Nappanee Right on Time with Downtown Master Plan

An outcome of the Vibrant Communities Action Agenda 2.0 report, Nappanee’s Downtown Master Plan aims to grow and revitalize its historic downtown district

Nappanee is home to one of America’s largest Amish communities. It is also known for its time-tested agriculture and Old World artisanry and craftsmanship. Quality, precision, and immediacy are ardent, overriding themes—and concepts not to be taken lightly—in this Elkhart County city of roughly 7,000 residents.

Mark Collins, Nappanee’s Director of Development since 2023 and one of the driving forces behind the city’s new Downtown Master Plan, has since learned this lesson: being on time is usually just fine, but in Nappanee, it’s always best to show up plenty early.

“At last summer’s Nappanee Apple Festival, I was on the team assigned with taking our famous seven-foot baked apple pie out of its nine-foot oven—which, you can imagine, is a fairly important task,” said Collins, originally from Greensburg, Indiana. “Not being from Nappanee, I guess I still had a lot to learn. I was supposed to be there at seven a.m. to help take the apple pie out. I arrived several minutes before that, but when I went in there to get started, someone said to me, ‘The pie’s already out.’ I learned on that day that in Nappanee, ‘seven a.m.’ means ‘six-forty-five.’”

In hindsight, he better understands that the City of Nappanee is perennially eager to get to work. Collins’ efforts toward Nappanee’s economic growth and revitalization—on demonstration in the 115-page Downtown Master Plan he helped produce—clearly should absolve him of any past or future shortcomings relating to the early morning transport of 600-pound apple pies.

“Our Nappanee Downtown Master Plan essentially was an outcome of the (Vibrant Communities) 2024 Action Agenda report,” said Collins, “and our main goal with it is to guide the growth and development of our downtown while also preserving the history and culture that makes this city so special. When it comes to downtown, we want to build upon our uniqueness, and the Master Plan presents ways we can do that.”

Guiding growth and development

The Master Plan’s main objectives are activating downtown spaces and creating new housing through more mixed-use development. It was created with several near-term goals in mind. These include analyzing downtown conditions, engaging the community’s civic and business leaders for input, and establishing consistent design guidelines that adhere to the community’s vision.

This plan takes steps toward crafting a comprehensive land use plan for downtown areas—including residential, commercial, and public spaces—and contains guidelines for improving downtown transportation and accessibility. Identifying public and private investment opportunities and potential partnerships, and enhancing alleyways and access points to promote public use are also pieces of the Master Plan puzzle. The plan also delves into ways to increase safety for—and invest in—the city’s significant Amish population.

“The Amish community is a big part of the history of this city, and downtown,” said Collins, “and we want to re-establish that connection. A longer goal is to increase Amish tourism, but we also want to make sure to keep our Amish population safe and sound on the roads. Reducing accidents, creating new buggy parking, and implementing new safety measures and standards are some of the ways we plan to do that. We want Downtown Nappanee to be more of an attraction so that people will come to visit our town and stay for a while. The Master Plan—created with the help of experts with different specialties and backgrounds—is intended to present a clear future vision for growth and revitalization downtown.”

Benefits to be felt by ALL

A team of expert consultants in planning, architecture, landscaping, engineering, transportation, and market analysis—along with input from local stakeholders—helped inform the Master Plan. More than just a way to increase visitors and tourism, Collins hopes that the benefits of a revitalized downtown will be felt by the city’s residents.

“Ten years from now, what I’d like to see is that, on a Friday night, folks in town don’t have to feel like they need to go elsewhere just to find something to do,” Collins said. “We’ve got the wonderful Nappanee Art Path, and that’s been a real attraction for us, but—in terms of downtown growth—I’d like to see residents staying in town on the weekends to eat and shop and find things to do. It would be great if more folks from nearby areas were coming here to visit downtown. If we can bring new life and energy, while retaining our small-town feel and maintaining the architectural and cultural history that makes Nappanee unique, we can succeed. The Master Plan is the first step, and it’s exciting to be a part of it.”

Collins was quick to give credit to Mayor Phil Jenkins and City Planner Todd Nunemaker, and also to Nappanee’s Redevelopment Commission—which was the main group supporting and financing the Master Plan project. Collins also expressed that the Vibrant Communities 2024 Action Agenda 2.0 report—produced with community input and the support of the Elkhart County Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Community Foundation of Elkhart County—played a key role in bringing Nappanee’s Downtown Master Plan to fruition.

“The Action Agenda has been leading our direction, like something of a roadmap, in revitalizing our downtown,” said Collins. “That report is a valuable resource because it brings possibilities into view and it helps to build real momentum toward projects getting started and completed. When there’s an actual document in hand, as opposed to ideas being floated around a room, it leads to real discussions and involvement with community members, businesses, stakeholders, and developers. That’s important because we have very specific goals in mind to make Downtown Nappanee—and eventually the entire city—a more vibrant, accommodating, dynamic, and fun place to live, work, and play.”