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SPORTS Bill Benner: IRL vision falls short for driver on outside looking in

This will be the 10th Indianapolis 500 since the split-or chasm, or Grand Canyon-wide divide-in American open-wheel racing, and there is no question that the Indy Racing League and CART/Champ Car continue to suck the exhaust fumes of NASCAR. They lag well behind the taxi-cab series in crowds, television ratings, media coverage and corporate support. Why the knuckleheads who rule both open-wheel circuits stubbornly continue to go their own way is way beyond me, but I suspect the reason can…

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Stutz’s future includes condos: Developer envisions high-rise, nightclub as part of biz center

Stutz Business Center owner and visionary Turner Woodard last month rolled out a 10-year master plan for the Stutz that could bring condominiums, retail and a high-rise tower to the former auto-manufacturing plant at 10th Street and Capitol Avenue. Right now, Woodard concedes many of his plans are dreams. But with a blossoming life sciences corridor just to the west along the Central Canal, Woodard said he wants the 80-year-old Stutz to continue to be a hub of activity as…

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Convention payoffs won’t be instant: New deals, development unlikely until construction begins

The much-ballyhooed battle about funding for a new stadium and expanded convention center downtown appears to be over, but it will be some time before the victors get the spoils. Although state lawmakers authorized a series of tax increases to pay for the $900 million project, plenty of work remains to realize the promised payoffs-increased convention business, additional development and a shot at hosting the Super Bowl. “I don’t expect to see any of that until construction starts,” said Indianapolis…

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Airport goes batty on environmental mitigation: Cost of buying new land for bat habitat is triple estimates, on top of $21.6 million spent since early 1990s

The cost of replacing Indiana bat habitat bulldozed to build an Interstate 70 entrance to the midfield airport terminal has tripled from original estimates. The Indianapolis Airport Authority has spent $1.3 million buying new roosting land for the endangered bat, up from a $475,000 estimate published in the Authority’s justreleased annual report. That’s on top of $21.6 million in other environmental mitigation projects at Indianapolis International Airport involving bats and wetlands since the early 1990s. That amount is roughly equivalent…

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ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: By changing our clocks, Hoosiers show progress

The state of Indiana ended its isolation as a land of never-changing clocks when the Legislature gave its approval to a bill mandating the practice of daylight-saving time that has been the national standard for almost a quarter century. Next April, the question of what time it is in Indiana, from the point of view of the 98 percent of the domestic economy outside our borders, should finally be put to rest. That makes you either very happy or very…

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Twilight fund fades away: Meanwhile, six BioCrossroads-backed VCs are just getting started

Its specialty is developing local life sciences startups. But its partners can’t raise any more money. So the sun is setting on Twilight Venture Partners. Meanwhile, the six venture capital firms BioCrossroads staked with its $73 million Indiana Future Fund have just three local investments to show among them. Venture investments take time, the six IFF recipients argue. And their first duty is to earn the high rate of return the IFF’s organizers demand. That means significant proof of concept…

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Ex-Meridian CEO takes top talent to new firm: AHM Graves, Carmen fold into Resource

The sudden departure of Samuel F. Smith II from locally based Meridian Real Estate is proving to have a ripple effect in the local brokerage community. Smith’s new firm, Resource Commercial Real Estate, is up to six principals and 12 full-time brokers weeks after its official launch, and partners hint there may be more to come. Two small firms, Carmel-based AHM Graves Commercial Real Estate Services and Carmen Commercial Real Estate Services, have merged with Resource. The new company is…

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STATEHOUSE DISPATCH: Budget process smoother, but effect uncertain

As legislative veterans well know, there is nothing like a deadline to force action. The April 29 date for final adjournment of the Indiana General Assembly’s 2005 session did just that-helped along by new House rules requiring a proposed budget to be available to lawmakers at least 24 hours before a final vote. After some four months of sorting through philosophical issues, fiscal issues, political issues and sometimes even personal issues, lawmakers finally reached agreement on a biennial budget. At…

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New CEO’s ‘crash diet’ tones up ailing bank: After cutting its expenses, Old National plans to grow in central Indiana markets

Now it’s time for Old National to block and tackle. “Bob Jones has set forth a plan that makes good, sound fundamental sense. Now it becomes about execution,” said Joe Stieven, equity analyst with St. Louis-based Stifel Nicolaus & Co. Inc. “Execution in banking is actually no different than in football. Your line has to do a lot of the work, and a lot of that work appears mundane and boring.” Formerly the CEO of Cleveland-based KeyCorp’s McDonald Investments Inc.,…

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‘Blue-eyed soul brother’: Radio One’s new GM out to prove race doesn’t matter

“I think it had been so long since one of the doors had been opened, no one knew how to open it,” Williams said with a laugh from his office on the north side of downtown. Since that initial learning curve was conquered, the doors haven’t closed. “When Chuck opened those double doors, I was taken aback,” said Amos Brown, director of strategic research and one of the most well-known personalities at Radio One. “I thought, ‘Wow, something here is…

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Pacers gain traction with fans, sponsors: But Ron Artest’s return presents a marketing challenge

