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Mass-transit movement focuses on education: Passenger projections, search for director delay effort

Efforts to secure a mass-transit system for central Indiana are moving ahead. But not rapidly. Several mass-transit bills are pending in the General Assembly-including one requiring the Indiana Department of Transportation to study building a rail system from Indianapolis to Muncie, and another encouraging development of mass-transit systems across the state. But neither is likely to result in immediate funding for a system serving Indianapolis commuters. Local mass-transit advocates still are a long way from winning over lawmakers and others…

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MICKEY MAURER Commentary: The power of a single ‘thank you’

One of the most enjoyable aspects of my job as president of the Indiana Economic Development Corp. and secretary of commerce was the opportunity to represent our governor and the state of Indiana on goodnews occasions. On April 26, 2005, I bestowed official state certification on Intech Park, a business incubator that had qualified under the Indiana Certified Technology Park Program. Certified tech parks enjoy the advantage of being allowed to capture and invest in the development of their park…

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Ratio building go-to reputation: Convention Center expansion latest notch in firm’s belt

As the Final Four approaches, it seems fitting to relive in basketball terms how Ratio Architects Inc. came off the bench in dramatic fashion to save a high-profile downtown project after the star had fouled out. The Indianapolis-based architectural firm played that role in 2004 after sketches from the original out-of-town architect designing the downtown headquarters of Simon Property Group Inc. failed to impress corporate executives. Ratio had one week to deliver, and did. But while the firm’s portfolio is…

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EYE ON THE PIE: Repair shop teaches valuable lesson

This is a true story. For several weeks, we had a rumble, rattle or otherwise disturbing noise in the right rear of our van. One day, I did get out of the van and looked at the muffler and tailpipe. Finding no apparent problem, I continued to the shopping center. Within minutes, there was a significant thump from the right rear undercarriage. The rumble turned to a hard dragging, scraping sound. I found the right rear shock absorber hanging down,…

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MICKEY MAURER Commentary: Hoosiers, wake up to the world

Don’t rest the chopsticks on your food. Don’t blow your nose during the meal and never pour the soy sauce on your rice. These and other tidbits of Japanese dining etiquette had to be digested before our first trade mission to Japan in 2005. That 74-person mission, led by Gov. Mitch Daniels, was the largest delegation of Indiana business leaders and state and local officials ever on foreign shores. Indiana is the No. 1 manufacturing state in the union. More…

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BULLS & BEARS: Awareness of risk is back, and that’s not a bad thing

“I’m baaack!” yelled Mr. Risk at the top of his lungs on Feb. 27. “Welcome back, Mr. Risk. You have been gone a while,” responded a nervous Mr. Market. “Even though deep down we knew you were hanging around the neighborhood, we had forgotten all about you.” And thus ended the calm that had presided over the stock market, which had risen in regimented fashion the past seven months. With the 416-point drop in the Dow Jones industrial average that…

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A whole new ballgame: More women stepping up to the plate in commercial real estate

Yogi Berra once said, “You give 100 percent in the first half of the game, and if that isn’t enough, in the second half you give what’s left.” Women are accepting his challenge with a chuckle, running onto the commercial real estate field and playing to win. They also are balancing home and family. Why not? The U.S. commercial real estate market is worth about $3.5 trillion, according to Real Capital Analytics, a New York research firm. Bridget Farren, founder…

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Commentary: How to improve Indy’s 2011 Super Bowl

Feb. 4, 2007, will be a day fondly remembered in Indianapolis for generations to come. It was the day the Indianapolis Colts emerged victorious from Super Bowl XLI. The Super Bowl media exposure, combined with the city’s proud history of organizing and hosting some of the world’s largest sporting events, should position us well to serve as host for the 2011 Super Bowl. Already, a host committee has been formed and seed funds committed. The General Assembly has passed legislation…

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XM-Sirius merger is threat to local HD radio: Local broadcasters hustle to launch digital channels

The news of a potential merger between New York-based Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. and Washington, D.C.-based XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. comes at a critical time for local radio station operators. If the merger draws more listeners, that clearly would be bad news for terrestrial radio stations already dealing with the Internet and Ipod, and could imperil their fledgling high-definition initiative. Already, the proposed $11.4 billion merger is getting lots of media attention, and that’s bound to raise satellite radio’s…

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ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: Turnabout is fair play in evaluating education

Much has been made in recent years of the performance of our state’s secondary schools. In particular, the recent revisions made to high school graduation statistics, suggesting that as few as three out of four ninth-graders graduate with their class have sounded an alarm. People are saying something is wrong with K-12 education in Indiana, and they would appear to have plenty of ammunition to support their arguments. But turnabout is fair play in the business of evaluating education. Since…

