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Real estate experts examine the market: Indianapolis in good shape overall, panelists say, but job growth, incentive issues, among concerns

On April 14, as part of its Power Breakfast Series, the Indianapolis Business Journal gathered a panel of commercial real estate and construction experts to discuss industry conditions in the local market. In a discussion moderated by IBJ Editor Tom Harton, panelists took on a wide range of issues, including tax incentives and the status of downtown’s residential and retail markets. Power Breakfast guests were Mike Curless, executive vice president and principal with Lauth Property Group; Mike Wells, president of…

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Ending overdue: Library shows progress amid legal tussle

There’s finally visible progress on the city’s Central Library expansion project. But the litigation over who’s responsible for its construction problems still has no end in sight. City-County Councilor Isaac Randolph is frustrated. So he wrote a proposal to order all the players in the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library’s legal dispute to enter binding arbitration. “I’m trying to find a resolution to what’s clearly become an embarrassment to the citizens funding this,” Randolph said. “I’ve lost confidence in the leadership…

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FAMILY BUSINESS: Indiana Square damage offers lesson in disaster planning

The incident drove home the importance of disaster planning. When the storm struck at 10 p.m. that Sunday, who was prepared for the emergency? Employees were told not to come in the next morning, but how would they do their jobs? What files could be retrieved? Would computer systems work on Monday and later that week? What would happen to incoming and outgoing telephone and e-mail messages? The questions and potential problems were endless. Each owner of a family business…

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Bank’s price fell $100M: Union Federal buyer cut offer as negotiations dragged on; investors pushed for liquidity

No wonder word leaked early this year that Union Federal Bank was about to be sold. A new federal filing reveals that a deal had been brewing since early last year-spawned largely by mounting frustration among investors that they were unable to turn their stake in the bank’s privately held parent, Fort Wayne-based Waterfield Mortgage Co., into cash. “The concerns over liquidity were voiced by many shareholders at Waterfield Mortgage’s annual shareholders’ meeting in the spring of 2004,” according to…

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Local facility first to offer overnight help for anorexia: Lotus House fills void for those with eating disorders

A spacious home near Stony Creek in Noblesville once known as the Hare estate has been transformed into an intensive treatment facility for young women struggling with severe eating disorders. Dubbed Lotus House, the three-story residence began hosting patients in October. Partners Patrick Hall, 40, and Misty Rees, 33, founded the facility to provide an inpatient alternative to standard care. The facility, which offers therapies for anorexia nervosa and bulimia, is just the second in the Indianapolis area to treat…

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Steep loss forecast for Standard Management: Company still anticipates closing deals for more financing as SEC annual report deadline looms

Standard Management Corp. is projecting a 2005 loss topping $20 million, and its stock has fallen below a minimum share price required by the NASDAQ exchange. The Indianapolis pharmaceutical-services firm also missed a deadline to file its annual report, as a push to arrange more financing “has consumed a substantial portion of management’s time and limited resources,” according to a March 31 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Company leaders expect a $20.3 million loss from continuing operations….

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Repairs to tower may take months: Tenants scramble for other arrangements

It was a symbol of his success. For the last three years, environmental attorney Robert Clark has relished the view from his corner office in One Indiana Square, high above the streets of Indianapolis. But on Sunday, April 2, tornadoforce winds left it in tatters. His family photos are gone. Likewise his case files and the many gifts he’d received over the years from friends or clients. “I understand there are no exterior walls,” he said. “My desk is still…

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Shared patient rooms in hospitals soon to be history: Guidelines call for private quarters in all new facilities

New guidelines due out in June will call for newly constructed hospitals to come equipped with all private patient rooms, the first time such a minimum requirement has been issued. The guidelines, published every four years by the Facilities Guidelines Institute and the American Institute of Architects’ Academy of Health, are used by nearly 40 state governments-including Indiana-to set regulations, approve construction plans and license hospitals to operate. And hospitals nationwide-including those in Indiana-are expected to embrace the guidelines that…

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Experts: Businesses should prep for bird flu: Vast majority of U.S. companies have not budgeted for possible pandemic, despite warnings from health officials

The much-hyped Y2K computer bug came and went without so much as a whimper from a whirring hard drive. But unlike the threat of malfunctioning computers, health experts warn that the potential danger of an avian flu pandemic is far greater. In the event of a widespread outbreak in the United States, companies large and small need to be prepared in order to keep interruptions to a minimum, they say. “I am an evangelist for having a contingency plan,” said…

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BRIAN WILLIAMS Commentary: Legislators should address insurance costs

Members of the Indiana General Assembly resolved some contentious issues in 2006, including property tax relief, telecommunications reform and the long-term leasing of public infrastructure. U n f o r t u n a t e l y, they did not have an opportunity to debate Senate Bill 124, which, if measured on the basis of the value per page, would have exceeded the much-heralded “Major Moves” transportation initiative. Introduced by Sen. Beverly Gard, a Greenfield Republican who has been…

