Amy Bartner

IndyStar

Would you use a beach on the White River?

Would you set up an umbrella and sun yourself on a sandy area on the urban waterway that flows through Indianapolis? The one plagued for years with pollution issues?

Yes, that’s a serious question — because it seriously could happen.

"It would be a missed opportunity if we didn’t develop the banks of the White River.” said Chris Gahl, vice president of Visit Indy, the city’s tourism agency. "Why not think big? Why not think progressively? If we don’t think big, we'll get passed by."

So Visit Indy is thinking big — and long term. The prospect of a beach along the banks of the White River Downtown came out of its first tourism master plan, launched in 2015 with a goal of attracting 5 million more visitors to Indianapolis by 2025. In the past 18 months, Visit Indy researched the needs and wants of state residents, business owners, community leaders and elected officials and identified areas to target to reach that goal.

"Our research shows people are attracted to water," Gahl said. "(The White River) is an underutilized attractant in the city. People would gravitate to it."

What this area could look like and whether visitors would actually swim in the river isn't known, Gahl said. They'll begin researching and exploring the possibilities this year to first determine whether it's feasible and, if so, what amenities it might have.

Some inspiration for what the beach could look like, though, came from the Paris-Plages, a manufactured temporary beach (shown above) on the Seine River in Paris. With sand set back from the water and a walkway for pedestrians and bicyclists, it's not the traditional sand-to-water beach.

With two underused bodies of water running through the city, the White River and the Downtown Canal, there are a number of possibilities, Gahl said.

The idea is about "really developing something we don't have to pay to create — the river is already there — but to uplift it," he said.

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There are three areas of land along the White River's banks that could be developed in some way, beach or otherwise, to attract more people, Gahl said: 16 Tech, dubbed the city's “tech” district, east of the White River between 10th and 16th streets and bordered by Indiana Avenue on the west; the former GM Stamping Plant, 100 acres south of Washington Street and the Indianapolis Zoo; and White River State Park, the 250-acre park west of the river, north of Washington Street.

But a lot would have to happen before then.

The river isn't environmentally fit for swimming or eating fish, though it's safe for other activities, such as boating and recreational catch-and-release fishing. Water safety will be a determining factor in whether city officials choose to move forward.

"Make no mistake, we know that any activation of the White River needs to put cleanliness first," Gahl said. "Then, past that, will be the fun stuff."

The pollutants in the water come from a number of places, said Kelly Harris of Reconnecting To Our Waterways, an organization dedicated to improving Indianapolis' rivers and lakes. Pollutants include high levels of E. coli from sewer overflows; PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, a compound that, although banned in the 1970s, remains in the soil and fish; and nutrients from agricultural runoff.

"Part of it's upstream, so that would be agricultural influences beyond Indianapolis," Harris said.

Even beyond water quality, the river's image needs some reworking. When IndyStar posed the question on social media, many people were nervous at the thought of dipping a toe in that water.

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Alec Mandla, 22, has grown up around the White River. He has lived through chemical spills and reports of hazards in the water, so he said he's not going to be swimming in it anytime soon.

“My whole childhood, it was pretty much known the White River wasn’t something you go in,” he said. But he was amused by the thought of a beach. “I kinda laughed just because it sounded so ridiculous to think about.”

Others, though, were excited about the possibility and said they would use such a beach if the opportunity were there.

"I can’t think of anything better than a day at the beach to take my grandkids to, to make it part of my Downtown journey," said Debbie Steinmetz, who lives on the east side. "If they had something like that, you bet your bottom dollar we’d be there."

The Decatur Central High School special education teacher remembers Indianapolis in the 1980s, when people would leave Downtown as soon as the workday ended. She has lived on different sides of the city since that time and has watched it change, which gives her hope for what could be.

Many people on social media rolled their eyes at the question, but director of Reconnecting To Our Waterways Corrie Meyer said the possibility of a beach isn't that outlandish.

"It's no different than the concept of bringing IUPUI to the city," she said, referring to the city organizing a partnership between Indiana University and Purdue University to create the Downtown-based Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. "I'm sure a lot of people thought the same thing: 'Is that a joke?' This is another big impact, that is, yes, very complicated."

The idea is just that, though, and will take more research this coming year by Visit Indy, bringing other stakeholders in to determine whether a beach is something they would want to pursue. If so, there could be a beach as early as 2017, "with the caveat this will take a public-private partnership to be successful," Gahl said.

"This idea is meant to spark community discussion and strategic brainstorming."

Call IndyStar reporter Amy Bartner at (317) 444-6752. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.