From racing to pickleball: Closed Marsh Supermarkets getting major overhauls

FISHERS, Ind. — A one-of-a kind pickleball facility could be coming to Fishers this fall.

The Fishers City Council approved plans Monday night for an old Marsh grocery store to be converted into a massive indoor pickleball center. The building, located off 116th Street and Brooks School Road, has been empty for seven years since the Marsh closed its doors.

“We were OK waiting seven years to find the right type of use that really is a compliment to the general area around it,” said Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness.

Fadness said 24/7 DINK, a state-of-the-art pickleball center, would be the perfect complement to the area.

“Pickleball has become insanely popular, not just in Fishers, but really everywhere,” he said. “This location, obviously it needs some life and vibrancy and people here. We want people here doing good things at all hours of the day, and that’s a huge component of it.”

The 60,000-square-foot facility would hold 20 pickleball courts and be open around the clock. According to 24/7 DINK, people would use a new app to sign up to play and arrange matches with players of a similar skill level. The group says players would also receive a unique QR code on their phone to access the facility at any time.

“This creates that opportunity so that when you show up here at 9 o’clock, there’s going to be someone that can play at your skillset or lower or higher, depending on how aggressive you want to be that day,” Fadness said.

24/7 DINK also said pricing rates would vary depending on the time of day. There are no membership fees, the company said.

While this new pickleball facility would help revitalize a portion of Fishers, it is not the only former Marsh Supermarket that now has new signs of life.

The Marsh off 116 ^th Street in Carmel just opened up as a brand new Niemann Harvest Market on Wednesday. Over in Brownsburg, the site of the former grocery chain is now home to a local racing group.

“When we first came into this facility and first toured it, we were like, ‘this is massive,'” said HMD Motorsports Team President Mike Maurini. “It’s going to be great. And we could get it for a good price.”

Maurini said the 80,000-square-foot facility is a massive upgrade from the team’s previous 6,000-square-foot headquarters, especially as the group continues to grow.

“In the past three years, we’ve transferred five drivers up to IndyCar through our program,” he said. “We won the team championship in 2021 and drivers championship in 2022 and 2023. Right now, we’re running 10 drivers. We have about 60 employees here full-time. Just trying to transfer drivers and make their dreams into a reality.”

Maurini said the team has grown quite a bit over the last few years. As it continues to get bigger, he said he is hopeful the team can take on larger endeavors down the road. Right now, HMD Motorsports currently races in the series just below IndyCar.

“If you’re a young kid moving through karting, you look at IndyCar and go, ‘I want to do that,'” Maurini said. “It’s the same with a team. When you expand, you’re like, ‘Man, I want to do what those guys do.’ We have to walk before we can run. We’re doing that, it just takes time.”

HMD Motorsports is having a grand opening at its new headquarters on Thursday. 24/7 DINK hopes to open its pickleball courts in Fishers this fall.

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