Meridian-Kessler, IN
What Meridian-Kessler is actually like
Meridian-Kessler sits on Indianapolis's near-north side, bounded roughly by 38th Street to the south, Kessler Boulevard to the north, Meridian Street to the west, and the Monon Trail corridor to the east. The area was surveyed in 1822 and stayed rural farmland and orchards through most of the 1800s -- two pre-1900 farmhouses still survive, and roughly 27 pre-1900 homes remain in the neighborhood overall. Landscape architect George Kessler redesigned what's now Kessler Boulevard around 1905 as part of the city's parks-and-boulevards plan, giving the neighborhood half its name.
The real building boom ran from the early 1920s through the 1930s, as Indianapolis grew northward and Meridian-Kessler became one of the city's most prestigious addresses -- American Foursquares, bungalows, and Colonial, Tudor, and Classical Revival homes, concentrated along Meridian Street, Pennsylvania Street, and Washington Boulevard. Some of the wealthiest residents moved further out to Meridian Hills and Williams Creek in the 1930s, but the neighborhood's architectural character from that era never really left -- the North Meridian Street Historic District, covering part of the corridor, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.
The Meridian-Kessler Neighborhood Association, formed in 1965, describes itself as Indianapolis's largest neighborhood association and started the state's first curbside recycling program in 1989. As of 2020 the neighborhood had more than 6,000 homes and 18,000-plus residents, and it remains an established, in-demand in-town address -- Redfin listed the median sale price up 6.3% year-over-year as of March 2026.
Home values in Meridian-Kessler
Redfin puts the median sale price for Meridian-Kessler at $482,500 as of March 2026, up 6.3% year-over-year. We couldn't extract a specific Zillow figure for this neighborhood in our research, so Redfin's figure is the verified one here.
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Explore Specialty Resources →Meridian-Kessler FAQ
Is Meridian-Kessler a historic district?
Part of it is -- the Meridian Street corridor falls within the National Register-listed North Meridian Street Historic District, added September 22, 1986. More than 250 individual homes across the broader neighborhood carry their own historic designation as of 2006.
Which school district serves this neighborhood?
Indianapolis Public Schools, including two magnet options actually located in the neighborhood: Center for Inquiry School 84 (K-5) and Shortridge High School (9-12).
Is Butler University in Meridian-Kessler?
No -- Butler anchors the adjacent Butler-Tarkington neighborhood, across Meridian Street and the Central Canal, not Meridian-Kessler itself.
Does the Governor of Indiana live nearby?
Yes -- the Indiana Governor's Residence at 4750 N. Meridian St. sits directly on the Meridian Street corridor bordering the neighborhood, built in 1928 and state-owned since 1973.
Is there rapid transit access?
Yes -- IndyGo's Red Line bus rapid transit has a dedicated "Kessler" station in the neighborhood, running on College Avenue since September 2019.