SEPTEMBER 21-27, 2009
This week's issue includes a story about development around Lucas Oil Stadium—is it living up to expectations? Also, we take a look at what would happen if Greenwood goes through with a merger with White River Township. And IBJ Style columnist Gabrielle Poshadlo tirelessly tracks down where to find the latest fashions in Indianapolis.
Front PageBack to Top
Lilly revises playbook in effort to score more ‘touchdowns’
The drugmaker has successfully moved experimental drugs into position to win approval by regulators. But only once in the
last four years has a new drug actually made it to market—the industry’s equivalent of getting
across the goal line.
Developer Broadbent sues banks after they tighten credit line
Locally based Broadbent Co., one of the city’s biggest retail developers, has sued two of its banks, charging they’re
wrongly attempting to restrict its access to a $50 million credit line.
Indiana turns away booze-distribution heavyweight
The Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission has voted to deny liquor and wine permits for Southern Wine & Spirits of
America Inc., the nation’s largest liquor distributor, citing concerns over a track record of anti-competitive behavior.
Top StoriesBack to Top
Simon built mall empire from scratch, changed way America shops
Melvin Simon, who died at 82 on Sept. 16, grasped early on that creation of the nation’s interstate system would pave the way for
large, enclosed shopping centers.
NCAA, city haggle over Final Four rental deal
A little more than six months before the 2010 NCAA men’s Final Four is set to tip off at Lucas Oil Stadium, the NCAA
has not yet finalized a rental deal for the facility. While officials for the NCAA and Local Organizing Committee,
the group charged with operating the event in Indianapolis, downplay any problems, sports business experts say it is unusual
not to have an agreement pinned down in the months leading up to the event.
Slots revenue revives hopes of state’s horse breeding industry
Purses at Hoosier Park in Anderson and Indiana Downs in Shelbyville have swollen since the two tracks added slot machines
in June 2008.
Australian owner abandons efforts to sell Chase Tower
Macquarie Office Trust of Sydney has quietly pulled the 48-story Chase Tower off the market, along with a property in Boston and a property in Denver that failed to draw juicy enough offers.
Read MoreIs Indianapolis big enough for ‘car sharing’ concept?
An urban advocacy group is trying to bring a big-city concept to Indianapolis: car sharing. People for Urban
Progress cites environmental benefits as well as cost savings for urban dwellers who might find it practical to ditch their
seldom-used vehicles.
Bluefish Wireless launches unit to help firms manage wireless-phone expenses
Mobi Wireless is targeting medium-size to large companies needing more control of wireless expenses
and fewer internal resources dedicated to the task.
FocusBack to Top
Anticipated development near stadium isn’t materializing
Not long ago, developers seemed to vie for every square inch of open ground in the vicinity of the just-completed Lucas Oil
Stadium. These days, the entire neighborhood has been pushed, if not into a financial deep freeze, then at the very least
to the back of the crisper drawer.
‘Dewatering’ system creates space, keeps new Marriott’s basement dry
A sprawling network of drainage pipes is designed to keep the underground parking garage of the new JW Marriott hotel dry.
Read MoreMANN: Commercial real estate is next mortgage crisis
The cresting wave of maturing commercial real estate debt is the second act in our nation’s credit crisis.
Read MoreOpinionBack to Top
EDITORIAL: Melvin Simon’s legacy goes beyond real estate
Melvin Simon was a businessman and philanthropist of national prominence, but the vast real estate empire he helped build
is not his legacy here.
EDITORIAL: Myles Brand took on tough tasks
At the NCAA, Myles Brand took
on the monumental task of striking an appropriate middle ground between academic integrity in college sports and the giant
commercial operation that athletics has become.
MAURER: Here’s some off-the-wall advice for unemployed
As an old-timer, I am honored when asked for business advice. Because so much of the labor force has been idled,
recent inquiries have come from Hoosiers with resumes in hand. I am afraid my usual advice isn’t working, so I have
some new ideas—new opportunities to investigate in the face of this job crisis.
MARCUS: Whose fault is poor health?
Where once we believed people were victims of disease, we now insist
that illness is a reflection of choices actively made.
SLAUGHTER: Learn how to say ‘no’ at work
Whether we
do so out of fear, greed or a sense of duty, relentlessly volunteering for more work is one of the worst choices we can make
at the office.
SKARBECK: Hedge fund superstars take it on the chin
Lauded as “masters of the universe,” the star investment managers overseeing the largest hedge funds built
huge expectations they couldn’t fulfill.
HICKS: Chinese tariff is misstep toward trade war
Just a short year ago, economists of all stripes voiced fears of a rise in economic protectionism like that which contributed
mightily to the Great Depression.
Don’t blame insurance for costs
I urge you, as comprehensive health care reform is considered before Congress, to realize that the best way to expand
access to health insurance is to work toward containing health care costs.
In BriefBack to Top
FedEx trying to fend off reclassification of its workforce
FedEx brass have been trying to counter legislation pending in Congress being pushed by arch rival United Parcel Service
and the Teamsters union.
Indianapolis Economic Development Inc. boasts job-creation success
In the worst recession since the Great Depression, it must be difficult to broker business expansions. But
IEDI’s making no excuses for the city’s job creation and retention figures. In fact, it’s touting them.
New owner to rehab two century-old apartment buildings
A local real estate veteran who had planned to retire has instead jumped back into the game with the purchase of two vacant
downtown properties he plans to convert to market-rate apartments.
Weight-loss challenges at local firms raise money for charity
Employees at five different companies collectively lost 805 pounds over six weeks this summer. They also
raised $805 for Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Central Indiana.
Super Bowl Committee adds vice president of event operations
The 2012 host committee recently hired South Bend native and Indiana University graduate Michelle Raines,
who previously served in senior management roles for four Republican national conventions.
PROXY CORNER: CFS Bancorp Inc.
CFS Bancorp Inc., 707 Ridge Road., Munster, 46321 (www.cfsbancorp.com) is the bank holding company for Citizens Financial
Bank, which conducts business from full service branches located in Lake, Porter and LaPorte counties in Indiana and Cook,
DuPage and Will counties in Illinois.