A new kind of neighborhood has taken root in the Bargersville area.
Trails wind around the rolling hills and pockets of forest nestled in the Aberdeen development. A community farm provides a space where residents can grow their own produce and strengthen the local food system.
Custom homes, with features such as conversation pits, an inside basketball court and floating stairway systems seem to have grown out of the landscape, rather than been forced into it.
“As a builder, it’s exciting to showcase the thoughtfulness and intentionality we put into our homes. As a developer, we’re excited to show a new way of creating a community. And as a community member on the southside, we’re excited to give people a taste of what this area has to offer,” said Isaac Duke, vice president of operations at Duke Homes, the developer of Aberdeen.
The unique nature of Aberdeen will be on display for all of central Indiana to discover during this year’s Home-A-Rama event, scheduled for Sept. 16 to 18, Sept. 23 to 26 and Sept. 30 to Oct. 2. Over the course of three weekends, attendees can take a peak inside and around six fully furnished, decorated and landscaped Aberdeen homes featured during the event.
They can also explore the amenities featured throughout the area’s first wellness lifestyle community, such as trails, lakes, sports courts and the community farm.
“It gives us a chance to promote a subdivision that isn’t a standard subdivision in a cornfield. It has a lot of topography,” said Steve Lains, CEO of the Builders Association of Greater Indianapolis. “All six of those homes have fantastic sight-lines to lakes or woods or a combination of both.”
That emphasis is what caught the attention of the Builders Association of Greater Indianapolis, creator of Home-A-Rama. The event serves as a showcase of developments in the nine-county Indianapolis area, in addition to providing builders an opportunity to present their most innovative designs.
Giving people the chance to experience these places up close is a great way to stimulate new home construction, Lains said.
“We want to get people out into the market to get them excited to build new homes,” he said. “We know from all of the years hosting Home-A-Rama that it generates activity from those consumers, whether that’s building a new home, whether that’s remodeling, whether that’s buying a new appliance, new floor, new countertop.”
The decision to focus on Aberdeen in this year’s Home-A-Rama stemmed from the fact that Duke Homes is a longtime participant in the event, and has created a community that is unlike anything else in the region.
“From what we can find, Duke Homes has a development that is not available in Indiana and probably in the Midwest region right now,” Lains said. “It’s really a great opportunity to introduce a new development opportunity in the marketplace.”
The idea behind Aberdeen was to create a gated neighborhood that includes shared amenities to promote recreation, enjoyment of natural spaces and community connectivity. The development was initially envisioned by Duke Homes as a 1,000-acre golf course community, but those plans shifted in 2008 during the housing crash.
Instead, the community became a development that accentuated connectivity, wellness and natural beauty, Isaac Duke said.
Duke Homes is run by the Duke family, which has a long history in the Bargersville area. The family has lived and farmed in that part of Johnson County for generations, and in the past 30 years, Duke Homes has built numerous subdivisions around the area.
Aberdeen seemed like an opportunity for the Dukes to give back to the community by promoting togetherness and good health.
“People aren’t slowing down having families or having kids. There’s always the need for more housing as the population grows and families increase,” Isaac Duke said. “One thing we’ve done on our end is think, how can we do housing even better? How can we create a place not just to have homes, but to help foster a thriving community.”
An extensive trail system, shared green spaces, community buildings, recreation spots and a variety of gardens have all been assets that hopefully will help do that.
“We’ve tried to find a way to connect residents to each other better than they are in traditional neighborhoods. How do we keep people from driving into their garages, closing the garage doors and not engaging with the people around them?” Isaac Duke said.
The development was planned to appeal to people of all generations, which could also bring families closer, said Mike Duke, owner and broker at Duke Homes.
“Besides just parents and their kids, you want a place where your grandkids are going to want to hang out and be with you. So really, it’s catered to little kids, big kids, young adults, older adults. We have something for everybody,” he said.
The six homes featured on the tour range in price from $1.5 million to $2.8 million, providing people with cutting-edge design and material ideas, in addition to popular color and design trends poised to burst onto the homebuilding scene.
Each of the homes is unique, so attendees to the event are discovering a wide range of options, Lains said.
“Whether you like the traditional style or … the modern and everything in between, it’s in this show,” he said.
To go along with interior spaces and outside amenities, Home-A-Rama organizers planned an area where Bargersville restaurants, wineries and craft brewers can show off the best they have to offer. Local favorites such as Taxman Brewing, Mallow Run Winery, Johnson’s BBQ, Ella’s Frozen Yogurt, Our Table and Dashboard food truck.
Live music will also be featured to increase that sense of togetherness the neighborhood is founded on, Lains said.
“It really gives that guest coming through the show that whole connection to what this community is, what the development is,” he said.
This will be the fourth Home-A-Rama Duke Homes has participated in, and their second as a developer, though the last time the tour was in Johnson County was 2006 at the Claybourne development.
The chance to showcase their most recent development is one the company is eagerly anticipating.
“We’re just really excited to get it back here in the Johnson County area,” Mike Duke said. “And we’re extremely excited about this neighborhood, and we’re looking forward to more and more people coming to learn about it.”
If you go
Home-A-Rama
What: A home and community tour of six custom homes in the Aberdeen development in Bargersville. A virtual option is also available.
Who: Organized by the Builders Association of Greater Indianapolis
When: Noon to 8 p.m. Sept. 16-19, Sept. 23-26, Sept. 30-Oct 3
Where: 5028 Abbeygate Blvd., Bargersville
Tickets: All tickets will be purchased online ahead of time. People will choose an arrival time, allowing to spread out attendees throughout the days. No tickets will be sold on-site.
Cost: $20 to $30 for general admission (which includes virtual tour); $10 for virtual tour only
Information: homearama.bagihomeshows.com
