — the district letters and numbers do not match the Indianapolis D-series.
- 3Construction permit applications and the fee schedule are administered through the town's Clerk-Treasurer's office.
- 4The Indianapolis Historic Preservation Commission has no jurisdiction in Speedway. Any design expectations on Main Street come from the town's own redevelopment standards.
- 5Landlord licenses, short-term rental permits, and business licenses are also issued by the town rather than the city.
Why it matters
Speedway (adjacent)'s place in Indianapolis
Speedway is defined by the Motor Speedway, but its Main Street redevelopment has given the town a year-round identity beyond race month.
As an independent town inside Marion County, it offers its own schools and services, which keeps demand for renovation of its early housing stock strong.
Its 1910s–1950s housing is compact and consistent, making it a good candidate for additions and garage projects rather than replacement.
Events & festivals
What happens in Speedway (adjacent)
Indianapolis 500 race week
May
The Speedway and Main Street host the largest single-day sporting event in the world and a month of surrounding activity.
Main Street cruise-ins
Spring–summer
Classic car and community events along the redeveloped corridor.
Town seasonal events
Year-round
Holiday and community programming on Main Street; check the town calendar for dates.
Designing here
What this means for your Speedway (adjacent) project
- Start by confirming that the parcel is in Speedway rather than Indianapolis. The boundary is not obvious on the ground and it changes both the code and the permit office.
- The town's dimensional standards live in Chapter 744 of its own code — we pull the exact table for the parcel's district rather than assuming Indianapolis numbers apply.
- Small town lots mean coverage and side setbacks usually govern the size of a rear addition or a new detached garage.
- Race-week access matters practically: on lots near the track, construction scheduling around May is worth planning for at the outset.
- On Main Street–adjacent properties, the town's redevelopment standards shape storefront and frontage work even without a formal historic review process.
FAQ
Questions about Speedway (adjacent)
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