by Darcie Duranceau | photos by 360 Design Tours
THE QUIET TRANSFORMATION OF ZIONSVILLE’S UNIQUE BALANCE OF TOWN AND LANDSCAPE
The brick-paved streets and Victorian-style storefronts of Zionsville’s village offer a Main Street hometown feel that is increasingly rare in the Midwest. Certain homebuyers are looking for the dining scene and top-tier schools available in large suburbs, while also wanting the wooded privacy afforded to more rural properties. Zionsville pairs the best of both: More than a change of address, this “rurban” area allows for a sort of harmony between rural tranquility and urban connectivity.
However, finding a home that matches the charm of that dream and the pace at which modern life is lived can be more of a challenge. The curb appeal on Main Street is undeniable, but the existing homes in the Village of Zionsville generally lack the acreage that make today’s home functional luxury— home offices, sculleries, year-round outdoor living. Suddenly, building in Zionsville’s high-end developments is an attractive prospect.
For over two decades, Joe Garcia, owner of G&G Custom Homes, has helped families realize that they don’t have to settle for a uniform reality. “People go through houses all the time, existing homes and new construction floor plans,” Garcia says, “but they’re never going to find one plan that fits them perfectly.”
“There is a shift in mindset when a person steps away from pre-existing architecture and semi-custom builders to a true custom build,” says Garcia. The primary advantage of building a custom home is removing the constraints of a traditional, existing floor plan.
“The good thing with custom is you can do whatever you want,” Garcia says. It is a process that begins not with a catalog, but with a blank page and a simple question: How are you going to live in this home?”
It’s not just the homeowner shifting toward custom builds in Zionsville. The town’s own strategic evolution also pushes toward “rurbanization,” a term the town uses to describe its blend of rural and urban life, while investing in high-end infrastructure. The nearby Big-4 Rail Trail is a cyclist’s dream, and the new Creekside Corporate Park development aims to attract business and create new jobs while preserving nearly 40% of the property in its natural state. This is a town that embraces building differently.
Within this romantic, television-worthy streetscape is room for Zionsville’s DORA— the Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area that allows for a cocktail carried on a walk through the quaint streets for shopping or socializing. The WheelHouse Social Club offers respite for car enthusiasts and business executives, and Holliday Farms’s twenty-seven-hole, beautifully groomed golf courses and country club draw the community together.
It makes perfect sense to build your dream within a dream in Zionsville, where land values are climbing, the community is evolving, and the future of “Rurban” is being defined. With a custom build, you can create your own niche complete with integrated home office, scullery space, indoor-outdoor synergy, and so much more. Much like Zionsville did with Creekside Corporate Park, custom building is about blending multiple wants and needs, designing for how you actually live.
The reward for this journey comes in that final walkthrough—the moment you realize you haven’t just bought into a town, you’ve built your place within it. “That’s when I get the best feeling that we hit it out of the park,” Garcia says. “Handing over the keys and seeing the excitement on their faces, and hearing ‘Man, this is exactly what we wanted.’”
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15530 Shining Spring Drive
Westfield, Indiana 46074
