Articles

ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: Parting thoughts on Indiana’s strengths, weaknesses

The nice thing about economics is that we never really figure anything out. That hasn’t stopped folks like me from writing about economics and papers like this one from printing what we have to say. As I often have said to those who have remarked on these writings, nature abhors a vacuum. Someone else will be filling that vacuum next week, because this is my last column-for Indiana readers, at least. I am happy to leave you in the capable…

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Commentary: It’s way past time to complete Unigov

The property-tax disaster in Marion County and around Indiana is composed of two dependent parts: the manner in which property is assessed and the government infrastructure that establishes tax rates or levies and whose operations are funded in large measure by property-tax assessments. The state has improved the manner in which property is assessed. Unfortunately, the state has not done an adequate job of training assessors in all 92 counties. In Indianapolis, the challenge of accurately assessing property is compounded…

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How Family Friendly is: Baker & Daniels LLP: Serving regional, national and international business clients

Baker & Daniels LLP Serving regional, national and international business clients Flexible working arrangements Laptops and BlackBerries are provided for all legal and management staff to allow them to work from home or for use while traveling, when necessary. The firm allows attorneys to stay on partnership track while on a reducedhours schedule due to a family situation or other pre-approved situation. At its discretion, the firm will consider telecommuting arrangements for employees who have at least one year of…

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Prenatal product designed to aid development: Biologist mom of seven sold on benefits of system

When Lisa Jarrett was expecting her fourth child in 1991, her obstetrician husband pulled out an article he had read in a medical journal about a prenatal audio development system. Created by physician and researcher Brent Logan, the system is designed to help a baby’s brain develop before it is born by introducing simple rhythms similar to the mother’s heartbeat. “It’s a cognitive curriculum,” Jarrett said. After obtaining Logan’s tapes and using them through her next three pregnancies, she was…

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VOICES FROM THE INDUSTRY: Greener Indianapolis buildings could be within reach

In case you’ve missed it, energy dependence and environmental preservation are among the most pressing issues here at home and around the globe. The issue is forcing all of us to take a hard look at nearly every aspect of how we live. This self examination of sorts, extends point on building costs can sometimes move as a strategy to draw down life-cycle costs. Typically the increased front-end investment can be recovered within a relatively short period. In order to…

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EYE ON THE PIE: Property tax isn’t evil, it’s abused

There are two books I want to call to your attention. They are both written by Hoosiers and are both vitally important to Indiana at this time. But this column, again, must be about property taxes because that is the compelling issue of the day. One book is “I Never Worked a Day in My Life,” by Bill Haeberle, the retired IU business professor who has started and aided hundreds of businesses. The other is “Performance is the Best Politics,”…

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Personal training sessions keep gym clients coming

In a world where gyms and fitness centers beckon with billboards, water parks and membership specials, Body-N-Motion has found a lower-key, back-to-basics niche. Tucked in an office/flex park next to the headquarters of Mays Chemical Corp. on the northeast side, Mike “Mr. Motion” White’s 5-year-old gym specializes in personal training. All its clients have White or one of his 10 employees putting them through the paces of a customized workout that, White notes with pride, is rarely the same routine…

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MICKEY MAURER Commentary: Banker’s exit won’t end good deeds

Indiana, as you know, has not escaped the inevitable crush of consolidation in the banking industry. No one should have been surprised by the announcement that First Indiana Corp. was selling itself to an out-of-state bank, Milwaukee-headquartered Marshall & Isley Corp. In spite of the best efforts of M&I, The National Bank of Indianapolis, of which I am chairman of the board, will add business as a result of this transaction. Some of First Indiana’s customers prefer to deal with…

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New kind of high school pairs projects, technology: Educators hope approach boosts graduation rates

Students at three new Indiana high schools this fall are going to learn the California way. No, they won’t be holding classes on the beach. They’ll use technology and a project-oriented curriculum to learn about math, science and history, plus gain 21st century skills business leaders say today’s work force needs. The New Technology High School model, which began in Napa Valley, Calif., in 1996, will launch in Indiana this fall with New Tech High at Arsenal Tech, New Tech…

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Housing advocate seeing upswing: Mortgage market woes boost INHP participation

Al Smith of Chase Bank doesn’t know Patricia Wells, but he is glad he was able to help the Indianapolis mother of five, if only indirectly. Wells closed on the purchase of a house on East Washington Street three months ago, thanks in no small part to two programs of the Indianapolis Neighborhood Housing Partnership, a two-decade-old not-for-profit that has helped hundreds of families realize the American Dream of homeownership. “I’m a single mother with five kids and I didn’t…

