AUGUST 3-9, 2009
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Plans emerge for Winona Hospital redevelopment
The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis wants the city to tear down the old Winona Memorial Hospital so it can build a community park and outdoor learning center. A private firm that specializes in environmentally
impaired properties wants to turn the building into senior apartments.
Downturn provides opportunity for restaurants hungry for expansion
The economic slump is giving independent local restaurants a shot at prime locations that in good times would be snapped up
by chains.
Lilly software spinoff Maaguzi sells for $11 million
Investors in a company built around clinical research software bought from Eli Lilly and Co. have found their exit, though
it’s far from the lucrative payoff they’d once imagined.
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Toll-road lease tumbles in value
Gov. Mitch Daniels expected his unprecedented $3.8 billion Indiana Toll Road lease to last 75 years. It may be tested after
just three.
Arts festivals feel financial pinch
Art-show organizers are getting creative to keep their events alive as they struggle to attract sponsors and participating artists.
Read MoreNew higher-ed chief takes aim at dropout rates
Teresa Lubbers became Indiana commissioner for higher education on July 7 after serving 17 years as a Republican state
senator from Indianapolis. She says every Hoosier needs some college-level training. Lubbers got a running start on her new
job, having served as chairwoman of the senate education committee
for years. She also worked frequently at the commission’s downtown offices during May and June—after her predecessor
had
left but before the Legislature returned for a special session to pass a budget. Her new staff dubbed her SenComm.
Lilly’s Effient launch just one of its many challenges
Eli Lilly and Co. has blasted past analysts’ earnings projections for two straight quarters. But if Lilly officials
take that as a sign they can breathe easier, they need only flip through a stack of Wall Street research reports on the company.
Harbour Trees Golf Club sells hole sponsorships to raise cash
At a time when most central Indiana golf courses are hurting for income, Harbour Trees Golf Club is getting a windfall
from a unique revenue source.
Arcadia hopes health care reform means more revenue
The CEO of Indianapolis-based Arcadia Resources said the environment is perfect for his company’s fast-growing DailyMed
service.
Dow Chemical seems poised to keep AgroSciences
Midland, Mich.-based Dow Chemical Co. is still considering divesting Indianapolis subsidiary Dow AgroSciences LLC. But
chances that the chemical manufacturing giant will sell its local agricultural chemical and biotech unit appear to have decreased.
FocusBack to Top
A new centerpiece for city’s convention strategy: medical, science groups
The Indianapolis Convention and Visitors Association is putting together an all-star corporate consortium to make the city
a hub for medical and life sciences conventions, meetings and trade shows. The ICVA began running the initiative
full-speed this year and already has signed deals to bring 40 medical meetings to Indianapolis through 2015, including annual
meetings for the American Association of Diabetes Educators in 2012 and the American College of Sports Medicine and American
Chemical Society in 2013.
Lawmakers cut state tourism office’s budget in half
Destinations throughout Indiana no longer can count on a state marketing campaign to help drive summer crowds. Lawmakers who
passed a budget during the special session at the end of June sliced the state’s annual contribution
to the Indiana Office of Tourism Management in half—from $4.8 million to $2.4 million.
Small town, budget hotels hold own in difficult economy
While the local hotel industry is being rocked by the current economy, budget hotels and those in the small towns surrounding
Indianapolis are actually seeing gains. Properties affected by the Indianapolis 500, Brickyard 400 and Big Ten Tournament
are among the losers.
OpinionBack to Top
EDITORIAL: Susan Bayh’s tangled web puts cloud over senator husband
Corporate boards need more women, but not people such as Susan Bayh, wife of Sen. Evan Bayh. It’s not
that she isn’t up to the task. The former attorney at Eli Lilly and Co. and visiting professor at Butler University
is by all accounts capable. So we’re not surprised she regularly receives invitations to serve on boards. But
we are surprised she accepts.
KATTERJOHN: Where’s Mr. Wizard? We need him
We don’t have enough kids interested in science and math
who will grow into the kind of skilled employees Indiana will need in the future.
MARCUS: Economic slump inspires platitudes galore
If the problem is that consumers and businesses
are not spending because banks aren’t lending, then government making it easier for banks to lend and consumers to spend
is a good thing. The stimulus plan is right on target.
HAUKE: Investing lessons a turtle would love
I have learned a lot about sea turtles since last
night, and I believe a few of these things belong in any long-term discussion about investing.
HICKS: Structural unemployment not always a burden
A few weeks ago, a couple of my economist colleagues took issue with the phrasing in one of my columns. In a rare turn
of events, they are right, and I was wrong.
ALTOM: A voice of reason amid the craze over social media
Now there are hordes of Web sites in every industry,
for every region. If you use your site to attract business, you’re a snowflake in the world’s biggest blizzard.
GARNER: Urban redevelopment requires dialogue
Later this summer, architects, urban planners, economists and hydrologists from around the city and around the nation will
come to Indianapolis to begin planning for the redevelopment of the area near 22nd Street and the Monon Trail. Known
as the American Institute of Architects Sustainable Design Assessment Team, it will work with neighborhood organizations
and city leaders to develop a renewal plan to turn this blighted area into a thriving neighborhood.
Officials should redevelop prison property
After outcry from the community, the plan to turn the current Women’s Prison on the near east side into a work release
facility for male prisoners was modified to make it barely palatable. However, there’s a larger point that shouldn’t
be overlooked.
Energy act will hurt Indiana’s economy
A deeply concerning piece of legislation has just recently slipped through the [U.S.] House of Representatives. Although the American Clean Energy and Security Act has an appealing name and is created to improve our environment, in actuality, its passing through the Senate will cause dire problems for Hoosiers.
Read MoreIn BriefBack to Top
Is Indiana coming out of venture capital swoon?
Carmel-based Dormir LLC’s announcement July 29 of $12 million in venture financing was the second local life sciences
deal announced in July. It could suggest a turnaround from a woeful second-quarter performance, when Indiana life
sciences firms announced zero venture capital deals.
New Franklin College office to help not-for-profits recruit volunteers
Franklin College has a new office that helps Johnson County not-for-profits develop Web sites and recruit volunteers. The
Nonprofit Resource Center was sparked in part by the lack of volunteer coordination during the summer floods of
2008.
HHGregg growing too fast?
The fast-growing locally based electronics retailer HHGregg Inc. has seen its stock price rocket more than 80 percent this year as it moves to take advantage of the bankruptcy liquidation of rival Circuit City.
Read MoreColts sign milk sponsorship with Fair Oaks Farms
Indianapolis Colts officials recently announced they signed a deal to make Fair Oaks Farms milk the “official milk” of the team.
Read MoreBarter network Tradebank opens branch in Indianapolis
The barter network Tradebank has opened a franchise in Indianapolis with two veterans from Louisville.
Read MoreMobile search engine faces test
ChaCha Search, the increasingly popular creation of serial inventor Scott Jones, was bombarded last month
after early reports that Michael Jackson had died.
Local contractor lands project for the president
Indianapolis-based architectural and engineering firm RW Armstrong will provide design and project management services for the Presidential
Helicopter Squadron, a 65,000-square-foot hangar complex being built at a Marine Corps base in Quantico, Va.