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Former bank on 38th Street will use drive-thru to host pop-up coffee shop

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Lovers of coffee and Art Deco architecture will have a chance to enjoy both as part of a push to improve 38th Street.

From Monday through Saturday, the drive-thru of the former Maple Road branch of Indiana National Bank will be a pop-up coffee shop. Blue Mind Roasting will offer coffee, cold brew, pastries and bags of their coffee beans from 7-11 a.m. at the former bank, now called National, 215 E. 38th St. Customers can also walk up to order.

The Blue Mind Roasting pop-up is the first of several similar events planned for the spring and summer and hosted by Friends of 38th Street, a group advocating for care, preservation and restoration of 38th Street as a “boulevard for community building and thriving local business.” The group, which says it is working to form a nonprofit, so far includes Marian University, Butler University, Newfields, Crown Hill Heritage Foundation and the Indiana State Fairgrounds.

“38th Street has long been a symbol of racial divide in Indianapolis. We’re organizing and uniting neighbors around the idea that we have an opportunity to transform this corridor into a central avenue for connection instead,” said Bill Oesterle, a founding member of Friends of 38th Street.

The proceeds from pop-up events will go to the vendors, and people attending will have a chance to donate to the group’s efforts. Vendors for additional pop-up events have not yet been announced.

While Blue Mind Roasting’s coffee is brewed and sold at restaurants and grocery stores around central Indiana, the event is the first pop-up for the roastery.

“We rarely get the chance to see our customers face-to-face so this is an excellent way to get that experience and we are hoping for a great turnout. It would be really cool if our pop-up helped contribute to a longer-term effort to support local business on the street,” said Sarah Hassler, who owns Blue Mind Coffee Roasting.

National was built in 1947 in the Art Deco style and has been under renovation since 2017. For several years, it’s been the home of Cars & Gravy, where locals can show off their cars and order breakfast from Indianapolis restaurants and groceries. That event is held June through October, on the third Saturday of each month.