Pacers average attendance jumped from 16,558 last year to 16,995 this season. While it appears to be a small difference, it’s almost twice the percentage increase league-wide, and it pushed Pacers attendance higher than anytime since the 17,889 average in the second season in Conseco Fieldhouse. Capacity is 18,345. The Pacers enjoyed a slight attendance spike after Reggie Miller announced his retirement in February. But interest was already bubbling as the team was in the midst of an unlikely playoff…

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Mission to Mexico to promote business: City officials, corporate leaders to take part in trip

Most Hoosiers visiting Mexico spend their time on the beaches of Cancun, Cabo San Lucas or Puerto Vallarta. But this fall, an excursion of a different kind will take local business and civic leaders south of the border to explore new opportunities for commerce and trade with Mexico. The week-long mission, scheduled for early September, is the brainchild of Sergio Aguilera, Mexico’s consul general for Indianapolis. He hopes that exposing Hoosiers to all facets of Mexican life-from government and the…

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CHRIS KATTERJOHN Commentary: Be yourself-maximize your assets

Be who you are. Conversely, don’t try to be somebody you’re not. Focus on what you do best, and you’ll succeed. When we think of people who excel at anything … Joshua Bell playing the violin, Reggie Miller shooting three-pointers, Dr. Lawrence Einhorn treating cancer … we understand they have achieved their success by focusing on their God-given talents, developing them, and practicing, practicing, practicing. Communities are much the same, though the philosophy could be amended to read a more…

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Banker fits bill at art museum: Ex-Bank One CEO O’Connor leads facility through final stages of $74M expansion

Just over a year after retiring from the top position at central Indiana’s largest bank, former Bank One of Indiana CEO Lawrence A. O’Connor Jr. found himself giving up his newfound freedom to run another big business-the Indianapolis Museum of Art. Making the jump from financial services to arts and culture might seem unlikely, but O’Connor, who’s been serving as IMA’s interim executive director since November, finds himself at home running Indianapolis’ largest arts-related not-for-profit. “This is a wonderful place,”…

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INVESTING: Though energy sector remains hot, avoid the herd

In July, I wrote about a few stocks that might help an investor take advantage of the rising oil prices. Up to the April 4 close, here are the results of those three stocks: Veritas, up 33 percent; XTO Energy, up 56 percent; San Juan Trust, up 60 percent. The energy industry needs another look right now. High oil prices are a hot topic everywhere, and the low-hanging fruit of returns has been picked. I don’t want to make a…

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IUPUI discovers Office for Women still needs to exist: Program uses workshops, discussions and awards to keep the issues affecting women in the forefront

While many universities have programs dedicated to women’s equality, the IUPUI Office for Women is not taken for granted by the administration there. “It is important as part of the university’s diversity department,” said Kathy Grove, director of the IUPUI Office for Women. “It helps women to fulfill their potential and ensure that we have an environment free of harassment based on gender.” Established in October 1996 under the leadership of Dr. Kathleen Warfel, who was a professor of pathology…

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Are you tough enough?: Women learn how to be hardy so they can compete with the guys in any field of endeavor

Dr. Mary Reilly sometimes gets emotional on the job. But the emergency physician also knows how to turn it off. “In the middle of a ‘code,’ I can’t be breaking down in tears,” said Reilly, who works with Indianapolis-based St. Vincent Emergency Physicians Inc. “I put a wall up in some situations and try not to think about these people as people. That’s the only way emotionally I can get through [it].” Reilly is among the many women who’ve learned…

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BEHIND THE NEWS: Emmis stock is out of favor, but is future really so bleak? Outsourcing firm plans IPO

The radio industry receives abysmal press these days. Bears note that advertising revenue has grown sluggishly in recent years, despite the economic rebound. And they quiver over new competition from satellite radio and the iPod. So is this the time for investors to flee the sector? Or to pick up a few bargains? Contrarians may want to take a closer look at hometown broadcaster Emmis Communications Corp., which will announce fiscal fourth-quarter financial results April 14. Certainly, these are not…

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Probe paved way for broker to bolt: Knall’s exit from McDonald a boon for Stifel

The Indiana University graduate who runs St. Louis-based Stifel Nicolaus & Co. has known David Knall for years. So his mind began to whir late last year after an insider-trading probe sidelined Knall, one of the nation’s top-producing stockbrokers, from his post at McDonald Investments. By late January, Knall’s leave of absence from McDonald had run nearly two months, and it wasn’t expected to end until r eg u l a t o r s wrapped up their probe, a…

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Ergo Office Furniture LLC: Workers sit, ergo offices need furniture Retailer deals primarily in used desks and chairs

Businesses sometimes need office furniture immediately. That’s one of the reasons Ergo Office Furniture has thrived. Ergo, at 2525 N. Shadeland Ave., sells, rents or leases office furniture to its customers. Though the company does carry some new furniture, and can order whatever it doesn’t have, co-owner Mark S. Kemper said 70 percent of Ergo’s revenue is in used furniture. The advantage of selling used furniture is that it’s normally right there in the inventory. Brand-new furniture, in many cases,…

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