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IMG faces licensing woes in Sunshine State: Florida regulator denies application over policy sales; Indianapolis firm blames paperwork snafu

Indianapolis-based International Medical Group Inc. has incurred the wrath of Florida regulators who accuse it of trying to sell policies in their state without a license. However, an IMG representative says the allegations stem from paperwork problems and the lobbying of a disgruntled excustomer turned “cyber stalker.” Founded in 1990 with four employees, IMG now employs 220 in offices in Indianapolis and Great Britain. The company administers insurance policies for U.S. citizens living or traveling overseas. It also provides coverage…

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For the Dogs Inc.: Day care center goes to the dogs After years of wishful thinking, owners let themselves off the leash

After years of wishful thinking, owners let themselves off the leash Barking is music to the ears of Kristel Baker and Harvey Markley. On any given day, dozens of canines are howling away at For The Dogs, their 3-year-old doggy day care center. And they’re set for growth, with plans to open a second location sometime in the next year. Baker, 40, got the idea for 24-hour canine care after viewing a segment on TV’s “Good Morning, America” about a…

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VIEWPOINT: ‘Eating our young’ as a way of mentoring?

I recently came across an insightful publication by the Center for the Development of Peace and Well-Being at the University of California, Berkley, called Greater Good. One article especially caught my attention: “Inspiring Good Work” (spring-summer 2005 issue) by researchers Wendy Fischman and Howard Garner, of Harvard University’s GoodWork Project. As highlighted in the article, the GoodWork Project’s research, under way for the past decade, has revealed that young people leaving college and embarking on their professional careers are finding…

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ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: A revolution in health care: Consumers will call shots

I once had a doctor who shared with me a little joke about medicine. It comes to mind every year as I get older and more susceptible to life’s ailments. Doctors, he said, don’t really cure anything. They just let you trade in one malady for another. I know he was talking about the side effects of medicines and treatments we take for our weak hearts and faltering knees. But I keep thinking it applies equally to the situation of…

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HMOs report steady profits, falling membership: Indiana insurers performed well overall in 2005

Most of Indiana’s largest HMOs managed to turn profits in 2005, even as other kinds of health insurance gained market share, sucking away 6 percent to 15 percent of their customers. Technology improvements and more efficient operations helped counter those losses, health maintenance organization executives said. However, annual reports filed with the state Department of Insurance show that profit for some of these managed care options slipped compared to 2004. Industry insiders say many companies are reluctant to offer HMOs…

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EYE ON THE PIE: Legislature wastes another session

The 150 men and women who make up the Indiana General Assembly have finished their annual freak show, folded their tents, and departed from Indianapolis. In their wake, they left some truly terrible legislation and another record of neglect for the interests of Indiana’s too-long-suffering population. What was wrong with this session of the General Assembly? Your local editor will not grant me the space to be either sufficiently complete or detailed. Let’s start with the governor’s Major Moves program….

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NOTIONS: A kid, a shave, a health care dilemma

For the second time in his young life, 9-year-old Joey Chamness had his head shaved last week. This time, the skinhead look is voluntary. Last time, it was chemotherapy. On a Thursday afternoon in January 2005, Joey was playing soccer when he felt pain in his left leg. He’d experienced this before, but not this bad. So Joey’s parents called the family pediatrician to schedule an appointment. The following Monday, the doctor took a look and said it was probably…

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Health care developers eye their next frontier: Northeast Hamilton County offers a lucrative market

Chris Hamm’s phone started buzzing with calls from health care developers once plans for an extension of 146th Street east to Interstate 69 crystallized a couple years ago. The Noblesville economic development director said several organizations have shown “significant interest” in planting health care businesses along 146th Street, which will see a big boost in traffic once workers complete the interstate connection in the fall of 2007. At least three health-care-related deals are in the works, he added, declining to…

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Ad firm’s new HQ shows imagination: Former school gets makeover for Young & Laramore

The Indianapolis-based advertising firm’s former building, at 409 Massachusetts Ave., featured an interior atrium, open work spaces and a large fish sculpture in the window that caught the eye of passersby on the busy commercial corridor. For its new building, a former school tucked into Lockerbie Square a few blocks away, the firm had to decide how to creatively use a choppedup floor plan, complete with a gymnasium in the middle. Young & Laramore enlisted Eric Rowland and Sarah Schwarzkopf…

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EYE ON THE PIE: Waiter shines light on education

I spent most of a recent weekend in the hospital, but no one seems to want to hear that story. It wasn’t much of a story, as it turns out, but the bill, which will fall on you, will be enormous. My part of the bill will be small because I am covered by Medicare and private health insurance. This means you will see my use of the health care system reflected in your future taxes and in your future…

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