INDIANAPOLIS — If you walk on Meridian Street , you notice vacant buildings sit on nearly every block.

A few are now a sidewalk gallery covered in art.

"The building right across from us is empty. There's just a lot of vacancies downtown," McKenzie Collins said.

Collins, a barista at Illumine Coffee, said it's bad for business.

"People who are just living around in this area just walking by and strolling in that's a little bit less of our customer base. I think the vacancies definitely impact local businesses," she said. "Having a walkable, green, livable, affordable downtown for people to live in would create more small businesses being able to be here, being able to keep their doors open."

Illumine Coffee and other shops on Meridian Street rely on the offices downtown for foot traff

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