Tony, tires, Danica make news
The big stories in the world of motorsports have been coming at such a high rate of speed, it’s been difficult to keep up.
The long weekend kicked off with Tony Stewart getting into an altercation with a U.S. Auto Club…
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Elkhart newspaper looks beyond RVs, housing
Sweeping diversification is necessary for the Elkhart area to snap its reliance on making recreational vehicles and manufactured housing, the Elkhart Truth opined in an editorial yesterday. A string of layoffs and other bad news from the sectors has rocked the area this month, raising questions about a difficult future for workers who know little […]
Boone development chief switches jobs
Kristy McKillip has taken a business development post with Indy Partnership after four years as executive director of Boone County Economic Development Corp. The Boone County group is one of 10 members of Indy Partnership, which markets the region to businesses looking to expand. McKillip’s new position involves building relationships with companies considering expansions in […]
Marsh sues Roche over sublease deal
Two giants of local business are preparing to slug it out in court over a soured sublease deal. Marsh Supermarkets filed
suit in Hamilton County this month to enforce a deal with Swiss pharmaceutical and medical-equipment powerhouse
Roche to sublease the grocer’s entire 148,000-square-foot headquarters in Fishers. The deal, worth more
than $47 million over 18 years, is one of the largest of its kind in central Indiana in years.
Mortgage industry under more scrutiny: Tougher rules don’t include yield-spread premiums
A housing crunch resulting from a flood of foreclosures has cast the spotlight on the deceptive practices that cause borrowers-particularly those with weak credit-to unknowingly pay more than necessary for a mortgage. The Federal Reserve earlier this month unanimously approved new lending rules in an attempt to tighten standards and prevent another such crisis. The changes will apply to all mortgage lenders and take effect Oct. 1, 2009. In the subprime category, a lender will have to assess a borrower’s…
ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: State’s new mortgage law is regulation gone awry
Indiana is known as a state possessed of thoughtful and minimalist regulatory constraint of business. That’s why a littleknown law enacted in 2007, which further regulates mortgage brokers, should come as a shock to many Hoosiers. As of July 1, when the law became effective, roughly 600 Indiana mortgage brokers (perhaps 1/10th of 1 percent of all small businesses in the state) were out of compliance. When a one-month extension granted by Secretary of State Todd Rokita expires next month,…
Pearson Partners recovers from HHGregg loss: Agency gains new clients, projects 20-percent growth
Ron Pearson said business at his Indianapolis-based advertising agency over the last year has been “stellar.” Exaggeration or not, any growth at Pearson Partners is a 180-degree reversal from the dire situation the firm faced just a year ago. In April 2007, Pearson’s firm-then called Pearson McMahon Fletcher England-lost its biggest client, HHGregg. Last summer, Pearson cut nearly half its work force, paring the agency down to about 20 employees in the wake of losing the $20-million-plus account. Pearson’s capitalized…
SPORTS: NASCAR: Good for the city, not so fun to watch
Depending upon when IBJ lands in your hands, the 15th Allstate 400 at the Brickyard will be either coming to or going from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. So let’s talk racin’. Let me begin by saying how pleased I am that Tony George took that giant leap in 1994 and welcomed NASCAR to the hallowed openwheel grounds of IMS. By most accounts, the Brickyard 400 instantly became the second-most-coveted prize on the NASCAR circuit and it has remained in that…
Commentary: Every office should have a defibrillator
Tim Russert died last month at age 58. He was Washington bureau chief for NBC and the moderator of “Meet the Press.” His physician, Michael Newman, described the cause of death as coronary thrombosis-sudden cardiac arrest. Russert’s untimely death was possibly preventable. We can learn something here that may save lives at our businesses. Russert had been diagnosed with asymptomatic coronary artery disease that he controlled with medication and exercise. According to Newman, his stress test in April was normal….
Going mobile: Local executive carves niche as national expert on fast-growing banking-industry technology trend
Move over home computer, the more nimble mobile phone and competing handheld devices have taken the helm as the hippest ways to conduct banking business online. What’s more, an Indianapolis banking executive is at the forefront of the mobile-banking information movement and is promoting the benefits on a blog he created that is attracting scores of new viewers each month from around the world. Brandon McGee, 34, may keep bankers’ hours at the downtown office of the Columbus, Ohio-based Huntington…
Airport parking strategy might cut garage rates while still boosting revenue
Busy touting restaurants, artwork and other luxuries of the $1.1 billion midfield terminal, the Indianapolis Airport Authority
is still grappling with a few details arguably more important to passengers. Among them: How much will it cost to park? The
answer might be among the more surprising aspects of midfield. Officials are considering slashing rates
for the 5,900-space successor to Indianapolis International’s existing 1,776-space garage.