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VOICES FROM THE INDUSTRY: NFL in tough spot regarding Super Bowl church parties

With the multitude of stories and media activity leading up to the Colts’ appearance in Super Bowl XLI, who would have guessed that an otherwise mundane intellectual property enforcement issue concerning the NFL and a local church would take the top headline just days before the Big Game? Such was the case when the NFL sent a cease-and-desist letter to Fall Creek Baptist Church, thereby stopping the church’s plans to show the Super Bowl on a 12-foot projection screen and…

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NFL Combine could leave Indianapolis after 20-plus years: Event organizers want better deal after 2008

Despite moving their headquarters from Tulsa to Indianapolis last year, the organizers of the NFL Scouting Combine said the event could move following 2008. “We’re still in the midst of data collection, so it’s difficult to evaluate this year’s event,” said Jeffrey Foster, president of National Invitational Camp, which runs the Combine from its office at Pan Am Plaza. While the primary concern of agents and players-the speed of the 40-yard dash track-was worked out, a new set of concerns…

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INVESTING: Memo to Alan Greenspan: You’re retired, so keep quiet

It’s hard to go away. For people in the spotlight and at the top of their fields, retiring can be difficult. Just look at how many times Michael Jordan tried to come back to basketball. Late last month, we were treated to a visit from someone who many consider one of the greatest financial minds ever-former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. Many give him the lion’s share of credit for the greatest stock market run of all time, from 1995…

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Courts grapple with issues arising from Internet, blogs: Educators explore policies for off-campus activity

The World Wide Web and blogging explosion have created new hurdles for attorneys, especially those consulting on issues that arise from school districts trying to balance off-campus activities and school safety. As officials recognize that off-campus activity can spill into school hallways and classrooms, many are looking to policies that can prevent those actions outside school from impacting student safety or the overall educational process. “Internet blogging is one of the more publicized activities that pose both harm and benefit,…

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SPORTS: Here’s Bird’s take on the Pacers’ fall from grace

Timing is everything, which meant I was in the caboose of the media train that rolled through Larry Bird’s office recently. So by the time I sat down with the Indiana Pacers’ president of basketball operations, Bird had pretty much heard, and answered, every question with regard to the frustrating state of our NBA franchise. There’s no pretty picture to be painted: The off-court incidents, first at the infamous Club Rio during training camp, then at the Eight Seconds Saloon;…

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CHRIS KATTERJOHN Commentary: IMA art park is a grand slam

Lest we overlook it among the rash of crimes, stock-market gyrations and General Assembly shenanigans reported in the media recently, the Indianapolis Museum of Art deserves some major kudos. Amid the chaos, the IMA announced the names of the 10 artists, artists’ groups and architects who will create works for its Virginia B. Fairbanks Art & Nature Park set to open in 2009. It was a grand slam. Unveiled in New York Feb. 27, the list includes individuals or collectives…

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Doctor grows magazine with unusual strategy: Circulation hits 100,000 nationally and still climbing

A Carmel-based doctor turned publisher is celebrating his magazine’s first anniversary by rolling out plans to take his publishing and health care businesses nationwide. Radius magazine is poised for rapid growth due to its “no fluff” content, according to its founder, Dev Brar, who founded Carmel-based Nightingale Home Healthcare in 1996. Both businesses are operating out of a new headquarters at 1036 S. Rangeline Road, and Brar is hoping the two will grow hand-in-hand. Brar is using Radius to market…

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Making connections: Networking groups help business owners reach out

Small-business owners know building relationships helps build business. But cultivating strategic connections also takes time-one commodity that’s always in short supply. That’s where networking groups come in. A growing number of such organizations are working to connect busy business owners so they can trade advice and customer leads in a short span of time. With weekly or monthly meetings, the groups promise a one-stop opportunity to make dozens of contacts that can lead directly to sales. One of the fastest-growing…

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The high cost of not going to college VIEWPOINT:

The high cost of not going to college VIEWPOINT Recent studies reinforce what many parents and prospective students have found out firsthand: The cost of a college education is rising beyond what some middle- to lowincome families can afford. The cost of attending a public college rose 35 percent during the past five years, after adjusting for inflation, according to studies by the College Board, a not-for-profit organization that administers standardized tests throughout the country. As these and other studies…

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MICKEY MAURER Commentary: Nothing new in athletes misbehaving

There were lots of empty seats at Conseco Fieldhouse the other night. It seems thousands of fans of professional basketball in Indiana are no longer “ready to rumble.” At this rate, Pacers leaping into the stands will have no one left to cold-cock. Local media has exacerbated the situation by an ad nauseam comparison of the world champion Indianapolis Colts to the Indiana Pacers. Unfortunately for the Pacers, the Super Bowl and the latest melee occurred within hours of each…

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