MARCH 3-9, 2014
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Kite floats two-tower Pan Am Plaza project
The latest plan to redevelop Pan Am Plaza calls for two hotels, residential units and restaurants spread across two towers as tall as 20 stories each, sources familiar with the details told IBJ.
Read MoreNew state slogan clashes with city goal of cosmopolitan image
The state tourism department’s new tag line, “Honest to Goodness Indiana,” is so folksy that some wonder whether there’s a disconnect between what it says about the state and how the city of Indianapolis is trying to distinguish itself.
Read MoreIvy Tech seeking millions to churn out more degrees
State leaders want twice as many Hoosiers earning post-high-school credentials by 2025 as there are today. And the only realistic way for the state to get there is for Indianapolis-based Ivy Tech to double its enrollment and double its graduation rates.
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High school/college blend charter pitched by mayor
Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard wants to launch a new kind of charter school that would allow students to earn both high school and college credentials in fields with lots of jobs and good wages.
Read MoreTech firms dangle amenities to lure sought-after workers
Industry goliaths in Silicon Valley have thrown lavish perks at employees for years. As employment in Indianapolis tech firms has skyrocketed in recent years, a lot more companies are looking for workers, heating up competition.
Read MoreHamilton County’s low jobless rate roils labor market
Hamilton County employers are having trouble filling lower-wage jobs. At 4.5 percent in December, Hamilton County’s jobless rate was the lowest in the metro area and one of the lowest in the state.
Read MoreCan oil refiner Calumet keep dividend gushing?
The decline in the stock price has pushed the dividend yield ever-higher, with Calumet now boasting the 18th-largest yield among the more than 3,000 companies that trade on NASDAQ.
Read MoreApex credits door-to-door pitch for windows-sales success
The company eschews traditional—and expensive—mass marketing in favor of face-to-face solicitations.
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Banks gathering all their clients’ eggs into one basket
Banks and credit unions facing more competition from online lenders—and now even from big-box stores offering financial products—are working harder to get a bigger piece of a customer’s wallet over the long haul.
Read MoreSky’s the limit on bank’s aircraft finance business
1st Source is among few Indiana-based institutions to deal in jet financing.
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EDITORIAL: High-earners to the rescue
Ballard is on the right track in trying to make the city attractive to people with big incomes.
Read MoreMAURER: Corporate muscle lifts Indiana
Companies are part of broad coalitions that have saved us from wrong-headed legislation.
Read MoreRUSTHOVEN: Pence isn’t playing politics with Sebelius
The Post spins this as surreptitious grabbing for Obamacare dollars.
Read MoreKOEHLER: Put mass transit to real-world test
An entrepreneur, risking personal wealth, would approach the problem from a different angle.
Read MoreFEIGENBAUM: Big week ahead for unfinished Pence agenda
March 3 and 4, respectively, mark the final days for third reading of Senate bills in the House, and third reading of House bills in the Senate. Those deadlines are a significant milestone, because we’re now finished with hearings by standing committees.
Read MoreRACE: Midtown commercial nodes require vision, compromise
Transit-oriented developments in older neighborhoods must include density and good design.
Read MoreHicks: Public policies muddle minimum wage debate
Late last month, a Congressional Budget Office study on a proposed minimum-wage hike concluded that raising the minimum wage 39 percent, from $7.25 to $10.10, would reduce employment by roughly 500,000 jobs.
Read MoreKim: Buffett’s farmland buy illustrates valued lessons
Warren Buffett’s annual letter to shareholders in Berkshire Hathaway’s annual report always contains timeless advice, useful in good times and bad. He told of two non-stock investments he made decades ago. Though relatively small and insignificant to his net worth, they illustrate important concepts.
Read MoreDowntown best location for new justice center
Thanks for your thoughtful [Feb. 17] editorial on the proposed locations for the criminal justice center.
Read MoreJustice center could go on Citizens property
If one drives around Center Township, one can find several possible locations.
Read MoreHooray for pragmatism
If gay marriage were allowed in Indiana [Feb. 17 Maurer column], there would be no increase in gay porn at AMC Theaters, no mandatory attendance at gay weddings, no straight people suddenly turning gay, no visible signs anywhere of any change—because there already are gay couples.
Read MoreLegislature failing to protect consumers
The legislative response in the [Feb. 17] IBJ article about possible deregulation of retail electric rates leaves a lot to be desired.
Read MoreA bipartisan solution for work force woes
Hoosiers may be surprised to learn that in 2012, the 112th Congress agreed on at least one thing: the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012—which included provisions to expand work-sharing policies.
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State Auto’s Midtown HQ building on block
State Auto Insurance is seeking to sell its nearly 200,000-square-foot regional headquarters building in Midtown and is listing the property for $9.1 million.
Read MoreFeds sue ITT Educational over loan practices
ITT Educational Services Inc. is being sued by the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over allegations the for-profit college chain engaged in predatory lending by pushing students into loans likely to end in default.
Read MoreGOVERNMENT
The federal government is allowing Indiana to use $75 million in foreclosure-prevention funds to instead tear down abandoned houses, and Indianapolis officials are chasing a large chunk of the money. The Department of Metropolitan Development has until March 17 to apply for a share of $16 million that’s available for Lake and Marion counties. Spokesman […]
Read MoreMEDIA & MARKETING
Imagine a broadcaster coming into the Indianapolis market and buying no less than seven radio stations in one fell swoop. Don’t touch that dial here, but Fort Wayne listeners are in for some big changes ahead. Minnesota-based Adams Radio Group paid at least $6.4 million for seven stations owned by two broadcasters in Indiana’s No. […]
Read MorePROXY CORNER: Hillenbrand Inc.
Hillenbrand Inc. operates the Batesville segment, which sells burial caskets and other death-care products. Hillenbrand also operates a Process Equipment Group, which makes material-handling equipment and systems.
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