Longtime business, civic leader Walls dies at 86
John W. Walls served as president of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce from 1977 to 1992 and as senior deputy mayor of Indianapolis under Richard Lugar.
Government & Economic Development
Articles
Former Indy Chamber prez scores consulting work
Scott Miller, who resigned from the chamber post after less than two years to follow his entrepreneurial bent, will help two local startups get off the ground.
Pence administration shuffles several positions
One job change has led to a series of others in Indiana Gov. Mike Pence's five-month-old administration.
INDOT memo strips information in public tug-of-war
By one stroke this year, Indiana lawmakers and the new governor vastly improved the public's ability to find out how the show is run at the Statehouse, while in another, top managers at the Indiana Department of Transportation quietly clamped down on what's available.
Mainstreet plans $9.2M nursing home on northwest side
The 65,000-square-foot nursing-home and assisted-living facility would feature an Internet cafe, movie theaters and restaurant-style dining with an on-site chef.
FedEx seeks to build $34M distribution hub at Ameriplex
FedEx is looking to nearly double the size of its SmartPost distribution operations on the city's southwest side by building a bigger hub at the Ameriplex Indianapolis business park.
Indiana moving business-filing reminders online
Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson is moving away from paper to email for reminders to Indiana businesses to file their annual reports with the state.
Land bank legislation could get lost in shuffle of deep agenda
Legislative leaders recently assigned House Bill 1317 to the standing commission, which is also due to tackle such subjects as township assistance, agricultural land valuation and a motorsports commission.
IndyGo jettisons big-name designers
An internationally known architectural team chosen to design a proposed IndyGo transit hub is no longer on the project, to no surprise of local architects who insist the transit agency botched the selection process from the start.
City can tap $39 million in low-interest loans
Affordable-housing builders are enthusiastic about the new source of low-cost capital, which is targeted at a large swath of the inner city, excepting downtown.
Aromatherapy stores challenge Indiana’s ‘lookalike’ law
Four store owners say Indiana's efforts to curb "lookalike" drugs have gone too far.
Data-hosting firm Axia to add up to 45 jobs
The Indianapolis-based company will invest $2.8 million to expand its downtown headquarters and open a data center in Columbus, Ind.
Commission OK’d land bank deals with charities
City development officials were outraged last year to learn that the Indy Land Bank allowed investors to circumvent a public bidding process for real estate by working through a not-for-profit entity. Yet they continued to approve Land Bank transactions with not-for-profits.
‘Study’ panels sound ho-hum, but carry great weight
The growing interest in summer study committees, and their potential power, has leaders on the General Assembly's Legislative Council pondering how to balance the many requests against the constraints of lawmakers who meet in Indianapolis a few months out of each year.
Forty percent of school districts to see no funding increase
Lawmakers overall increased school funding 2 percent next year and 1 percent the following year. But shifts in how that money is awarded mean some districts actually might see decreases.
City fires indicted DMD employees, hires special attorney
The city terminated two employees indicted this week on fraud charges stemming from a bribery scheme involving the Indianapolis Land Bank. It also hired a veteran attorney to review city policies and handle communications about the scheme.
City panel tables approval of new towing contract
The Indianapolis Board of Code Enforcement put off voting on a new citywide towing-management contract Thursday after members said they wanted more information about the bids from San Francisco-based AutoReturn and its local competitors.
Pike Township audit focuses on misused gas card
A former secretary in the Pike Township trustee’s office could face criminal charges after an internal investigation and state audit found that she used a township credit card to fill up her own gas tank.
High-profile developer chases Indy debut
Cleveland-based Forest City Enterprises Inc., developer of the 76-story New York by Gehry in New York City, is teaming with Keystone Group in its bid to redevelop a prime piece of downtown real estate where Market Square Arena once stood.
City expected to award towing contract to California firm
Indianapolis will choose a San Francisco-based company to oversee city-ordered towing under a contract expected to be authorized Thursday afternoon.