Gotham, Marley, Sycamore – 3 freight containers converted into rental properties
Owner JB Rapp has transformed old shipping containers into luxury short-term rentals. Take a look inside these homes in the 2700 block of N. College Ave.
IndyStar
Local contractor JB Rapp admits that the three 30-foot-tall rust walls he built on a corner lot on Fall Creek may not look so appealing from the street.
But behind those rusty walls lies luxury that he hopes will attract travelers looking for a chic urban retreat in the fast-growing Fall Creek Place neighborhood north of downtown Indianapolis. Rapp’s three-story buildings – each built from seven used shipping containers – were constructed on a formerly vacant lot at the corner of College and Sutherland avenues and began renting on Airbnb this month for up to $300 a night.
The new buildings are the 31-year-old developer’s biggest foray yet into the short-term rental industry, which has come under increasing questioning by Indianapolis city officials and some residents.
The criticism goes beyond cosmetic defects. Residents told IndyStar they share concerns that a neighborhood property that could have attracted more permanent residents is instead benefiting transient visitors.
“It shows that the neighborhood is attractive and people want to be here,” Colin Nichols, who lives in a house across College Avenue, told IndyStar, “but unfortunately you don’t get a chance to build a relationship with these people. They’ll be gone in a few days.”
How 21 shipping containers became three luxurious Airbnbs
Rapp, who has managed a downtown condo through Airbnb since 2018, bought the property in 2021. He had the vegetation cleared and successfully petitioned the city to rezone the property from multi-family homes to three single-family homes.
Rapp said he knew it would be difficult to stand out in Indianapolis’ growing short-term rental market, which now has nearly 5,700 listings, according to research firm AirDNA, so he decided to focus on upscale travelers. Units designed for seven to 10 guests cost between $250 and $300 a night during Rapp’s opening weekend.
The building contractor whose container offer convinced Rapp is also generating additional enthusiasm: Mike Lewis, the founder of Customer Container Builders. Lewis built the city’s first container house on Bellefontaine Street in 2021.
Each rental consists of seven shipping containers totaling about 2,500 square feet, including a rooftop deck and a second-floor greenhouse. The actual front of the house faces Fall Creek, Rapp says, where large windows look north onto a lawn that leads to the riverfront. To improve the view from the street, Rapp plans to eventually add trellises and let ivy grow on the south walls.
The three units are nearly identical in amenities but differ in theme and decor. “The Gotham,” the most expensive unit at $300 a night before fees, is a pop-culture mashup of art and action figures. The other two cost $250 a night: “The Marley,” a tribute to Jamaican reggae musician Bob Marley, and “The Sycamore,” whose coastal vibe is mixed with vintage furniture and fine china from Rapp’s grandparents.
Fall Creek Place was once a problem area and is now faced with high real estate prices
Neighbors who spoke to IndyStar say they’re glad a local developer has built something on a long-vacant lot. It’s a sign that Fall Creek Place, which was the target of a $4 million federal grant two decades ago to replenish dilapidated blocks and vacant lots for mixed-income development, is on the rise.
But in a city and neighborhood where real estate prices have skyrocketed in recent years, neighbors are also aware that these luxurious short-term rentals could have been houses or apartments.
“If you live here, you’re a citizen,” Jeffrey Tompkins, an outspoken urban planner with a local design firm who criticized the properties on social media, told IndyStar. “You have a stake in what happens in your community.”
“We are losing residents to market-oriented developments like these Airbnbs,” he added, “which will help visitors rather than residents of Fall Creek Place.”
Rob Lime, president of the Fall Creek Place Homeowners’ Association, said he took advantage of government incentives 10 years ago when he bought a cheap lot to build a home in the neighborhood. The city of Indianapolis had partnered with the King Park Area Development Corporation, a nonprofit focused on revitalizing neighborhoods, to attract new homeowners.
The plan worked so well that the area’s most expensive homes now cost more than $800,000, Zillow data shows. Lime said empty lots are selling for about $100,000, far more than he paid in 2014. Home sales over the past two decades have been double what the redevelopment plan originally projected.
“When we built our house, it was an affordable price,” Lime, a 43-year-old sales consultant, told IndyStar. “Today we would sell it for almost double what we built it for.”
Short-term rentals benefit from the $6 billion tourism wave
Developers like Rapp are now capitalizing on this new attractive neighborhood, which is just a short drive from downtown Indy, yet has its own small selection of restaurants, breweries and markets along streets like Delaware and 22nd.
In a convention city where tourism brings in nearly $6 billion annually, Rapp and other short-term lodging operators say they offer the hospitality of Indiana residents with a local flavor unmatched by big hotel chains. They hire local contractors to do work on their properties and point guests to area restaurants and bars.
“From a macroeconomic perspective, Indianapolis as a convention and host city is beneficial for everyone: restaurants, hotels, bars, entertainment venues,” Rapp said. “I mean, we’re all more successful when we host events and attract more people.”
Rapp said he expects higher profit margins on short-term rentals than he would have made building and managing apartments or selling single-family homes. Short-term rentals are known to offer better returns to investors, especially when their prices rise during big events like the Taylor Swift concerts in November.
Tompkins, the urban planner who is open about the successes and shortcomings of Indianapolis’ land use, acknowledges that there is a place for short-term rental projects, including luxury housing like Rapp’s shipping containers. But he argues that a city should avoid piling up short-term rentals in residential areas and use its land primarily to attract new residents, not just to lure visitors.
“If you want to attract people here with hospitality and keep them coming,” Tompkins said, “you have to build things that people want to live in.”
Some cities restrict short-term rentals
Some cities where housing is particularly scarce have begun to restrict short-term rentals. New York City, for example, only allows short-term rentals if the owners share the property with their guests.
The Indiana General Assembly passed a bill in 2017 that prohibits bans and regulations on short-term rental properties in the state.
However, cities can set up short-term rental registries and a permitting process, which the Indianapolis City and County Council voted to do at its Aug. 12 meeting. The program aims to crack down on inconsiderate landlords whose apartments are used for parties and cause nuisance to neighbors.
Rapp and Indiana Short-Term Rental Alliance co-founders Jim Borthwick and Kyle Butler told IndyStar they support the new law.
An Indy native who owns a home on the north side, Rapp plans to keep an eye on the three new luxury condos, he said. He’ll be there every few days to do laundry. Every door and the shared driveway are monitored by cameras.
“I’m a very active host,” he said. “I keep an eye on the properties. They’re my babies.”
Email IndyStar reporter Jordan Smith at [email protected]. Follow him on X: @jordantsmith09