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Strides taken in life sciences, experts say: Industry panel: Thanks to ongoing efforts, Indiana has experienced serious progress as biomedical hotbed during last 5 years

Five leaders of Indiana’s life sciences industry offered their perspectives at the Indiana Convention Center June 26 as part of the Indianapolis Business Journal’s Power Breakfast Series. The panelists: Mike Arpey, managing director of global investment bank Credit Suisse’s Asset Management Division and manager of the $73 million Indiana Future Fund for BioCrossroads, the state’s life sciences economicdevelopment initiative. Ron Ellis, co-founder, president and CEO of Lafayettebased Endocyte Inc., a biotechnology company focused on the treatment of cancer through receptor-targeted…

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Butler class to invest university endowment money

When a Butler University finance class starts investing in the stock market this fall, it won’t be Monopoly money that’s on
the line. In a three-year pilot program that is unique for a school of Butler’s size, a group of senior finance students will
use $1 million from the university’s endowment fund to invest.

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EYE ON THE PIE: Taxes pay for what Hoosiers want

Good people, me included, have been making dumb statements about the property tax mess in Indiana. The problem is that we don’t know enough to talk or write intelligently on the topic. The result is that we can be led by our noses into an even worse mess. “Abolish the property tax!” some demand. Then what? Abolition of the property tax means raising some other taxes or fees, unless government spending on services decreases. The state has been urging counties…

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NOTIONS: A property tax sigh of relief and a reform wish list

The nightstand clock reads 5:17. Too early to wake up. But hey, I’ve been tossing and turning for hours, so why lie here any longer, pretending? The cause for this night’s insomnia is money. Money for two kids starting college. Money to replace the Money to paint the house. Money for employees’ salaries. Money for employees’ parking. Money for employees’ retirement. Money for employees’ health insurance. Money for their families’ health insurance. Money to get the yellow highway paint off…

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Scientific work experience gives attorneys a boost: Lab knowledge helpful in intellectual property work

At first thought, people might assume most attorneys have undergraduate degrees in political science or criminal justice. And while many do, those with backgrounds in engineering, chemistry, physics, and other sciences are being drawn more and more to law because of the growth of interest from businesses in intellectual property. Some IP attorneys decided to take the leap from working in the science world to the legal one, and those who did it say their time working in a lab…

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EYE ON THE PIE: Health care and the pursuit of happiness

Some people believe the Fourth of July grants them liberty to disturb the night with their firecrackers. My pursuit of happiness is in conflict with theirs and I want them jailed. We all gladly infringe on the liberties of others while in pursuit of our own happiness. For example, should motorcyclists wear helmets? Yes, if all of us expect to pay their hospital bills (through higher premiums) and maintain them on disability after they have head injuries that might be…

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PROFILE TINA MOE: Persistence paid off for local business owner Tenacious accountant shares with clients valuable lessons she learned from the school of hard knocks

Moe’s path to opening Indianapolisbased ACT Services Inc., her accounting, tax and consulting firm, was fraught with roadblocks. In 1998 she graduated from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business in Indianapolis with a degree in accounting. That same year she divorced. Moe has had her share of breakups. While still an undergraduate, the Greenwood native worked for a year as a business partner with a certified public accountant at Accounting Store LLC in Speedway. The partnership continued for five…

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Commentary: We need a sensible alcohol policy

The recent bust at the home of former Colts quarterback Jack Trudeau, and his subsequent arrest for allegedly hosting a party where high school students consumed alcohol, reflects current law in Indiana. But it does not reflect the attitudes of some toward the appropriate age at which one is capable of making fully informed decisions about alcohol use. More important, it reflects the fractured nature of how the law views an adult and the rights and responsibilities associated with adulthood….

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State beefs up incentives available to tech companies:

Companies receiving a Phase 1 SBIR match from the state need to apply for second-stage funding by July 20. Applications can be downloaded on the IEDC Web site. The proposal for funds should be no longer than 12 pages and include a commercialization plan describing how the product would be moved to market and any challenges that would need to be overcome. The proposal also should include a budget describing the funds required for The Indiana Economic Development Corp. has…

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Snyder crams for job as Ivy Tech president

In the three months since being named president of Ivy Tech Community College, Tom Snyder
has read up on the school’s history and held meetings with 4,000 faculty, students and others to gain insight into the school.
He’s also made decisions about hiring, cost-cutting and student services.

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