Small businesses react to The Vault on Main groundbreaking announcement

EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WEHT) — It has been more than two years of watching and waiting for an empty lot in the heart of downtown Evansville to be developed. City officials announced when the ground will be broken at 420 on Main.

“We are excited to get shovels in the ground,” says Joe Atkinson, the communications director for the office of Mayor Stephanie Terry.

The city is breaking ground for The Vault on Main on Tuesday at 1 pm.

“The view has just been old for a while, so I am ready for a different view,” says Brian Walker, who works at Bargetown Market.

Bargetown Market is across the street from where the tower imploded in November 2021. The former Old National Bank tower came down with a roar. The lot has sat empty ever since.

“We heard rumors for about a year,” says Walker.

Business owners say this time, they feel optimistic.

“It will be nice to have something else over there,” says Jamia Brown, the Lic’s Deli and Ice Cream President.

Brown says she is excited to see more growth coming to downtown.

“Just to have more action down here, and it is the center of downtown, so it should be really good for everyone down here,” says Brown.

When completed, The Vault on Main will have 161 residential units, along with first-floor retail on Main Street and an underground parking garage.

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