The Heart of Lebanon, a Nationally Accredited Main Street, wants to help the community celebrate the rich basketball history in Lebanon, IN with this alley activation project honoring our basketball culture on the northside of the Boone County Courthouse Square.  

This alley was recently vacated to vehicular traffic during a recent $11 million infrastructure reconstruction and redesign of our Historic Downtown Square.  When standing in the alley, Memory Hall Gymnasium is in view which makes it the perfect location for this basketball themed project. This alley activation project is creating a bridge from the Heart of Lebanon to Memory Hall Gymnasium. Built in 1931, this historic gymnasium is a 2,200 seat facility that hosted the renaissance of Lebanon basketball lead by the meteoric rise of Rick “The Rocket” Mount and was prominently featured in the 1986 movie “Hoosiers”.  

This is Home and Home is Basketball

From the Courthouse Square, you will be greeted overhead by a 14′ high custom fabricated aluminum archway that features the silhouette of a basketball net stretched from one side of the alley to the other.  

Within the archway is sign featuring a logo with the slogan “This is Home and Home is Basketball”.  As you walk into the alley you’ll be walking on a painted floor graphic that repeats the logo, contains basketball court lines, and an interactive element for kids. Catenary lighting secured to decorative poles will light your way down the alley as you check out the digitally printed signage that features various Lebanon Basketball depictions that include historical photos of Rick “The Rocket” Mount and the 1912 State Championship team.

Located just below these photos, visitors can scan a QR code to see portions of a local documentary on a  smartphone-based tour app that will a full-court press into Lebanon Basketball history.  At the end of the alley, visitors will have an opportunity to take a seat at black metal table and chairs and share their own basketball stories. 

PRESS RELEASE 5-14-2023

Lt. Gov. Crouch, IHCDA launch crowdfunding campaign for Alley–Oop $50,000 goal to receive a matching grant through IHCDA’s CreatINg Places initiative LEBANON, Ind. (May 14, 2023) – Lebanon residents will soon honor the legacy of basketball in their downtown if this crowdfunding campaign reaches its goal of raising $50,000 by July 13, 2023. If successful, the project led by Heart of Lebanon will receive a matching grant as part of the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority’s (IHCDA) CreatINg Places program. “We are excited at the prospect of adding to Lebanon’s historic downtown through the transformation of a vacated alley,” said Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch, Indiana’s Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development. “CreatINg Places is a wonderful program that activates unused or underused spaces, and this campaign is yet another example of Hoosiers coming together to develop and uplift their community.” Funds from this campaign will be used to transform an unused alley into a space that celebrates the community’s history and culture. Added elements will respect the historic features Lebanon’s courthouse square, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2014, and will celebrate the city’s vibrant basketball heritage. The project aims to enlighten and inspire the next generation of basketball heroes and provide a place for people to be in community and share stories of Indiana’s sport. “This alley activation project is another great way to bring a new experience and fun activity for those visiting our downtown,” said Lebanon Mayor Matt Gentry. “We are excited that the Heart of Lebanon is taking on this venture and turning a vacated alley into something the community can utilize and enjoy.” The CreatINg Places program began in 2016, projects have raised more than $7.5 million in public funds and an additional $6.3 million in matching IHCDA funds. The program is available to projects located in Indiana communities. Non-profit entities (with 501c3 or 501c4 status) and Local Units of Government are eligible to apply. Eligible projects must have a minimum total development cost of $10,000, where the recipient will receive $5,000 in IHCDA matching funds should it successfully raise $5,000 through Patronicity. IHCDA will provide matching grant funds up to $50,000 per project.