INVESTING: High pay for failed CEOs adds insult to injury
Labor Department figures show that average annual family incomes in the United States, adjusted for inflation, have grown just 0.8 percent since the end of 2001. On the other hand, executive pay and severance pay for fired CEOs has skyrocketed. At the very least, the average family shareholder deserves a thank you. Surely if you are a shareholder of AIG, you expect a kind word from ex-CEO Martin Sullivan who left in June with a $47 million severance package-despite AIG’s…
A&E: Booker blitzes downtown
It is likely that “Chakaia Booker: Mass Transit,” the 10-piece exhibition running through April 1, will invite a greater negative reaction than the two previous public art shows that dotted downtown. Unlike Tom Otterness-with his rounded smileys masking money-is-evil messages-and Julian Opie-many of whose “Signs” could have served as, well, signs-Booker creates work that is abstract, defiant and unpolished. The pieces-constructed from tires-aren’t pretty, they aren’t funny, they aren’t slick and they don’t seem aimed to please. As such, they…
EYE ON THE PIE: Don’t blame financial woes on others
A brief rain shower moves across the Front Range onto Colorado Springs. The clouds change their patterns rapidly above Pikes Peak and I sip my coffee at a Starbucks that is unlikely to close. Here, not far from the U.S. Air Force Academy, a brief drive from the U.S Olympic Training Center, the volume of cash passing hourly is heavy enough to ensure that the cappuccino soy latte and the mint mocha frappuccino will continue to be drawn for months,…
NOTIONS: Bless the blogosphere, all praise social networking
A few months ago, after considerable cajoling, my friend Erik convinced me to join yet another online social network. This one’s called Smaller Indiana. It bills itself as “making people and ideas findable.” So now, in addition to being “LinkedIn” with a few hundred of my friends and colleagues past and present, and in addition to being what BusinessWeek calls a “fogey on Facebook,” I’m also a Smoosier-the moniker for Smaller Indiana members. No sooner had I become a Smoosier…
Pitch-Perfect Price: Digonex Technologies’ software helps retailers profit from demand
Is every song downloaded from iTunes really worth 99 cents? Indianapolis-based Digonex Technologies doesn’t think so, and it has developed a computer program using some complicated algorithms to prove it. The company’s software compiles sales data and re-prices items for online sales, allowing merchants to maximize profits by adjusting prices up or down based on demand. Consumers don’t notice a difference. “What we’re doing is a big idea,” said Digonex CEO Jan Eglen, 65. “Most of the [pricing systems] you…
Bear market near an end, local stock broker says:
Several indicators suggest the bear market in stocks is over and greener pastures lie ahead, an Indianapolis broker says. Kevin Schmidt, executive vice president of the private client group at City Securities Corp., said most of the bad news has emerged from the housing, airline and finance debacles, which suggests investor sentiment will begin to turn positive. “Psychologically, we are in a funk,” Schmidt said. “It’s not as bad as everybody thinks. The overreaction to the negative has happened.” Schmidt…
Government officials dangle incentives, attracting firms across county lines
Marion County economic development officials are proud of their latest headquarters attraction. Bowen Engineering Corp.
will inject 103 high-paying jobs into the Indianapolis economy immediately. And over time, the company expects
to add another 138. Their average salaries will top $70,000. The deal didn’t require Mayor Greg Ballard
to travel to Japan, or even to another state. Bowen Engineering is moving all of 8.4 miles, from its former
home in Fishers to the 8800 block of North Meridian Street.
EDITORIAL: Bulldozing history shouldn’t be easy: Ivy Tech should keep its promise
Bulldozing history shouldn’t be easy Ivy Tech should keep its promise Ivy Tech Community College says it is continuing to seek feedback from the public about how best to redevelop the old St. Vincent Hospital property just north of downtown, but it already has an architect’s drawing of what could replace the neoclassical structure built in 1912. Does that mean Ivy Tech’s leaders have their minds made up about the property’s future? We hope not. The city turned over the…
BEHIND THE NEWS: Former Carmel exec goes from fast lane to jail cell
Just a few years ago, Carmel businessman Edward Okun was living the high life. By last year, his personal holdings had grown to include four mansions, a helicopter, three airplanes, 20 automobiles, and a 130-foot yacht. Today, Okun is in a Virginia jail, is represented by a public defender, and faces the prospect of spending the rest of his life behind bars. And, angry investors say, rightfully so. They charge-and government investigators agree-that Okun financed his lavish lifestyle by misappropriating…