Westfield pens $300M Grand Park deal that includes apartments, offices and more

Westfield has chosen a consortium of companies as its long-term operations manager to run the 400-acre Grand Park Sports Campus and events center in a $300 million lease agreement.

The collective, called Grand Park Sports & Entertainment, is a partnership among Keystone Group, Indy Sports and Entertainment, Indy Eleven and Bullpen Ventures.

“From the beginning, Grand Park has exceeded expectations,” said outgoing Mayor Andy Cook. “This will literally take it to the next level.”

The centerpiece of the deal will be the development of Grand Park Village, a mix of apartments, hotels, offices, a food hall and stores near the Event Center to be developed by Keystone.

Keystone CEO and Indy Eleven owner Ersal Ozdemir said the village “will help create a live, work, play village around a world-class sports and entertainment epicenter.”

Bullpen Ventures owner Ken Kocher said it will give visitors a chance to linger on the grounds rather than "chase people out of the park," after their events.

"This brings a different vision to the park," he said. "These amenities can create a connectivity among residents and the city."

The consortium also plans to build a training facility for the Indy Eleven soccer team, which already trains there. A women's professional franchise in the upcoming USL Super League recently acquired by Indy Eleven also will train there.

Under preliminary terms of the agreement, Grand Park Sports & Entertainment will lease the park from the city for 40 years at a total cost of $300 million and keep all revenue generated by events. At the end of the lease, the city will again take control, said Jeremy Lollar, Cook’s chief of staff.

The park, with 31 soccer fields, 26 baseball diamonds and other buildings, opened in 2014 with a construction cost of $49 million.

The 377,000-square-foot events center, where the Indianapolis Colts practice in the summer, opened in 2016 with a price tag of $26 million.

Officials said between 2019 and 2022, more than 1.28 million Grand Park visitors spent over $1 billion on hotels, food shopping, entertainment and travel and generated $262 million in local state and federal taxes.

The city had considered selling the park but dropped the plan earlier this year. Two appraisers valued the land at an average of $86 million but the city had estimated its worth at $204 million.

The park mostly hosts youth sports leagues, games and practices but officials have expressed a desire to expand the range of activities to those that don’t involve sports. Some events are already there, including Whale of a Sale children’s consignment, Suburban Indy Home and Outdoor Living shows and the Gaylor Electric national summit

Over the years, Westfield has invested in infrastructure to support alternate activities, such as loading docks, electricity and WIFI improvements.

The announcement comes less than two weeks before Cook is to leave office after 16 years as mayor. Mayor-elect Scott Willis said the new development will increase the city's corporate tax base and make the park more accessible for residents.

"The private sector does a much better job than the government at running these types of things," he said.

A review committee of six people culled the applicants for the contract in a process that lasted 21 months.

Call IndyStar reporter John Tuohy at 317-444-6418 or email him at john.tuohy@indystar.com. Follow him on Facebook and X/Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Westfield Grand Park deal includes apartments, offices, food court